Cotler calls Nazi invite result of 'failure of indifference and inaction', supports unsealing Deschenes records
www.ctvnews.ca
A former federal justice minister says the 'failure of indifference and inaction' over Canada's history with Nazis in the country likely contributed to Parliament's unknowing recognition of a Nazi veteran in the House of Commons last week, and that he wants to see nearly 40-year-old documents on suspected war criminals living in Canada unsealed.
  • YezzeyEnglish
    111·
    9 months ago

    Well Irwin according to Wikipedia… While in 1985 the Canadian Deschênes Commission concluded that the Galicia division should not be indicted as a group.

    • LostWon
      5·
      9 months ago

      Cotler also spoke on CBC’s Sunday Show yesterday about the commission and the mood of the era that aren’t very well known and need to be brought to light. For example, it was easier for nazi war criminals to come to Canada than it was for Jewish refugees. (Reminds me of the bizarre extradition exception that made Argentina attractive for them. Sympathizers did what they could around the world, it seems.) The interview is in the very first segment. Anyone interested can listen to it here: https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-57-sunday-edition

    • baconisaveg
      54·
      9 months ago

      Right? That was common knowledge weeks ago… another rage-bait article.

      • OldmandanEnglish
        7·
        9 months ago

        Eh, common knowledge if (and only if) you are someone chronically online and in the habit of trying to understand current events. :P

        That said, rage bait is a bit harsh; while I’m not sure there’s much to be done (the calls to deport geriatrics into an active warzone are… a little silly, even if we can prove these people to be war criminals), there are questions worth asking wrt to the circumstances and legitimacy of the rulings and descisions around both their post war status and entrance to Canada. Some acknowledgement and reckoning with some of the questionable actions taken as a nation in the aftermath of WWII is likely past due. /shurg

        • baconisaveg
          61·
          9 months ago

          That said, rage bait is a bit harsh;

          The event happened on the 22nd and I read about it on the 23rd or 24th, and at that time, I also learned about the Deschênes Commission. This is from an article 7 days ago:

          The decision to allow about 600 members of the division to live in Canada after the second world war has long been a source of controversy in Canada, and was the subject of a government commission of inquiry in the 1980s into whether Canada had become a haven for war criminals. Members of the division were accused of killing Polish and Jewish civilians. The Nuremberg tribunals found the Waffen-SS guilty as an organisation of war crimes but not the Galicia division.

          I’m in no way trying to excuse their actions, or whitewash, or whatever. My argument is the title of the article:

          An important question that has been missed. How did a veteran of the SS Galicia division end up in Canada in the first place and he was not prosecuted?

          Which is straight up bullshit; the question has been asked since the end of WW2 and has been answered several times.

          • eezeebeeEnglish
            1·
            9 months ago

            I barely follow any news and I knew this too, after reading a single article. I think the headline is valid to someone who only reads other headlines.

          • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.mlOP
            48·
            9 months ago

            This question need to be continued to be asked because as the recent events demonstrate, it absolutely has not been answered adequately. Releasing Deschênes Commission findings to the public would sure be a good start towards actually answering some questions.

      • blakeaholics@sh.itjust.works
        51·
        9 months ago

        Yezzy didn’t make the decision to not prosecute, they stated a decision made by our government.

        Baselessly calling someone a Nazi or Nazi supporter is ridiculous for bringing up a previous ruling. Don’t be toxic and attack people, instead criticise our government for their decision and reach out to them to actually try to be useful.

        • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.mlOP
          511·
          9 months ago

          There is nothing baseless about calling somebody who volunteered for SS, a recognized criminal organization responsible for crimes against humanity, a nazi.

          • blakeaholics@sh.itjust.works
            24·
            9 months ago

            You were calling Yezzy a Nazi simp, saying they exposed themselves for posting about the Deschenes Commission decision. You’re ridiculous.

            • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.mlOP
              48·
              9 months ago

              The only people who are ridiculous here are the ones who keep trying to introduce some sort of nuance into a discussion regarding people who volunteered for SS. The fact that you keep doubling down here really says volumes.

  • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmy.mlOP
    711·
    9 months ago

    Some facts, since people keep trying to white wash what happened.

    According to Wikipedia entire SS is considered a criminal organization. Anybody who volunteered for SS is a criminal, plain and simple https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waffen-SS

    The second part of the Canadian Deschênes Commission report, which concerned allegations against specific individuals, remains confidential and has never been made public.

    Crimes against humanity committed by the Galicia division are well documented http://espritdecorps.ca/history-feature/whitewashing-the-ss-the-attempt-to-re-write-the-history-of-hitlers-collaborators

    In fact, his Waffen SS unit bombed children at Toronto’s largest Ukrainian community centre on Canadian Thanksgiving back in 1949. Few days on the front page, then never spoken of again.