The question of German restitution to victims of Nazism can only be settled when the Federal Government of West Germany takes the initiative in the matter, Dr. H.G. Van Dam, secretary-general of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, declared today in an interview with the press.
Dr. Van Dam, who said that it was absurd to put the question of paying compensation to victims of Nazism on a level with the repayment of national debts or the rehabilitation of refugees, insisted that the German people’s mood was not conducive to an easy and quick settlement of the restitution question. He said that there was not too much active anti-Semitism in Germany today, but felt that the German people might change its attitude easily.
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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.