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3 or perhaps 6 weeks, the women resumed work, while the children
remained in the hospital. The children were under the care and treatment of Dr.
Seynsche. When the number of children increased further and the space available
proved inadequate, I consented, after much persuasion, to a camp being set
aside to accommodate these children. Eventually we fixed up a part of the camp
for foreigners at Voerde-West, which is situated about 50-60 km. from Essen, to
house these children. At that time about 120 children were concerned. I do not
remember the exact number. The children were taken care of by a woman who was
cook and all-round help at the same time, and who did her best for the
children. She had at her disposal quite a number of female eastern workers.
The medical care was in the hands of Dr. Jaeger for all camps, and he
had appointed a doctor, an eastern worker, specially for the children’s
camp. Some of the children were rather weak when they were transferred from the
hospital. I had, however, undertaken to admit to the camp healthy children
only.
Today, on the occasion of my interrogation, death certificates of
the camp at Voerde-West have been shown to me. According to these, 46 of the
children stationed there died between October 1944 and February 1945, 23 of
them owing to general weakness. I admit that this is due to a measure of
maladministration. These death certificates were sent to Mr. Pless of my
office. I did not institute an inquiry into the matter. The people responsible
were, on the one hand, Mr. Scheider, who was the camp leader. I personally
cannot accept any responsibility, but I wish to emphasize that in my opinion
Dr. Jaeger, as chief camp physician, should also be held responsible. Of course
I fully realize that this is a matter which should have been investigated, and
I can only emphasize the fact that I was not informed of it.
At the
beginning of 1945, after continual inquiries on my part concerning the question
of accommodation for the people who were not fit for work, the labor office, or
Dr. Lehmann, informed me that together with these people the children were to
be moved to Thuringia. The transport was arranged by the labor office, which
also supplied the escort for the transport. The mothers of these children who
were in our employment in Essen were informed of this move before it took
place. I know that some of the mothers worked as helpers in the children's
camp; they of course, went with the transport; I do not, however, think it was
possible to inform the other mothers, many of whom had also been transferred
from Essen with their plant. That is all I can state here on the subject of
these children of eastern workers. |
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