"Genocide Carried out by the Tito Partisans" Österreichische
Historiker-Arbeitsgemeinschaft Für Kärnten und Steiermark (Austrian Historian Working
Group for Kärnten and Steiermark)
Chapter
Four:
Syrem, Slavonia,
Baranya:
The Cauldron -
Translated by
Henry Fischer
Srem: When the Beasts
Ruled
“Whoever cannot
work will not be
allowed to live”
Semlin |
Ruma |
Mitrowitz |
Vukovar
Semlin
The German
population in
Srem and
Slavonia was
scattered and
isolated and
lived among
Croats and Serbs
who formed a
majority in the
mixed
communities in
which many of
them lived. But
alongside of
them were large
and
overwhelmingly
German
communities,
like Ruma,
Indija, Pasua,
Franztal,
Sarwasch and
Sotin and
several others,
while in most
communities in
Srem and the
eastern portion
of the Slavonia
there were large
German
populations.
During the
Second World
War, both
regions were
part of the
Independent
State of
Croatia.
The
relationships
between the
Serbs and the
Croats during
the time of the
so-called
Independent
State of Croatia
were stretched
to the limits.
As long as the
situation
permitted the
German
population in
Srem sided with
the Serbs in the
face of actions
taken against
them by the
Croats. Indija
is not the only
example, in
which the home
defense forces
of the German
population came
to the defense
of the Serbs and
prevented a
bloodbath. The
relationships
between the
Germans and both
the Serbs and
Croats over the
previous century
had always been
very positive.
In the past they
had not
intervened or
become involved
in the quarrels
and arguments
between the two
groups, and let
them work things
out amongst
themselves.
They were always
friends of both,
and enemies of
neither.
Throughout
the war, both
Srem and
Slavonia
experienced
ongoing raids
and stronger and
stronger attacks
by the Partisans
directed against
the Croatian and
German troops.
But the
Partisans did
not hesitate to
include the
local civilian
populations in
the conflict.
Their bestial
treatment of the
innocent
civilians who
fell into their
hands was a
clear indication
of what the
local
populations
could expect if
the Partisans
ever came to
power if there
was no one to
curb them and
hold them back
from committing
ongoing
atrocities.
They acted with
excessive
brutality of a
satanic nature
during the
entire war,
against the
Serbian,
Croatian and
German civilian
populations who
did not support
and stand by
them, and did so
with displays of
gruesome
bestiality. The
Serbian
Royalists had to
suffer as much
as the Croatians
and the Germans.
Because of
what they had
learned and
experienced
during the war
years, the vast
majority of the
German
population left
their homeland
in the fall of
1944, knowing
that they would
be helpless and
defenseless
against the
Communist
Partisans and
would have to
face
unimaginable
horrors at their
hands. How
accurate they
actually were in
their assessment
of the situation
was soon to be
proven true.
From the very
first days of
rule by the
Partisans the
German
population was
herded together
and the majority
of them were
immediately
shot. But these
mass shootings
in Srem and
Slavonia were
not the equal of
some of the
gruesome and
greater
atrocities that
the later labour
camp inmates
would have to
suffer.
Semlin-on-the-Danube
across the river
from Belgrade on
the other side
of the Sava,
through the
incorporation of
surrounding
villages had a
very large
German
population.
Already in
October of 1944
by order of the
Partisan Ruling
Council a
concentration
camp was erected
there. Several
thousands of the
German civilians
were brought
here over a
brief period of
time. The vast
majority came
from the
Batschka and the
Banat. The camp
consisted of
four barracks,
three of which
were occupied by
men and one by
women. With
even less daily
nutrition than
the slave
labourers in the
Batschka and the
Banat, they were
set at hard
labour every
day. Many of
them, who were
too weak or sick
to work, were
beaten or shot
to death. One
of the inmates
in this camp
informs us:
“We were
brought to
Belgrade on
ships from
Pantschowa. Our
group consisted
of men from
various
communities in
the Banat:
Karlsdorf,
Werschetz,
Kovin, Mramorak,
Franzfeld, etc.
We were taken on
foot from
Belgrade to
Semlin. On our
way we were
often beaten
with rifle buts
in our ribs.
Whoever could
not keep up, was
beaten. Weaker
men threw away
their backpacks
in order to keep
up with the
others in order
to avoid being
beaten or put to
death. On our
way we ran into
a column of
wagons, which
had license
plates denoting
various villages
in the Banat.
They were loaded
with furniture,
household items,
bedding and such
heading for
Belgrade, even
though
everywhere you
turned you could
read notices on
walls that
stated, “We do
not need the
belongings of
strangers, nor
do we want
them.” After a
short period of
waiting in front
of a command
station, we were
led into the
Camp Kalvaria
(Calvary). It
was ten o’clock
when we set foot
in the camp and
there and then
we were driven
into a barrack
like cattle, in
which all of us
could not stand
upright nor
could we sit
down to rest.
During that
night,
everything they
had not already
taken away from
us was now
confiscated.
