e-Poshta | 17Jun2009 | John Demjanjuk Jr.
John Demjanjuk Jr.: It is very
clear
It is very clear that the case of my father is being used for political
purposes rather than any form of justice. Ironically, had we been
following German law here in the USA, my father would have never been
deported or put on trial in Germany. Germany law prevents extradition
of its own citizens. It also prohibits making anyone with German
citizenship stateless. Yet, they accomplished both with the help of the
US Justice Department in making my father stateless and sending him to
Germany. There are many more factual and legal issues we will be
bringing to the Ukrainian publics attention in the days to come.
As was the case in Israel over 20 yrs ago, the German media has been
biased against us and sensationally assuming guilt. They are preparing
for another show trial, this time in Munich. Israel once
sought to teach young Israelis about the Holocaust through the wrongful
prosecution of my father as a Nazi murderer. Germany now seeks to teach
young Germans that their ancestors were not entirely to blame for the
Holocaust and that they should instead be viewed as seeking justice to
atone for their deeds. In 1985 the Israelis hyped a media event
alleging my father was in Trawniki, Sobibor and the brutal murderer of
nearly a million people in Treblinka. He was assumed guilty but was
innocent and nearly executed. He was acquitted on all counts. Today,
the Germans have an arrest warrant (no charges or indictment) on
suspicion of accessory to murder of 29,000. There remains no evidence,
documentary or eyewitness, to prove he was responsible for causing harm
to even one person in any camp at any time during WWII.
My father is a victim of the Nazis once again. He was nearly killed by
the Germans as a Red Army soldier when hit by an artillery shell which
caused him to be hospitalized for 3 months before being sent back to
battle. He was then captured by the Germans and became a POW. After
surviving the artillery attack and POW captivity, he escaped Soviet
forced repatriation to a gulag, immigrated to the USA and then after
fraudulently being sent to Israel for trial, he survived a death
sentence which was based on these same allegations (double jeopardy
now) in addition to Treblinka false witnesses. The Germans are now
using him to blame Ukrainians for the Holocaust. In reality, for the
past 65 years, he has been as much a victim of Germany as anyone who
survived the terror of the Nazis. The more we know, the more torturous
this continued persecution is.
My father is currently undergoing a full medical review to determine
whether he is fit for trial. The Germans refused to conduct a medical
examination prior to accepting his deportation even though it was
available to them. We expect results very soon. At the age of 89, he is
suffering from multiple illnesses including chronic kidney disease and
a Leukemic condition called Myelodisplastic Syndrome which makes him
anemic and very weak. There is no cure and he will eventually die from
it as his bone marrow is losing functionality to produce red blood
cells. His life expectancy is perhaps 2-3 years but may be much less if
Leukemia takes over sooner. He remains in the medical ward of a prison
in Munich and has been permitted only one phone call to my mother. We
have not received any mail from him nor has he received ours to my
knowledge. He is receiving Ukrainian newspapers. We have a Ukrainian
priest which we expect will be permitted to visit him in about a week.
Ironically, his treatment in Israel provided him more rights than he is
receiving in Germany. The Israeli prison authority permitted him to
call home once per week and to call his priest once per month.
We must remain united in the Ukrainian communities around the world in
condemning the injustice in Germany and their attempts to rewrite
history. The political pressure on Germany coming from the US
Department of Justice and the Wiesenthal Center in Israel must be
answered by all who demand justice for my father and all the Ukrainian
people who suffered at the hands of the Nazis.
Some people, it seems, are destined to be symbols of the struggle for
justice. Our family is faced with enduring an endless
suffering on this account. We accept this burden and will not
give up the fight. My father has the love of his family,
friends and so many around the world that have followed his plight. We
thank them all for their courage to voice their opinions and for their
continued prayers of support.
Very best regards,
John Demjanjuk Jr.