Oct. 10



ITALY:

PIUS XII CONTROVERSY INTENSIFIES
Sainthood for the Holocaust Pope?
Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday fueled speculation that beatification may be
on the horizon for Pope Pius XII, often criticized for not doing enough to
combat the Holocaust. The Vatican has been working hard to improve Pius's
popular image.

The process of beatification is usually a backroom deal, taking place
inside the Vatican and well outside the public eye. But not this time. For
months the Catholic Church has been sending signals that the beatification
of Pope Pius XII, who headed the Catholic Church during World War II, may
be imminent. Some historians and Jewish leaders, though, have been
vociferous in their opposition to the move, arguing Pius XII did less than
he should have to save the Jews from the Holocaust.

Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday launched the most recent volley in defense
of Pius XII. Speaking at a Mass in St. Peter's Basilica to mark the 50th
anniversary of Pius' death, Benedict said that Pius, who became pope in
1939 just before the outbreak of the war, had "worked secretly and
silently" during the conflict "to avoid the worst and save the greatest
number of Jews possible."

Benedict recalled for his audience that Israeli Foreign Minister Golda
Meir paid tribute to Pius when he died on Oct. 9, 1958. Benedict also
highlighted a Christmas radio message given by Pius in December 1942 in
which he spoke of "hundreds of thousands of persons, who, through no fault
of their own, only for reason of nationality or ethnic roots, were
destined for death or for steady deterioration."

The process of beatification, the final formal step before declaring
sainthood, "can proceed happily," Benedict said on Thursday.

Not everyone is quite as sanguine about the prospect of a Saint Pius,
however. Haifa Chief Rabbi She'ar Yashuv Cohen, who on Monday became the
first Jew ever to speak before the Vatican's Synod of Bishops, said that
many Jews were unhappy with Pius.

"We feel that the late pope should have spoken up more strongly than he
did," he told a news conference prior to addressing the Synod. "He may
have helped in secrecy many of the victims and many of the refugees but
the question is could he have raised his voice and would it have helped or
not? We, as the victims, feel (the answer is) yes."

Others haven't been nearly as diplomatic. In a 1999 book called "Hitler's
Pope," British author John Cornwell documents Pius' role prior to becoming
pope in negotiating the "Reichskonkordat," the treaty signed between Nazi
Germany and the Catholic Church in 1933. Many historians have argued that
this agreement provided the Nazi regime with a substantial degree of
international legitimacy.

But Cornwell's assertion that Pope Pius XII failed to take serious action
to save the Jews has been challenged and the author himself has retreated
from some of his more controversial claims regarding Pius' alleged
acquiescence.

Nevertheless, many Jews are still critical of the role Pius played. His
photo in the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum includes a blistering caption.

"Even when reports about the murder of Jews reached the Vatican, the Pope
did not protest either verbally or in writing," the caption reads. "In
December 1942, he abstained from signing the Allied declaration condemning
the extermination of the Jews. When Jews were deported from Rome to
Auschwitz, the Pope did not intervene."

The veracity of the caption has been challenged by the Vatican and the
museum has said it would be open to new research on the question. Pius's
supporters argue that the wartime pope worked hard behind the scenes to
protect Jews from Nazi death camps. The Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore
Romano on Tuesday printed a full-page article praising Pius's World War II
efforts. The paper also included a piece written by the Vatican's
Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone. "If he had made a public
intervention, he would have endangered the lives of thousands of Jews,
who, upon his directive, were hidden in 155 convents and monasteries in
Rome alone," Bertone wrote.

Jesuit Father Peter Gumpel, who has spent years researching the Pope as
the Vatican's lead investigator into Pius's suitability for sainthood, has
given his blessing for beatification. Speaking to the Sddeutsche Zeitung
on Tuesday, Gumpel said he read everything he could find and had access to
Vatican archives that have still not been made available to the public.

"If I had found anything incriminating in the files, I never would have
signed off," Gumpel told the Sddeutsche. "After all, I have a lot of
responsibility as the investigating judge."

The road to beatification for Pope Pius XII, which began in 1967, has not
always been straightforward and has suffered repeated delays. With the
beatification process now apparently moving along, there are some who
argue it is time for the Catholic Church to open up the archives so
independent historians can have a look.

"I wish they'd spend a higher percentage of their time in efforts to open
the archives, and less in spinning what they're selectively presenting,"
said Abraham Foxman of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) to the National
Catholic Reporter recently. Foxman and the ADL have consistently opposed
beatification for Pius. "They're protesting too much. We are willing to
withhold our judgement and the Vatican should withhold its (own) until
scholars have been able to openly examine the material and see what's
there."

(source: Der Speigel)





USA:

Mass. judge rejects Holocaust memoir lawsuit

In Boston, a woman who admitted fabricating a best-selling memoir about
surviving the Holocaust as a child by living with wolves has won a court
battle with her former publisher.

