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The Holocaust and the Neo-Nazi Mythomania © 1978, The
Beate Klarsfeld Foundation
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But in March 1940 the "final solution" was presented
in a new sense, marked by the euphoric consciousness of a victory which seemed
imminent. It was a question of creating a Jewish reserve outside of Europe,
where the Jews of the Reich and the countries under its domination would live
in a system of self administration strictly held in check by the Sipo-SD.
Himmler drafted a note in May 1940 on the treatment of the indigenous
populations of the East (that is, in the Polish territories). He wrote in this
note (92), regarding the Jews in the
General Government and in the Polish provinces annexed to the Reich:
"I hope that the conception "Jews" will be
totally eradicated by the possibility of a great emigration of all the Jews to
Africa or to no matter what other colony." In a note of May
28,1940, Himmler announced that this memorandum had been approved by Hitler. As
far as the Jews were concerned, Himmler limited himself to this brief
indication. But we know that in March 1939 Hagen and Eichmann had been
concerned with the project for a Jewish reserve in Madagascar. In summer 1940,
France being defeated, the project was treated as current by Heydrich and
Eichmann in collaboration with the section for Jewish affairs at the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs (NG-5764). The principle was established that in the peace
treaty the victorious Reich would demand a mandate over Madagascar. This was
the "territorial solution" of the Jewish question as Heydrich designated it to
Ribbentrop (93). It was to be applied to
all of the Jews under Hitlerian domination, including the Polish Jews.
At the end of June 1940, Abetz was about to leave for Paris to assume
the post of Ambassador of Germany. Hitler stated explicitly his will to
evacuate the totality of the Jews from Europe (NG-2586, memorandum of Luther).
This declaration of intention was tantamount to an Order of the Führer for
the Nazi occupation forces in Europe. According to the testimony of Abetz
(LXXXI-123), (94) Hitler did not mention
Madagascar, but he spoke only of the unpeopled areas of America. Let us recall
that in his speech of January 1941 Hitler evoked his prophecy as to the
destruction of the Jewish race in Europe in case of war, but this time without
employing the term "vernichtet". He declared only that the Jews would have lost
their role in Europe.
The Jewish populations in France, Belgium and
Holland were subjected to a regime intended to bring about their segregation.
This would facilitate their deportation to a reserve. In March 1941, the
Military Commander in France declared to Vallat
(95), who had just been named
Commissionner [sic] General for Jewish Affairs, that he, Vallat, was invited to
"set up herewith the plan and the
preliminary measures for the future evacuation of the Jews." (XXIV
15a.) It is highly probable that at that time one hoped that the
victorious Reich would manage to have itself granted a territory outside of
Europe in which to concentrate the Jews of the Reich and the territories under
its control.
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The Holocaust and the Neo-Nazi Mythomania
© 1978, The
Beate Klarsfeld Foundation |
|
Back |
Page 46 |
Forward |
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