Final Report of the Independent Commission of Experts : Switzerland – Second World War

In The Course Of 1996, The Behaviour Of Switzerland During The National Socialist Regime And World War Ii Became The Subject Of Harsh Criticism. The Small Neutral State Appeared As An Amoral War Profiteer And A < > For Covert Operations Conducted By The Nazis. In The Glaring Light Of The International Media, The Unsolved Problems Of Restitution Of The Years 1933 Through 1945 Were Discussed. Dealings In Looted Gold Along With The Issues Of Dormant Bank Accounts And Stolen Cultural Assets Stood In The Spotlight Of A Debate On The Mysterious Whereabouts Of The Assets Of Victims Of Persecution And Extermination. In This Situation, At The End Of 1996 The Swiss Parliament And Government Set Up An Internationally Composed Independent Commission Of Experts Whose Five-year Assignment Was To Investigate These Allegations In Their Historical And Legal Context. Thanks To The Unique Privilege Of Assess To Archives, It Was Possible For The First Time To Overcome The Obstacle Of Swiss Banking Secrecy - Believed Insurmountable Until Then - And To Extend The Research To The Archives Of Banks And Other Companies. Against This Background, A Multifaceted Picture Of The Challenges Of Those Dark Years Emerges, Challenges Which Switzerland Met With Varying Degrees Of Success. The Investigations Provide An Illustration Of The Constraints Of National Survival Placed On A Country With Not Only Strong Economic, But Also Close Cultural Lies To The International Community. It Becomes Clear How Tightly National Security Policy And Business Interests Were Intertwined. Complex Issues Concerning The Restitution Of Stolen Property Are Analyzed From A Political And Legal Perspective. The Individual Fate Of The Refugees And Of Those Persecuted, As Well As The Interests Of The Victims, Are Intentionally And Constantly Placed In The Foreground. The Answers Found Have Expanded The Horizon Of Knowledge And Understanding Of The Position And Policies Of Neutral Switzerland In The Nazi Era, And Are Intended As A Contribution To The Urgently Needed Debate On The Historical Portrayal Of Switzerland.--jacket. 1. Introduction -- 2. The International Context And National Development -- 3. Refugees And Swiss Policy On Refugees -- 4. Foreign Trade Relations And Asset Transactions -- 5. Law And Legal Practice -- 6. Issues Of Property Rights In The Post-war Period -- 7. Conclusion: Insights And Unanswered Questions. Independent Commission Of Experts Switzerland, Second World War. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 527-569) And Index. English Version, Translated From German And French Original Texts. Members of the ICE Title Imprint Preface Contents Tables and Figures Tables 1 Export of arms,ammunition and fuses, by country 2 Export permits issued for war material destined for Germany and other countries,1940–1944 3 Coal transit,imports to Italy and transit through Switzerland,1938–1944 4 A few examples of transit permits for war materials 5 Gold purchases and sales by the SNB, 1 September 1939 – 30 June 1945 6 Foreign assets of major Swiss banks in 1934 7 Proportion of foreign workers in the Swiss subsidiary companies investigated and seen as «important to the war effort » in 8 Restitution proceedings against Swiss insurance companies 9 Restitution claims involving cultural assets before the Chamber of Looted Assets 10 Compensation payments by Switzerland concerning cultural assets Figures 1 Import and export trends,1924–1950 2 Monthly values of exports to the different power blocs 3 Swiss foreign trade with the German Reich 4 Gold purchases by the SNB from the Reichsbank,1939–1945, per quarter 5 Balance-sheet totals of Swiss banks in million constant francs, 1929–1945 6 Customers security deposits held by the Credit Suisse and the Swiss Bank Corporation Abbreviations 1 Introduction 1.1 Switzerland during the Nazi Period seen as a Problem of Today 1.2 Focus of Research,Questions,Work Phases 1.3 Transmission of Records and Privileged Access to Archives 2 The International Context and National Development 2.1 The International Context 2.2 Swiss Domestic Policy and Economy 2.3 Switzerland during and after the War 2.4 The War and its Consequences 2.5 The Crimes of National Socialism 3 Refugees and Swiss Policy on Refugees 3.1 Chronology 3.2 Awareness and Action 3.3 Players and Responsibility 3.4 Financing 3.5 Crossing over the Border and Staying in Switzerland 3.6 Extortion and Ransom Demands 3.7 Context and Comparison 4 Foreign Trade Relations and Asset Transactions 4.1 Foreign Trade 4.2 The Armaments Industry and the Export of War Material 4.3 Electricity 4.4 Alpine Transit and Transport Services 4.5 Gold Transactions 4.6 The Banking System and Financial Services 4.7 Swiss Insurance Companies in Germany 4.8 Industrial Companies and their Subsidiaries in Germany: Strategies and Management 4.9 The Use of Prisoners of War and Forced Labour in Swiss Subsidiaries 4.10 «Aryanisation» 4.11 Cultural Assets:Flight,Dealing and Looting 4.12 German Camouflage and Relocation Operations in Switzerland 5 Law and Legal Practice 5.1 Public law 5.2 Private law 6 Issues of Property Rights in the Post-War Period 6.1 Reparations,Restitution,«Wiedergutmachung»: Concepts and Premises 6.2 Restitution Claims in Switzerland: Negotiations and Legal Moves 6.3 Banking Sector,Dormant Accounts and Frustrated Restitutions 6.4 Restitution Questions in Relation to Insurance Companies 6.5 Restitution of Looted Securities 6.6 Restitution of Looted Cultural Goods 6.7 Camouflage Operations and Restitution Claims 6.8 Concluding Remarks 7 Conclusion:Insights and Unanswered Questions Sources and Bibliography 1 Published Sources 2 Unpublished Sources 3 Bibliography Members,General Secretaries,Staff and Mandatees of the ICE Index Publications of the ICE In continuation of a long-standing national self-image, Switzerland saw itself after 1945 as a "small neutral state," which because of its will to resist and a clever policy managed not to be drawn into the Second World War. However, this self-image has been the subject of an increasingly heated debate since the 1970s. The argument that Switzerland had above all been a "victim of developments in world politics," was increasingly confronted with the counter-argument that this country had aided the perpetrators in important mainly economic areas. More recently, dealings in looted gold and the issue of dormant bank accounts and stolen cultural assets have come into focus, in addition to inquiries into the mysterious disappearance of the assets of victims of persecution and extermination. In this situation, the Swiss Parliament and Government set up, at the end of 1996, an internationally composed Independent Commission of Experts whose five-year assignment was to investigate these allegations in their historical and legal context. Thanks to the unique privilege of access to archives, it was possible for the first time to overcome the obstacle of Swiss banking secrecy believed to be insurmountable until then and to extend the research to the archives of banks and other companies. A crucial document on 20th-centruy European history, this volume presents the full and final report of the Commission, illustrating Switzerland's predicament as a country not only with strong economic, but also close cultural ties to Germany, the neighbor that threatened the country's very survival. A multifaceted picture emerges of the challenges of those dark years challenges that Switzerland met with varying degrees of success. Distributed for "Pendo Verlag," Switzerland"