German General Sentenced To Imprisonment

A German court has sentenced Otto-Ernst Remer, an 80-year-old retired army general, to 22 months imprisonment for publishing articles disputing wartime mass killings at Auschwitz in gas chambers.

On October 22, 1992, a criminal court in Schweinfurt found Remer guilty of “popular incitement” and “incitement to racial hatred” because of allegedly anti-Jewish statements published in five issues of his widely circulated tabloid paper, Remer Depesche.

The state prosecuting attorney contended that the purpose of the Remer Depesche is to promote Nazi ideology. The prosecutor also spoke of Remer's “crude insult against millions of victims,” and insisted that the Holocaust extermination story is an “obvious historical fact” that does not need to be proved in court.

To show that the allegedly criminal statements made in the Remer Depesche are justifiable, the defense attorneys prepared 34 exhibits, including a report by German engineer Germar Rudolf on his on-site forensic examination of the alleged extermination gas chambers at Auschwitz, Allied aerial reconnaissance photographs taken in 1944 of the camp complex, as well as several witnesses. The judges refused to consider any of this evidence.

Pointing out that Remer's “crime” was a “non-violent expression of opinion,” the defense attorneys characterized the proceeding as a “special kind of political trial,” Remer himself described the court as a “regime tribunal,” and expressed the hope that “perhaps the day will come when this court will be called to account” for its behavior.

Remer is a noted historical figure. As a young officer in command of the Berlin guard regiment in July 1944, he played a key role in suppressing the ill-fated attempt by conspirators to kill Hitler and seize power in a violent coup d'etat. Remer was promoted, eventually to general, and at the end of the war was serving as a commander in Pomerania. Among other decorations, he was awarded the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves, the Golden Wounded Badge, the German Cross in Gold, and the Silver Close Combat badge for 48 close combat engagements.

Adapted from: The Journal of Historical Review, Vol. 13, No. 2, March / April 1993, P.O. Box 1306, Torrance, CA 90505, USA.