Misha Defonseca's 1997 book, "Misha: A Memoire of the Holocaust Years,"
was translated into 18 languages, made into a feature film in France, and
drew interest from the Walt Disney Co. (nyse: DIS - news - people ) and
Oprah Winfrey.

After Defonseca admitted earlier this year that she had made up the story,
her former publisher, Jane Daniel, sued to try to overturn a $32.4 million
court judgment Defonseca and her ghost writer, Vera Lee, won against her
in an earlier fight over profits. Daniel argued that because the story was
false, Defonseca "perpetrated a hoax" on the trial judge and the jury.

But this week, Middlesex Superior Court Judge Timothy Feeley threw out
Daniel's lawsuit because she did not file it within a one-year statute of
limitations.

The judge said that the genuineness of the memoire was not an issue in the
earlier court battle between Defonseca and Daniel. Instead, the case was
about claims of violations of the contract between the authors and the
publisher, Feeley said.

"Defonseca's fraud, misrepresentations, and misconduct did not go to the
heart of the case," he said in his written ruling, filed Tuesday.

Daniel said the jury at the 2001 trial would not have issued a verdict
against her if they had known that Defonseca made up the story.

Defonseca, 71, of Dudley, acknowledged in February that she never lived
with wolves to escape the Nazis, never killed a German soldier in
self-defense, and never walked 3,000 miles across Europe in search of her
parents. She also admitted that she isn't even Jewish. She said that her
book was a fantasy that she kept repeating.

"The poor, poor Holocaust survivor and the evil publisher who had
victimized her - that's how it was characterized in the trial, and that's
what's being allowed to stand," Daniel said Thursday.

"This decision is discounting that that had an all-pervasive effect on the
outcome of the trial," she said.

Neither Defonseca or Lee could immediately be reached for comment
Thursday.

Lee's attorney, Frank Frisoli, said he was not surprised by the judge's
decision. "I did not see any merit to the action that was filed and
apparently the court agreed," he said.

In earlier interviews, Defonseca and Lee said the truth of the 1997 book
had no bearing on the jury's finding that Daniel cheated them out of
profits.

"It has nothing to do with that," Defonseca said in an August interview.

Daniel's lawyer, Joseph Orlando, said he plans to appeal the ruling.

Daniel asked Defonseca to write a book after she heard her speak about her
experience in the 1990s.

Defonseca and Lee later sued Daniel for breach of contract. In 2001, a
Middlesex District Court jury found that Daniel had failed to promote the
book as promised and had hidden profits. The jury awarded Defonseca $7.5
million and Lee $3.3 million, but those amounts were later tripled by a
judge who found Daniel and her small publishing company, Mt. Ivy Press,
had misled both women and tried to claim royalties herself by rewriting
the book.

(source: Associated Press)


*********************


UW-EC play 'Bent' shows new angle of Holocaust


In 1934 lovers Max and Rudy pick up a German officer for a one-night stand
in Berlin. The next morning, the officer is murdered on orders from Adolf
Hitler to eradicate gays from the Nazi Party.

Max and Rudy flee for two years until imprisoned in a concentration camp.

That's the premise of the drama "Bent," presented by the UW-Eau Claire
music and theater arts department.

"It's really a good love story," said senior Ryan McDaniel, who plays Max.
"Even in a Nazi death camp, love can find a way."

"Bent" opens tonight in Kjer Theatre. The drama portrays the persecution
of gays during the Nazi regime.

Considered lower than Jews, gays were sent to concentration camps and
forced to wear pink triangles. An estimated 100,000 gays were arrested,
and 10,000 to 15,000 died during the Holocaust, director Richard Nimke
said.

"It's significant in telling a piece of history that has been lost," he
said.

In the second act, Max falls in love with Horst, a fellow prisoner at
Dachau. The men can't touch and are forced to move rocks at the camp.

"A lot of people don't know about the persecution of homosexuals during
the Holocaust," said senior Chris Goltz, who plays Horst. "It does shed
light on a subject that is unknown or completely overlooked."

"Bent" is taught in a "Theatre of the Holocaust" class at UW-Eau Claire.
For years, students have expressed interest in performing it, Nimke said.

"Given the subject matter, it's important to have students willing to
tackle the piece," he said.

The play has been emotionally and physically draining, students said.

"You have to leave it all in the theater," McDaniel said. "You can't take
it home with you."

With violence and partial nudity, "Bent" might push spectators outside
their comfort zones, Nimke said.

"It really challenges a contemporary audience to examine their own views
of homosexuality," he said.

Starring Richard Gere, "Bent" opened on Broadway in 1979. It was turned
into a 1997 movie with Clive Owen, Mick Jagger and Ian McKellen.

Although set nearly 70 years ago on another continent, "Bent" has lessons
for modern times, said Goltz, who is gay.

"I'm fully aware of the discrimination that continues," he said. "It's
still an issue today."

