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for the German war economy. For this
purpose he may appoint commissioners to the bureaus of the military
and civilian administration. These are responsible directly to the
Plenipotentiary General for Allocation of Labor. In order to carry out
their tasks, they are entitled to issue directives to the competent
military and civilian authorities in charge of labor allocation and of
wage policy.
"More detailed directives will be issued by the Plenipotentiary
General for Allocation of Labor.
"Führer headquarters, 30 September 1942. The Führer, "
— signed — "Adolf Hitler."
Within 1 month after his appointment, the Defendant Sauckel. sent
Defendant Rosenberg his "Labor Mobilization Program". This
program, Document Number 016-PS, already in evidence as Exhibit USA-168,
envisaged a recruitment by force and the maximum exploitation of the
entire labor resources of the conquered areas and of prisoners of war in
the interests of the Nazi war machine at the lowest conceivable degree
of expenditure to the German State.
The Defendant Sauckel states — and I refer now to the bottom of
Page 6 of the English text of that document. It is Page 9, Paragraph 2,
of the German text, and I quote as follows:
"It must be emphasized, however, that
an additional tremendous number of foreign laborers has to be found
for the Reich. The greatest pool for that purpose is the occupied
territories of the East. Consequently, it is an imperative necessity
to use the human reserves of the conquered Soviet territory to the
fullest extent. Should we not succeed in obtaining the necessary
amount of labor on a voluntary basis, we must immediately institute
conscription of forced labor.
"Apart from the prisoners of war still in the occupied
territories, we must, therefore, requisition skilled or unskilled male
and female labor from the Soviet territory from the age of 15 up, for
the German allocation of labor."
Passing to Page 11 of the English text, first paragraph and Page 17,
Paragraph 4, of the German text, I quote as follows directly:
"The complete employment of all
prisoners of war as well as the use of a gigantic number of new
foreign civilian workers, men and women, has become an indisputable
necessity for the solution of the problem of the allocation of labor
in this war."
The Defendant
Sauckel proceeded to implement this plan, which he submitted, with
certain basic directives. He provided that if voluntary recruitment of
foreign workers was unsuccessful compulsory service should be
instituted.