The next day we
were led to the
airport to
work. While we
working at the
airport
everything that
we had managed
to save and hide
in our backpacks
all
disappeared.
All we had left
was what we were
wearing. At the
airport we had
to remove
debris, while
others were
taken to the
docks to load or
unload ships.
It often
happened that
entire work
parties received
no food or
rations in spite
of doing hard
labour all day.
At evening we
got watery bean,
potato or pea
soup, and 40 to
45 Decograms of
bread daily.
During the
nights we had to
dig ditches in
two shifts. For
those who had no
implements, they
had to use their
bare hands to
carry the earth
some 100
meters. One of
the shifts
worked from the
time they
returned to the
camp from
working outside
until midnight,
and were then
replaced by the
other shift.
But often both
shifts had to
work through the
night. Whoever
could no longer
go on working
and received a
slip from the
doctor, was
allowed to rest
for a day in the
camp clinic.
Until the end of
March the camp
was without a
doctor. His
function was
carried out by a
Partisan, who
was in charge of
the
brutalization
and
mistreatement of
the prisoners,
and the shooting
of prisoners,
which he both
organized and
carried out. He
loved to be
called “Doctor,”
and would make
the decision
whether a person
was sick or
not. Every few
days, the sick
who were in the
clinic were sent
to the
“Hospital” in
Belgrade. They
had to make
their way to
Belgrade on foot
in the evening.
Those who were
unable to go on,
were helped by
the others and
dragged along
with them as
best as they
could. They
were taken about
100 meters from
the camp and
shot there.
These actions
were always
under the
direction of the
“Doctor”. In
such actions,
Martin Berger of
Karlsdorf and
Jakob Kuhn of
Weisskirchen
lost their
lives.
A Gypsy
family with an
eighteen year
old son lived in
close proximity
to the airport.
He came and
visited the
airport on a
daily basis, and
he was allowed
to choose any
man from among
the prisoners
and beat him
with a cane for
as long as he
wanted. If any
of the other
prisoners turned
around so as not
to witness this
brutality, he
would be the
next to endure a
beating. If any
man hesitated,
or spoke out
against this
punishment was
forced to kneel
and place his
hands behind his
back and was
then beaten with
the rifle buts
of the
sentries. On
one occasion,
when one man had
already received
several blows
from the rifle
buts, attempted
to ward off the
next blow by
raising his
hands against
the offender.
His hands were
immediately
chained behind
his back and
later in the
night and on the
following day he
was gruesomely
mistreated and
abused. Every
bone in his
hands and feet
were broken. In
the following
night all of the
prisoners were
forced to
assemble. By
order of the
Camp commander
one of the
Partisans
stepped forward
and shot the man
lying on the
ground beaten,
bloodied and
moaning
pathetically.
He was buried in
the vicinity of
the camp yard.
On February
12th, a labour
group of some
six hundred men
was assembled
and force
marched in the
direction of
Mitrowitz. On
their way they
were joined by
another four
hundred men from
Apatin who were
working on the
railway line
from Schid-Vodjinci.
They had to
carry the heavy
steel train
tracks wherever
they were
required.
This meant that
they carried
them for at
least six
hundred to
fifteen hundred
meters. Whoever
could not keep
up was shot.
The first few
days, the men
received
absolutely
nothing to eat.
A few days later
they received a
quarter liter of
pea soup and 10
Decagrams of
bread.
Everything
lacked salt.
The ration was
increased later
to a half liter
of pea or bean
soup, and 30 to
40 Decagrams of
bread, but both
the peas and
beans were hard
and
indigestible.
After a short
time, all of the
men had serious
cases of
dysentery,
working in
extreme heat and
drinking
excessively,
they weakened
physically to
the point that
it was life
threatening for
many of them, so
that on May 16th
the work
assignment
ended, because
there were no
longer even
fifty men who
were capable of
any work. Of
the four hundred
men from Apatin,
three hundred
and thirty-nine
of them were
sent back to
Apatin on April
27th. But on
the next day at
the railway
station at
Slankovici,
twelve of the
sick men were
shot. Among
them was the
sixty year old
Michael Fraus of
Zychidorf. Of
the group, who
had come from
the Semlin camp
the survivors
returned to
Semlin, but
without one
hundred and
twelve of their
fellow prisoners
who had been
either shot or
beaten to death.
On May
29th, three
hundred of the
men who had lost
the capacity to
do any further
work were
transferred to
the internment
camp at Jarek in
the Batschka.
They were mostly
the men who had
worked on
railway
construction.
In
September of
1945 the camp at
Semlin was
closed and the
inmates were all
sent to
Mitrotwitz.
All of the
men who had
spent several
months in the
Semlin Camp,
aged
dramatically in
a very short
period of time,
so that they
were
unrecognizable
to their
families. Young
men in a short
time looked like
aged men, and
most of them had
lost almost all
of their teeth.
From Semlin and
Mitrowitz only
human wrecks
returned, at
whose sight it
was apparent
what they had
endured.
[Published at
DVHH.org,
Sept. 2006]
