Swiss Protection of Nazi Assets

Walter Russell Mead (“Even After the War, Swiss Protected Nazi Gold,” Opinion, May 11) makes us painfully aware that 50 years after the war, Holocaust victims and their survivors are still not finding justice. It is sadly ironic that in Switzerland, a country known for its discretion in financial matters, the banking laws are being used against the very people who turned to Switzerland for help. But what makes the story truly shameful is that the Swiss were willing accomplices to the Nazis’ crimes and knew full well that the gold in their vaults was bought with the blood of Nazi victims.

One may argue that the Swiss had no choice but to “buy” their neutrality. But this idea was discredited by the Swiss’ own actions: first, in their willingness to hand over Jewish refugees to the Nazis and, after the war, by refusing to return the assets of those who perished to their rightful heirs. Others may say that the Allies knew early on that Hitler was financing the war with Swiss help. Yet to allow the Swiss to deny their role in the war while they continue to profit on the assets of Holocaust victims is an affront to human decency.

The Swiss were never forced to make reparations at the war’s end. Judging by recent events, neither the Swiss government nor Swiss banks appears willing to take responsibility for their wartime and postwar actions. If their political and business leaders cannot show the moral courage to come to grips with history, then the international community should demand they do so, through political and economic pressure.

JON POST

Rancho Santa Margarita

After reading Mead’s article, I can’t help but wonder when the Israelis will give the land back to the Palestinians. If the Jews receive back their the possessions that were taken from them during a war, so should the Palestinians.

DEBBI PATTEN

Los Angeles