A program to bring about just and speedy restitution to Jews in the occupied countries whose property was seized or destroyed by the Germans was urged upon the State Department by the American Jewish Committee, it was announced here today.
In a letter sent last week to Secretary of State Cordell Hull, Dr. John Slawson, executive vice-president of the American Jewish Committee, proposed that, “as occupation of enemy territory proceeds, the Allied High Command be instructed to order the seizure of the records and property of institutions set up by the Germans to liquidate Jewish property, together with the freezing of their assets, the detention and examination of their officers and the inspection of their records.”
Pointing out that “the Nazi outrages against Jews have been so enormous” that their mass looting of Jewish property and possessions has not received the same prominent attention, Dr. Slawson declared that “justice and expediency alike require” that this damage to innocent persons be made good.
With regard to compensation and restitution for property owned by Jews in Germany and Austria, Dr. Slawson said that can be settled “only when the United Nations have passed on the entire problem of German responsibility. Until that time, however, we suggest the advisability of taking steps now to prevent any prejudice to claims by Jews when they are considered.”
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.
