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Swiss
Bank Fund for Holocaust Victims
Reply-To: H-NET List for History of
the Holocaust <[email protected]>
Sender: H-NET List for History of the Holocaust
<[email protected]>
From: Norman
Finkelstein
July 4, 1999
Can someone identify AMCHA in this posting
[below]? What does
it stand for? Also, I cannot understand the figure given
for "living Holocaust survivors." The usual figure given
for Jewish survivors of the Holocaust right after World
War II hovers around
250,000 (of which 50,000 were camp survivors).
Granted it's a rough estimate, yet how can there be
FOUR TIMES AS MANY SURVIVORS FIFTY YEARS
LATER?
Norman Finkelstein
From: Gabor
Hirsch
There is a report in the International Herald
Tribune June 30, 1999 about a world wide campaign to
alert claimants to the possibility of compensation from a
$1.2 billion Swiss bank fund set up in summer 1998.
Quoting Edgar Bronfman of the World Jewish
Congress: 'We must reach Holocaust Survivors and other
potential beneficiaries as quickly as possible'. All
victims of Nazi persecution are potential claimants;
Jews, Gypsies, Jehovah's Witnesses, homosexuals and
physically or mentally disabled. Individuals can apply
even if their relatives never had a Swiss Bank
account.
Reading this lines it sounds very promising that every
victim of the Holocaust are
[sic] potential beneficiaries of the Swiss
bank fund but as always, there is
[sic] also some
drawbacks and restrictions.
It sounded beautifully when in an interview "Sie alle
wollen das Geld (All of them wants the money)" in the
"Weltwoche" (Swiss weekly newspaper) September 24,
1998 Elan Steinberg said about the Swiss Bank
Fund,
The first part goes to the survivors, who
have provable claim of the Swiss accounts, a second
part of the money should be equally divided between
all Holocaust-Survivors also to the ones who didn't
claim and the third part goes in a fund jointly
managed by the Jewish organizations as well as the
State Israel.
A few weeks later "Wie weiter nach dem
Brooklyner-Deal"; Jüdischer Rundschau (Swiss
weekly newspaper) October 2, 1998 Elan Steinberg said
about the 2. [second]
part, that this will not be a humanitarian gesture
but a restitution even if only may be $ 2000.-- pro
person. but without the need of proof that being
needy.
In a H-NET mail on Wed, 13 Aug. 1997 about "Number of
living Holocaust survivors" Adina Mishkoff
Administrative Asst/AMCHA, Jerusalem, gave an estimate of
total 834,000 - 960,000 living
Holocaust survivors.
This information as well as the article from the
Herald Tribune June 30, 1999 raises the hope of many
survivors that at least after 54 years they are going to
get some compensation/recognition for the past suffering.
If you read the information in the http://www.swissbankclaims.com/
you find some restriction and this is if you have a
Holocaust-related claims against Swiss banks and other
entities. The following is a short extract of text, but I
recommend to read the complete text.
Who is
Affected by the Settlement?You are affected by the
Settlement if you fit into one of the following five
Settlement Classes. Four classes consist of "Victims
or Targets of Nazi Persecution" defined as any
individual, business or group persecuted or targeted
for persecution by the Nazi Regime or its agents,
because they are or were believed to be Jewish,
Romani, Jehovah's Witness, Homosexual or Physically or
Mentally Disabled or Handicapped and who:
Had assets (including such
things as bank accounts, securities and safe deposit
box contents), on deposit in any Swiss bank,
investment fund, or other custodian prior to May 9,
1945 (Deposited Assets Class), OR
May have claims against
private Swiss Entities relating to assets that were
looted or taken by the Nazi Regime, or relating to
"Cloaked Assets", which are assets disguised by a
Swiss Entity for the benefit of an Axis company,
entity or person associated with the Nazi Regime,
between 1933 and 1946 (Looted Assets Class),
OR
Performed slave labor for
companies or other entities that may have deposited
the revenues or proceeds of that labor with or
transacted such revenue and proceeds through Swiss
Entities (Slave Labor Class I), OR
Unsuccessfully sought entry
into Switzerland to avoid Nazi persecution, or after
gaining entry were deported or mistreated, and may
have related claims against any Swiss Entity (Refugee
Class).
The fifth Settlement Class
consists of all persons, whether or not a Victim or
Target of Nazi persecution as previously defined, who
were forced to perform slave labor in any facility or
work site, wherever located, that was owned,
controlled or operated by any Swiss company or other
entity (Slave Labor Class II).
All five of these Settlement
Classes include heirs, successors, administrators,
executors, affiliates and assigns of the persons or
entities described above.
In my opinion with this restrictions there will be
only a very few who can claim successfully for this
restitution.
Best regards
Gabor Hirsch
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