The names of 425,000 individuals suspected of collaborating with Nazi Germany have been published online for the first time in the Netherlands under a project called “War in Court”. BBC Report. The names were released on New Year’s Day following the expiration of a law that had restricted public access to the collection, marking a new era of transparency about the country’s wartime past.
The Huygens Institute helped digitize the collection that was previously only accessible by visiting the Dutch National Archives in The Hague.
The Huygens Institute says, “This collection holds important stories for both present and future generations. From children who want to know what their father did in the war to historians researching obscure areas of collaboration till.”
The collection consists of approximately 32 million pages and details the lives and works of mostly Dutch citizens who served in various capacities with the German occupiers during World War II. In addition to names, the database includes the date and place of birth of suspects, which can only be searched using specific personal details.
Only about a fifth of the approximately half a million suspected collaborators were brought before court, while other cases related to lesser crimes such as being a member of the Nationalist Socialist Movement – the Dutch Nazi Party.
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Privacy vs Transparency
Although the names were released to ensure transparency, the entire episode has been criticized by the descendants of the accused as well as the families of the victims. It has also sparked debate over the ethics of privacy versus the public’s right to historical truth.
Some fear that the collection could reignite old tensions and stigmatize individuals associated with dark periods of Dutch history. Meanwhile, supporters argue that such transparency is necessary for historical education and healing the wounds of the past.
Research shows that almost a fifth of Dutch people are not comfortable with the idea of children of Nazi collaborators holding public office.
The archive does not specify whether any particular individual was found guilty, or what type of collaboration they were suspected of. Users must submit a request to view this particular information and even then, they must declare a legitimate interest in viewing these.
