Another look at prosecution failures

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 23/09/2024 (385 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Winnipeg Free Press recently published an opinion piece by Royal Military College of Canada professor Lubomyr Luciuk about the proposed release of a list prepared by the 1985 Canadian Commission of Inquiry on War Criminals naming individuals living in Canada suspected of being Nazi war criminals who fled Europe and settled hidden in our country after the Second World War.

At first glance, the author seems to lament the lack of historical success in Canada’s prosecutions of Nazi war criminals and fairly raises concerns about the possibility of falsely identifying people who, though suspected of crimes against humanity, were not successfully prosecuted in a court of law.

While the author is certainly correct about our country’s abhorrent record of prosecuting Nazis who evaded justice, the actual intent of his opinion piece quickly becomes apparent when he dismisses the commission’s director of historical research, who indicated that Canada’s investigations of Nazi war criminals have been historically impeded by poor research.

In contrast — based on his misrepresentation of the evidence and the actual conclusions of the commission — Mr. Luciuk misleadingly concludes that the majority of accusations regarding Nazi war criminals in Canada have been false.

His unfounded assertion is in direct contrast to the findings of a multitude of historians who contend that Canada’s prosecution failures are actually due to a number of regrettable factors including a lack of political will, the disappearance of evidence due to the genocidal murders of key witnesses during the Holocaust, the deliberate destruction of evidence, a failure to consider proof gathered by other jurisdictions in Europe, a refusal to consider enthusiastic wartime Nazi collaborators as war criminals and the ravages of time (including the inevitable demise of surviving witnesses), all of which are sadly convenient for individuals such as the author, who aim to minimize the realities of the Holocaust and its near-annihilation of European Jews.

Worth noting, too, is that the author also manages to insult the integrity of internationally renowned and respected Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal, who has been responsible for bringing multiple war criminals to justice and to whom the world owes a debt of gratitude.

This attempt to dishonour Mr. Wiesenthal is, in itself, a well-worn tactic of Holocaust deniers.

Also relevant: Earlier this year, the American Library Association removed a book co-edited by Mr. Luciuk from a list of recommended writings on history, over concerns the book downplays the role of Nazi collaborators and war criminals in Ukraine during the Second World War.

I have little doubt that Mr. Luciuk perceives himself as a victim, unfairly accused of antisemitism and Holocaust minimization.

The court of public opinion, however, can decide on Mr. Luciuk’s academic integrity, character and motives.

And news outlets such as the Winnipeg Free Press need to do better, going forward, to ensure their publications are not being misused as platforms for hate.

Daniel Rothman writes from Winnipeg.