Two Hundred and Fifteenth Day:
Friday, 30th August, 1946 [Page 344]
Counsel for the defence, Servatius, understands that the
probative value of this mass of written evidence is highly
dubious and he resorts to the last argument, stating that:
"Counsel for the defence were unable to visit the camps in
Austria, no claims having been received from the Soviet
Zone." But did the testimony of the witnesses for the
defence become more convincing in consequence? Does the fact
that Servatius did not visit Austria change the situation in
the very least? Servatius was given unlimited possibilities
for visiting the camps in the Soviet Zone of occupation. He
visited certain camps. He knew that the right of the members
of the organizations to submit declarations and to make
statements before the Tribunal had been repeatedly announced
in the newspapers published in the Soviet Zone and broadcast
by radio. Servatius knew all this, but nevertheless he still
endeavoured to deceive the Tribunal. He attempted to do this
in other cases as well.
When Servatius refers to Hess's directive of the 27th July,
1935, in order to confirm the fact that the Political
Leadership Corps never existed, and that allegedly the
title of "Political Leaders" was not an official one, he
passes over in silence that it was indicated, in the very
same directive, that "it stands to reason that the term
'Political Leaders' remains in use."
Servatius artificially increases the number of the leading
staff of the NSDAP to 2,100,000 persons, in order, like a
demagogue, to impute to the prosecution a tendency to
punish millions of Germans. At the same time and in order
to
[Page 345]
The ill-famed Fascist, Kaufmann, summoned by the defence to
the witness-stand, having been a member of the Nazi Party
since 1921 and Gauleiter for twenty years, appears not to
have known anything about the crimes of the Hitlerite
conspirators. He was exclusively "Socialist" and was only
taking care of the welfare of the population.
Another witness for the defence, Hans Wegscheider, who had
been an Ortsgruppenleiter for a period of twelve years, went
even farther in his testimonies. It appears that during
these twelve years he did not have time to read even Mein
Kampf.
A third witness, Meyer-Wendeborn, a Kreisleiter since 1934,
surpassed even Kaufmann by trying to justify his
accomplices. When the latter gave an affirmative answer to
the question "Were Block- and Zellenleiter some kind of
Political Leaders?" Meyer-Wendeborn answered the same
question in the negative.
It would be very easy, by some further examples, to prove
the inconsistency of the standpoint of the defence, but I
consider it unnecessary to enter into a controversy with a
defence which resorts to witnesses such as Kaufmann,
Wendeborn, et alia.
Among the Political Leaders of Hitlerite Germany (this term
was legalized by Hess's directive of 27th July, 1935) there
was within the Party hierarchy of the NSDAP a separate group
of so-called "Hoheitstrager" - bearers of sovereignty, who
occupied a special position.
Together with the Gauleiter and Kreisleiter, the group of
"Hoheitstrager" also included the Ortsgruppenleiter, Zellen-
and Blockleiter.
The special character of Political Leaders called
"Hoheitstrager" is described in the Party Manual (Charter)
of NSDAP and in the special journal called Der
Hoheitstrager, which was secret from everybody, except a
certain inner circle of the Leadership Corps of the NSDAP,
SS and SA.
From the contents of Der Hoheitstrager it is quite evident
that the Leadership Corps of the Nazi Party paid continual
attention to the measures and doctrines carried out as and
when the Fascist conspiracy was being realized. In 1937 to
1938 this journal dealt with the following problems: the
slanderous anti-Semitic articles, among them some by the not
unknown Ley, the attacks on the Church, the justification of
the necessity of increasing the "living-space" and seizing
colonies; the motorization of the Army; the utilization of
Nazi Party Cells and Blocks to gain favourable votes for the
Hitlerites in the plebiscite; the cult of the leadership,
race theory, etc.
These problems were dealt with from copy to copy. And after
this, the defence is trying to assert that the Leadership
Corps of the Nazi Party was not acquainted with the plans of
the Hitlerite conspirators.
The Nazis are now trying in every way to disown their
compromising connections with the Gestapo and the SD, but
then these connections are indisputable.
As far back as on the 26th June, 1935, Bormann had issued an
order in which was stated: "In order to effect a closer
contact between the Party offices and its organizations with
the Directors of the Secret State Police (Gestapo), the
Deputy Fuehrer requests that the Directors of the Gestapo be
invited in future to all the larger official rallies of the
Party and its organizations."
In another directive, issued on the 14th November, 1935, and
also signed by Bormann, it was stated:
[Page 346]
While carrying out the plans of Hitlerite conspirators for
the enslavement of the Yugoslav people, the Kreisleiter of
the Pettau district, with the assistance of
Ortsgruppenleiter and Blockleiter, destroyed all
inscriptions, posters and announcements, etc., written in
the Slovene language. This Fascist ruler even went so far as
to entrust the Gruppenleiter "to see to it that all Slovene
inscriptions should also be immediately and completely
removed from the images of saints (icons), chapels and
churches."
