EU State's Archives Reveal Names of Thousands Suspected of Collaborating with Nazis
The Netherlands has released a set of WWII records to the public for the first time, following the expiration of a law that prohibited their disclosure. Read Full Article at RT.com
TroibNews 
Access to dossiers of suspects who may be alive is restricted in the Dutch database due to “privacy” concerns.
On New Year's Day, the Netherlands publicly identified 425,000 suspected Nazi collaborators following the expiration of a 75-year restriction on access to these records. These documents, housed in the Central Archives for Special Criminal Jurisdiction, pertain to investigations into individuals accused of supporting Nazi Germany during its occupation of the Netherlands from 1940 to 1945. The "War in Court" project, funded with $18.5 million from three Dutch ministries, has made these names available online as part of a digitized archive.
While public interest in this information has grown, privacy laws restrict access. Full dossiers can only be examined if the individual is deceased, provides consent, or if the inquiry is for scientific research purposes. Additionally, specific personal details are required for searches, and the system does not disclose whether someone was convicted or outline the specifics of their alleged collaboration. Instead, users are provided with reference numbers for physical files at the National Archives, where access is contingent upon demonstrating a legitimate interest.
Historically, files were organized using a phonetically arranged card system that grouped names with similar sounds, resulting in frequent errors and delays. In 2010, this system was digitized, integrating scanned documents with manually entered data. Not all names have associated files, and searches remain restricted to suspected individuals, with no ability to search for witnesses or victims.
The digitization initiative, begun in 2023, aims to produce 30 million scans within four years, with 8 million completed at the time of the release. The records encompass cases involving individuals suspected of serving in Nazi forces, aiding German occupiers, or being part of the National Socialist Movement, the primary pro-Nazi party in the Netherlands.
During the Nazi occupation, over 100,000 Dutch Jews—approximately three-quarters of the Jewish population—were murdered in the Holocaust, alongside political opponents, Roma, homosexuals, and other persecuted groups.
After the war, the Netherlands prosecuted thousands of suspected collaborators. Some received long prison sentences, exile, or execution, while many cases were dismissed due to insufficient evidence. Officials stress that inclusion in the archive does not imply guilt but rather indicates that the individual was the subject of an investigation.
Frederick R Cook contributed to this report for TROIB News
On New Year's Day, the Netherlands publicly identified 425,000 suspected Nazi collaborators following the expiration of a 75-year restriction on access to these records. These documents, housed in the Central Archives for Special Criminal Jurisdiction, pertain to investigations into individuals accused of supporting Nazi Germany during its occupation of the Netherlands from 1940 to 1945. The "War in Court" project, funded with $18.5 million from three Dutch ministries, has made these names available online as part of a digitized archive.
While public interest in this information has grown, privacy laws restrict access. Full dossiers can only be examined if the individual is deceased, provides consent, or if the inquiry is for scientific research purposes. Additionally, specific personal details are required for searches, and the system does not disclose whether someone was convicted or outline the specifics of their alleged collaboration. Instead, users are provided with reference numbers for physical files at the National Archives, where access is contingent upon demonstrating a legitimate interest.
Historically, files were organized using a phonetically arranged card system that grouped names with similar sounds, resulting in frequent errors and delays. In 2010, this system was digitized, integrating scanned documents with manually entered data. Not all names have associated files, and searches remain restricted to suspected individuals, with no ability to search for witnesses or victims.
The digitization initiative, begun in 2023, aims to produce 30 million scans within four years, with 8 million completed at the time of the release. The records encompass cases involving individuals suspected of serving in Nazi forces, aiding German occupiers, or being part of the National Socialist Movement, the primary pro-Nazi party in the Netherlands.
During the Nazi occupation, over 100,000 Dutch Jews—approximately three-quarters of the Jewish population—were murdered in the Holocaust, alongside political opponents, Roma, homosexuals, and other persecuted groups.
After the war, the Netherlands prosecuted thousands of suspected collaborators. Some received long prison sentences, exile, or execution, while many cases were dismissed due to insufficient evidence. Officials stress that inclusion in the archive does not imply guilt but rather indicates that the individual was the subject of an investigation.
Frederick R Cook contributed to this report for TROIB News
