The U.S. State Department published a report on Wednesday on steps being taken by countries to provide restitution or compensation for property taken during the Holocaust.
The report was released in accordance with the Justice for Uncompensated Survivors Today (JUST) Act of 2017.
“As we mark the 75th anniversary of the end of the Holocaust and more than 10 years after the adoption of the Terezin Declaration, the legacy of the Nazis’ mass looting and subsequent Communist-era nationalizations of such property, remains largely unaddressed in too many places,” US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated.
“The report details the critical work that remains to be done to provide a belated measure of justice to Holocaust survivors and their families, and to Jewish communities destroyed by the Holocaust,” Pompeo added. “Given the advanced age of Holocaust survivors around the world ‐‐ many of whom live in or near poverty ‐‐ the need for action is urgent. All victims of the Nazi regime should be able to live out their remaining days in dignity.”
As we mark the 75th anniversary of the end of the Holocaust, @StateDept’s JUST Act Report highlights countries’ efforts to provide a measure of justice to Holocaust survivors and their families. We must #NeverForget the unspeakable crimes of the Holocaust.
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) July 29, 2020
According to The Associated Press, the report “called out Bosnia, Belarus, Ukraine and particularly Poland for not having acted on restitution claims.”
“Croatia, Latvia and Russia were also taken to task in the report, which is likely to draw angry responses from the governments identified,” The Associated Press added.
