The Canadian Jewish Congress (CJC) has called on the government to denaturalize Nazi war criminals who lied about their past when they obtained Canadian citizenship, CJC president Milton Harris announced today. He said the federal government is looking seriously into this proposal.
War criminals cannot be tried under Canadian law for offenses committed abroad against non-Canadian nationals. Canada moreover has no extradition treaties with many of the Soviet bloc countries where the crimes occurred during World War II.
Andrew Caddell, special assistant to Solicitor General Robert Kaplan, has confirmed that the CJC proposal is being explored as a worthwhile approach. But he could not say whether the government is committed to it or, if so, when the first alleged war criminal would be charged.
Meanwhile, a team of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police has been studying the files on war criminals living in Canada. Simon Wiesenthal, head of the war crimes documentation center in Vienna, says they number about 1,000.
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