The Bundestag, (lower House of Parliament), has approved a report of a judicial committee clearing Dr. Theodor Oberlaender, former Minister of Refugees, of charges that he was involved in the killing of Poles and Jews during World War II in Poland.
The Christian Democratic Union party faction contended that the report, which was based on a probe conducted by the Bonn prosecution office, had “fully rehabilitated” Dr. Oberlaender, and that the creation of a Parliamentary investigation committee had been made superfluous.
The opposition Social Democratic party, which had demanded such a committee, argued that the Judicial committee report covered only the criminal charges against the former West German Cabinet member, and not his Nazi past. Dr. Oberlaender, who resigned his Cabinet post under fire is, however, still a member of the Bundestag.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.