The other side of the Anne Frank story: The Dutch role in the persecution of the Jews in World War Two

Contrary to their historical reputation there were only a few Dutch citizens who rescued Jews during World War II by providing their homes as a shelter. Of all the West European countries occupied by the Germans, the number of Jewish casualties was the highest in The Netherlands. Before the occupation there were approximately 140,000 Jews living in The Netherlands, and of that total at least 109,000 were murdered. When the war was over many war criminals and Nazi collaborators were punished. This did not include, however, Dutch civil servants and many of the police and train conductors who were all part of the Holocaust machine. They were recruited from the large middle-ground of a population of mainly bystanders. In addition, Dutch criminology has been conspicuously silent about the Holocaust. Therefore, I shall discuss the following issues as contributory to the Holocaust: (1) the denunciation process; (2) the attitude of The Netherlands' bureaucracy in general; and, (3) the negative impact of the actions of officials in positions of the highest power such as the Queen (who fled to Britain), members of the Supreme Court and Chiefs of Police.