An Open Letter to the Commissioner of Human Rights
21.07.2002
The Commissioner of Human
Rights,
Directorate of Human Rights,
Council of Europe,
F-67075 Strassbourg Cedex
Dear Sir,
I have enclosed copies of two complaints concerning human rights
violations.
As a person of Danish nationality I feel much injured, that the EU
wants all members to have the same legislation of what should be
regarded the legal truth of the holocaust.
One must never forget that Denmark was a victim itself of
Nazi-Germany. No Danes participated in the Holocaust neither as
victims nor perpetrators. Hitler said several times that National
Socialism knows only Germany and is not meant for export. During
the elections in 1939 and 1943 98 per cent of the Danish electorate
voted for the ordinary democratic parties and only two per cent
voted for the "Danish" Nazi-party, and those who did so were
regarded despicable undanish traitors. The German occupation was
regarded a threat to the Danish sovereignty and Danish national
identity. The Germans have from time immemorial been the hereditary
enemy of Denmark. The whole Danish history is one long struggle to
preserve Danish national independence and dignity from the southern
neighbours. Much of the widespread present Danish aversion against
the EU is rooted in these circumstances. Had the southern
neighbours been small and harmless countries like Holland,
Luxembourg and Ireland I think that Denmark never would have had
the four exemptions from the Maastrict Treaty, and the Euro would
have been the currency in Denmark today. Furthermore in Denmark
democracy and modern nationalism came together. Those who wrote the
first modern democratic Danish constitution called themselves
national liberals and were both enthusiastic democrats and
nationalists. These two things fit naturally together in Denmark.
Therefore people in Denmark were not able to and are still not able
to identify themselves with alien concepts such as nazism and
fascism. Therefore it is insulting to the Danish national identity
to be forced by the EU to have the same laws as Germany in matters
of the Second World War. It is against section fifteen of the Human
Rights Declarations (everyone has a right to a nationality).
Another thing is that these kind of laws also violate the human
rights declaration section 19 concerning free speech.
To say that all of Europe has a responsibility for what the Germans
did during WW2 or that other European nations could have acted like
the Germans is outrageous. It is like accusing all Europeans for
being potential mass murderers and it would be similar to accuse
all men of being potential serial killers of women just because
Jack the Ripper and Boston Strangler were so, and do the British
people have a special responsibility for women killing just because
Jack the Ripper was British? No, what the Germans did to the Jews
is entirely a matter between the Jews and the Germans and there
should be no legislation in other countries about these events. The
only thing Danes, Englishmen, Portuguese, Irishmen and so on can
learn from the holocaust is how the Germans are when they are
worst.
I do not owe the Jews and Germans anything, and I feel free to
chose whether I want to believe in the holocaust or not. I can even
chose to forget these outlandish events all together.
I look much forward to your reply and comments to my letter and two
enclosures.
Yours Faithfully,
Ole Kreiberg,
Christian Xs Alle 19, 2mf
DK-2800 Lyngby
Denmark