In the letter of 13th November, 1944, addressed to all
Reichsleiter, Gauleiter and Kreisleiter, Bormann notified
them of the agreement concluded with the OKW concerning "the
co-operation of the Party in the utilization of prisoners of
war. Therefore, the officers assigned to matters pertaining
to prisoners of war have been instructed to co-operate as
fully as possible with the 'Hoheitstrager'; the commandants
of the prisoner-of-war camps have immediately to detail
liaison officers to the Kreisleiter."
What the results of this co-operation were and how prisoners
of war were utilized in Germany, are well known.
In Goering's directive of the 27th March, 1942, issued in
connection with the appointment of Sauckel as
Plenipotentiary General for the Utilization of Manpower, it
was provided that Sauckel had the right to issue orders ...
also to the Party organizations, its component parts and
allied organizations.
And Sauckel did take advantage of this right. As he wrote in
his "programme issued on the Fuehrer's birthday," he "with
the Fuehrer's and Reichsmarschall's consent, as well as with
the consent of the head of the Party Chancellery" appointed
all Gauleiter of the German Reich his plenipotentiaries.
Sauckel's decree outlined the Gauleiter's tasks as follows:
It was stated farther on in this directive that all members
of the NSDAP working in business enterprises, subject to
instructions given them by the Kreisleiter and through the
Ortsgruppenleiter, are obliged "to watch the foreign workers
most carefully and notify the Party Leader immediately of
their observations, for further communication to officials of the
'Abwehr'." Where there was no permanent official of the
"Abwehr," the information was delivered to the
Ortsgruppenleiter.
Himmler's directive prescribed that "in the interest of a
unified political leadership, the 'Abwehr' officials should
co-ordinate their work with the Gestapo Leaders, who, as and
when needed, are summoned by the Kreisleiter."
That is exactly what was meant by "political leadership" of
Kreis- and Ortsgruppenleiter. Similar espionage functions
were carried out by Blockleiter, and this was clearly
indicated in the "Organization Book of the NSDAP" (Party
Manual).
[Page 347]
Blockleiter were small Fuehrer, but even they were endowed
with very real power over the citizens living in their
districts.
Certainly the Blockleiter did not elaborate the plans of
aggressive wars, but they did contribute very much to the
realization of these plans.
They formed, too, a very important section of the Nazi Party
which was the centre of the Fascist conspiracy.
That is why we insist on the recognition of the group of the
Political Leaders of the Nazi Party as a criminal
organization, together with all big and small Fuehrer:
Reichleiter, Gauleiter, Kreisleiter, Ortsgruppenleiter,
Zellenleiter, and Blockleiter - that is to say, the entire
Leadership Corps of the monstrous machinery of Fascist
dictatorship.
Among other criminal organizations created by German
Fascism, special position should be granted to the so-called
"Schutzstaffel" of the Hitlerite party, or, abbreviated, the
"SS."
The most grievous crimes of German Fascism are connected
with the title of "SS," such as: murder carried out in
concentration camps, merciless butchery of the civilian
populations and prisoners of war, savage large-scale
"actions."
Generally speaking, the SS men were supposed to render
effective the genocide plans of Hitler and his clique.
Himmler, Reichsfuehrer of the SS, often called the SS "Das
Schwarze Korps." Das Schwarze Korps (Black Corps) was
likewise the title of the official SS newspaper, "the organ
of the Reichsfuehrer SS."
It was not a title selected at random. The whole system
applied by the SS, beginning with the so-called "Allgemeine
SS" (General SS) and ending with the camp guards and SS
armed forces, was actually built up as a special "corps" of
criminals convinced of their own impunity, and purposely
trained and educated in the meaning of the most cruel and
inhuman "theories" of the Hitlerites. The chief Fascist
conspirators needed the mass cadres for carrying out the
murder of millions of enslaved people, for the seizure of
territories and realization of the so-called
"Germanisation." It was the SS men who carried out these
tasks.
The SS organization was created and became known as Hitler's
"Praetorian Guard," and as an organization of pogrom-makers
and murderers. During the entire period of its existence it
has always remained the same.
Among other evidence presented by the Soviet prosecution, a
copy of Das Schwarze Korps, issued on 20th August, 1942, was
submitted with a leading article entitled "Should we
Germanize?"
