Statute of Limitations, NPD Rise, Major German Issues By ALFRED WOLFMANN JTA Correspondent in West Germany (Copyright 1965, JTA TIM) BONN—There are two issues in Germany that arouse concern be- yond the borders of the Federal Republic as they do inside the country. They are the statute of limitations on war crimes and the political growth of the radical right-wing National Democratic Party, often described as neo- Nazi. Both issues are closely followed by people who lived through the era of the Third Reich and World War II. The uneasiness felt by the American Jews over the possible trend of events in Germany was reflected in the visit paid to Chan- cellor Kurt Kiesinger in January by Dr. William A. Wexler, presi- dent of Bnai Brith, and Herman Edelsberg, director of the inter- national council of Bnai •Brith. The statute of limitations which would bar the prosecution of war criminals beyond a certain date, was to have gone into effect in 1965. Only the pressure of world opinion forced its postponement until Dec. 31, 1969. The postpone- ment applies only to war criminals Charged with murder. Those ac- cuced of beatings, torture and manslaughter became immune to prosecution by statutes adopted years ago. The extension to 19'70 of the period when murderers may be prosecuted will not prevent untold numbers of them from escaping the consequences of their crimes. The new minister of justice, Dr. Gustav Heineman, has left no doubts that he would like to see the statute abolished and will work toward that end. But he is encountering great diffi- culties. A majority of the Bun- destag (lower house) may also favor abolition. But they dare not go that far for fear of Ger- man voter reaction. Most Ger- mans, they believe, are sick and tired of war crimes trials and don't want to hear of them any- more. Chancellor Kiesinger him- self was equivocal in the reply he gave to a question on the sub- ject by this correspondent at a press conference last December. According to the latest public polls, Dr. Kiesinger told the Bnai Brith guests, 58 per cent of the German people favor continuing trials of Nazi war criminals and oppose the statute of limitations. Only 28 per cent favor the sta- tute. He went on to tell his guests that it is mainly the older Ger- mans who oppose the statute of limitations because they lived through the era when the Nazi crimes took place, whereas younger Germans, who had no first hand experience under Nazism, are in- different. This is surprising in itself. For as everybody in Ger7 many knows, the loudest opposi- tion to war crimes trials has come from older Germans who were themselves Nazi party members or otherwise involved with Hitler. Also surprising was Dr. Kiesin- ger's assertion that 38 per cent of the supporters of the National Democratic Party oppose the sta- tute of limitations and want to see war crimes trials go on. This, by the way, is just the reverse of stand taken by NPD chairman Adolph van Thadden. In addition, according to Dr. Kiesinger, a sub- stantial number of NPD support- ers sympathize with Israel in the current Middle East dispute be- cause they admire Israel's military accomplishments and her defiance of the Soviet Union. This too, is at variance with van Thadden's public statements. As for efforts to ban the NPD, the chancellor said that the gov- ernment would not file a petition in the Constitutional High Court unless it was certain that the court agreed that the party is anti-democratic. The court might be prompted to such a conclusion, he said, if the NPD demonstrated overt anti- Semitism because, for the German people, Nazism and anti-Semitism are synonymous. In that case, the court and the German people would have sufficient grounds to outlaw the NPD. But the chan- cellor thought that the best way to counter it was to build a healthy democratic society. The chancellor himself conceded that a right-wing party could achieve power in Germany in the event of a major economic crisis. Obviously,• no radical political movement can flourish in times of prosperity when a majority of the people are interested in maintain- ing the status quo. But what if an economic crisis should occur in Germany? Should we expect a re- version to the right? The fact is that, according to polls, van Thad- den's NPD commands 10 per cent of the German vote, now, in the midst of prosperity. Hitler did not have much support when he start- NEW YORK — Dr. Avraham Biran, the Israeli director of anti- ed out, in the depths of a de- quities and museums, denied pression. charges made by the director of the American School of Oriental Research in East Jerusalem that the government of Israel was in- terfering with archaeological re- search in its newly occupied areas. Rev. William Van Etten Casey, director of the school, charged in Beirut that the school was being forced to operate in other parts of the Moslem world. Father Casey, a Jesuit professor of theo- logy, claimed that 'We are being forced out of our bailiwick into other parts of the Fertile Cres- cent." The school plans to move from East Jerusalem to Beirut, with headquarters extending into Am- man and Baghdad. Father Casey said that the school was involved with a tax contro- versy with Israel, and that there have been attempts by Israelis to take over the school's administra- tion. The president of the American Schools in Beirut and Jerusalem, Dr. George Ernest Wright, profes- sor of divinity at Harvard, said that the relations of the Jerusalem school with Israel were excellent, in fact as cooperative as they were with the Jordanian Department of Antiquities. He said he felt that the comment attributed to Fr. Casey was a misstatement Israeli Denies Curb to Diggings by U.S. School DI$YENU Friday, February 9, 1968-19 THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS LBJ Asked Israel Halt Syria March PARIS (ZINS)—The Paris news- paper L'Express has revealed that the "hot line" between Washing- ton and Moscow was activated on June 10 at 2 p.m. On that day, the newspaper writes, Israeli tanks had shattered the Syrian front, and were pro- ceeding in the direction of Damas- cus, when Soviet Premier Kosygin contacted President Johnson on the "hot line" and warned him that if Israel did not suspend its military drive toward Damascus, Soviet war planes would intervene on the side of Syria. This, Kosygin said, was an explicit warning by the Soviet government which could momentarily be translated into action. President Johnson—the L'Ex- press continues—supported the So- viet stand in order to avoid a mili- tary confrontation between the two powers, and forthwith asked Israel to desist. Israel yielded, and at 6 p.m. ceased operations. In this way, the L'Express concludes, the "hot line saved the peace of the world." PLASTIC SLIPCOVERS A-GAUGE GLASS CLEAR THE HIGHEST QUAUTY AT REASONABLE PRICES • CUT and PIN FITTED IN YOUR HOME BY EXPERT CUTTERS.... • CUSHIONS INDIVIDUALLY COVERED With ZIPPERS & AIR VENTS • ALL WORK WRITTEN GUARANTEED Hermsi's Custom I • 15944 &Mantel:8 AT PURITAN GRAND OPENING PAUL'S TUXEDO SHOP Complete Tuxedo Atire Soles & Rental 15720 W. 7 MILE ROAD 2 blks. W. of Greenfield 273-4188 Also located at: 17241 Lahser Rd. corner Grand River A good suggestion, straight from the employes' "think box' Why not print the word "VEGETARIAN" in Red on our label? 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