(source: Leader-Telegram)



GERMANY:

German goes on trial for Holocaust denial

In Potsdam, a founder member of a left-wing terrorist group
turned neo-Nazi went on trial in Germany Wednesday accused of publishing
documents on the Internet denying the Holocaust.

Horst Mahler, a founding member of the Red Army Faction in 1970, is
accused of regularly posting documents online between 2001 and 2004.

Denial of the Nazi Holocaust is a crime in Germany. Mahler has been
charged with incitement and faces up to five years in prison if convicted.

The Potsdam state court trial is the latest case against the 72-year-old
attorney, who was sentenced to 11 months in prison in July last year for
giving the stiff-armed Nazi salute when he reported to prison after a
conviction in a separate case.

In addition to several neo-Nazi related convictions, a court in Mainz in
2003 found Mahler guilty of condoning a crime for saying the Sept. 11,
2001 attacks in the United States were justified and fined him several
thousand euros (dollars).

He was also convicted in the mid-1970s for RAF related activities
including several bank robberies and for helping notorious terrorist
Andreas Baader, another founding member of the group, to escape from jail.

He was sentenced to 14 years in prison but was released in 1980 after he
made several public statements condemning terrorism and Red Army Faction
methods.

Mahler then joined the far-right National Democratic Party, from 2000 to
2003, and acted as its attorney. The Potsdam trial is expected to last
until at least mid-November.

(source: Associated Press)




NORWAY:

Holocaust denial speaker's invitation cancelled


After heated debates the Norwegian Festival of Literature is withdrawing
its invitation to its inaugural speaker David Irving.

British author David Irving was jailed in Austria for denying the
Holocaust. After strong criticism the Norwegian Literature Festival has
withdrawn its invitation for him to speak.

Irving is a highly controversial writer who has been jailed, fined and
banned from entering several countries because of his claims that the gas
chambers in Auschwitz were fake and that the Nazi extermination of the
Jews never took place.

The Festival board withdrew its invitation to Irving to hold a lecture on
the theme of Truth. As a result the Stig Sterbakken, who has been in
charge of the artistic content of the Festival handed in his resignation.
It was Sterbakken who thought that it would be good for the Festival if
Irving took part.

There were strong reactions when it became known that Irving had been
invited to next years festival at Lillehammer. Many authors warned that
they would pull out if Irving was left on the program, writes daily
newspaper Aftenposten.

The free speech organization Fritt Ord was among the critics. It wanted
its logo removed from the Festival's advertising.

Festival chief Randi Skeie, says that Irving was invited precisely because
he denies the truth and falsifies history.

"Initially we wanted to expose Irving as a liar and swindler, but then the
issue became a question of free speech. Everything is fine as long as
everyone agrees, but things get more difficult when one doesnt like the
views being put forward," says Skeie.

(source: Aftenposten)




Sept. 29


USA:

From Auschwitz to Chicago, detailed Holocaust letters survive

The faded papers hint at stark details in the lives of Nazi concentration
camp inmates.

Letters secretly carried by children through the sewers of Warsaw, Poland,
during the 1944 uprising. A 1933 card from a Dachau camp commander
outlining strict rules for prisoner mail. A 1943 letter from a young man,
who spent time in Auschwitz, to his parents.

The more than 250 World War II postal documents -- cards, letters and
stamps -- have been acquired by an Illinois foundation from a private
collector and will soon be on permanent display in a museum in suburban
Chicago.

"These artifacts underscore the very personal dimension to this
catastrophe," said Richard Hirschhaut, executive director of the
Skokie-based Illinois
Holocaust<http://topics.cnn.com/topics/the_holocaust> Museum and Education
Center, where the exhibit will be housed next year when the museum opens.

"It now will reach an exponentially larger audience and serve as a genuine
tool for education and learning," Hirschhaut said.

The Holocaust memorial exhibit belonged to longtime postal memorabilia
collector and activist Ken Lawrence of Pennsylvania. It was called "The
Nazi Scourge: Postal Evidence of the Holocaust and the Devastation of
Europe."

The Florence and Laurence Spungen Family Foundation, based in Northbrook,
Illinois, recently bought the collection and has added to it.

"The insured value of the collection is $1 million, but the educational
value to future generations is incalculable," said Daniel Spungen, a board
member of the foundation, in a statement.

The exhibit includes a handwritten Bible scroll in Hebrew that was used by
a German soldier to mail a package. There are also documents sent to a
Nazi<http://topics.cnn.com/topics/nazi_party> doctor on trial for war
crimes at Nuremberg.

Lawrence, the former vice president of the American Philatelic Society,
meticulously collected the documents for more than three decades. His
project was sparked by claims that the Holocaust never occurred.

He has since showcased the collection across the country, garnering
awards.

The exhibit, which can also be viewed online, will travel to Billings,
Montana, in December and Santa Barbara, California, later in the winter.

(source: Associated Press)