The contents of this article, representing the Nazi ideas of
Himmler, are of such importance for a correct illustration
of the essence of the SS that I am going to quote once again
a brief extract from it:
[Page 348]
At the conference of Gruppenfuehrer, held in Poznan on the
4th October, 1943, Himmler, creator of the SS, in a speech
concerning the extermination of European Jews, stated:
Hitler's decree reads as follows:
This process of development was completed on the 17th
August, 1938, by a secret directive of Hitler's, in which,
explaining the reasons for which he united on the 17th June,
1936, the offices of the Chief of the German Police and the
Reichsfuehrer SS, he stated:
The defence has unsuccessfully tried to refute this fact. It
has tried to present this organization to the Tribunal as
composed of a number of absolutely independent cells
separated by means of impenetrable partitions, such as:
"Allgemeine SS" (General SS), "Waffen SS" (armed SS forces),
"Verfugungstruppe SS " (Special SS Units), and the
"Totenkopf" Division (Death's Head Division).
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(Part 8 of 15)
"Inasmuch as the success of the work of the Party
primarily depends on the work of the SD, it is
inadmissible that its expansion be influenced by attacks
provoked by the failure of individuals. On the contrary,
it should be wholeheartedly assisted."
"To ensure the uninterrupted co-operation of all State,
Party, military and economic authorities in order to
attain the greatest effect in the utilization of
manpower."
On 25th September, 1944, Himmler issued a top secret
directive concerning "the strengthening of discipline and
efficiency of foreign workers." In this directive Himmler
made it obligatory for: " ... the Party Leaders in all
business enterprises to observe with particular attention
the frame of mind of the foreign workers. For this purpose
close co-operation of the Party, State and
economic authorities with the Gestapo is essential."
"A Blockleiter should expose all persons spreading
pernicious rumours and report them to the
Ortsgruppenleiter, in order that the latter could report
them through official channels to the State authorities."
A Blockleiter was required "to propagate the National
Socialistic ideology among the members of the Nazi Party and
the population entrusted to him."
"A Blockleiter has to carry out continuous National
Socialistic propaganda."
What the nature of Nazi propaganda was is well known to
everybody.
"We want arms again," wrote Hitler. "Therefore,
everything - starting from the child's ABC book up to the
latest newspaper - every theatre, every cinema, every
signpost and signboard should be placed at the service of
this great mission."
Not every German knew these words of Hitler's, but everyone
knew the Blockleiter of his district, and this Blockleiter
was continuously spreading the Fascist contagion, poisoning
the people's conscience, thereby assisting in the
realization of the general plans of the Hitlerite
conspirators.
" ... The following slogan has been given by the
Reichsfuehrer SS: 'It is not our purpose to Germanize the
East in the old sense, i.e., to imbue the people living
there with the German language and German laws, rather
should we strive that only people of true Germanic blood
should live in the East.' "
This article had been published for the information of all
the SS men at a time when criminal German Fascism was still
certain of victory and had already started to carry out its
programme of genocide, involving the death of millions.
"Among ourselves it should be mentioned quite frankly,
and yet we will never speak of it publicly. Just as we
did not hesitate on 30th June, 1934, to do the duty we
were bidden, and stand comrades who had lapsed up against
the wall and shoot them, so we have never spoken about it
and will never speak of it .... I mean the clearing out
of the Jews, the extermination of the Jewish race. It is
one of those things it is easy to talk about. 'The Jewish
race is being exterminated,' says every Party member,
'that is quite clear, it is in our programme -
elimination of the Jews, and we are doing it,
exterminating them.' ... Most of you know what it means
when 100 corpses are lying side by side, or 500, or 1,000
.... Altogether, however, we can say that we have
fulfilled this most difficult duty for the love of our
people. And our spirit, our soul, our character has not
suffered injury from it."
I shall not dwell on the history of the SS. One may only add
to what has already been said, that the "Schutzstaffeln,"
created as far back as 1925, became, according to Hitler's
special decree of the 20th July, 1934, an independent
organization of the Hitlerite party, to wit - after
political murders committed by the SS men on the 30th June,
1934.
"In consideration of the valiant service of the SS,
especially in connection with the events of 30th June,
1934, I raise it to the standing of an independent
organization within the Nazi Party."
The process of development of the SS within the system of
the Hitlerite State testifies to the ever-increasing
consolidation of the SS, the so-called General SS as well as
the armed SS forces, with the police organization of the
Gestapo, SD, Einsatzgruppen and Sonderkommandos carrying out
large scale "actions" and "filtrations" in the camps, etc.
"By appointing the Reichsfuehrer SS Chief of the German
Police at the Ministry of the Interior on the 17th June,
1936 (Reichsgesetzblatt, Part I, p. 487), I have created
a foundation for the unification and reorganization of
the German police."
In accordance with this measure the "Schutzstaffeln" of the
National Socialists, under the Reichsfuehrer SS and Chief of
the German Police, entered into close collaboration with the
German police. And only in this organic and close
collaboration with the outstandingly cruel police
organizations created by German Fascism, and specially
appointed to carry out tortures and extermination of people,
could the role of the SS be correctly understood.