A Dutch archive on Thursday digitally released a list naming over 400,000 suspected wartime Nazi collaborators after the expiry of a law that had restricted public access to the documents.
The archive, created by the Allies following the liberation of the Netherlands, consists of 32 million pages and contains the names of about 425,000 mostly Dutch people who were investigated for collaboration with German occupiers during World War Two.
The Netherlands was under German occupation between 1940 and 1945. Some Dutch people collaborated by denouncing Jews, about 100,000 of whom perished in the Holocaust. Other Dutch people, numbering about 40,000, joined Germany’s SS paramilitary units.
Only a fifth of those listed ever appeared before a court, and most cases concerned lesser offenses such as being a member of the Dutch Nationalist Socialist movement.
The law restricting public access expired on New Year’s Day. Initially, scanned files from the archive were set to be made available online on Thursday, giving users access to the dossiers of suspects, including the names of their victims and witnesses.
The relatives of the victims would have been able to easily learn of the circumstances in which an individual or resistance cell was denounced to the occupiers.
However, following a warning from the Dutch Data Protection Authority (EDPB), a decision was made last month to postpone the full release of files and instead publish only the list of names.
Although the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) protects personal data, it does not apply to those who have died – the vast majority of those listed in the archive.
The Dutch Data Protection Authority pointed out, however, that the files of the individuals listed, including those who are still alive, contain sensitive data, including their religious affiliation and political convictions.
No date has been set for the full publication of the dossiers, disappointing some of the victims’ relatives.
However, journalists and historians, as well as descendants of victims, will be able to request permission to access the files in person at the Dutch National Archives in The Hague.
The Netherlands was under German occupation between 1940 and 1945. Some Dutch people collaborated by denouncing Jews, about 100,000 of whom perished in the Holocaust. Other Dutch people, numbering about 40,000, joined Germany’s SS paramilitary units.
Only a fifth of those listed ever appeared before a court, and most cases concerned lesser offenses such as being a member of the Dutch Nationalist Socialist movement.
The law restricting public access expired on New Year’s Day. Initially, scanned files from the archive were set to be made available online on Thursday, giving users access to the dossiers of suspects, including the names of their victims and witnesses.
The relatives of the victims would have been able to easily learn of the circumstances in which an individual or resistance cell was denounced to the occupiers.
However, following a warning from the Dutch Data Protection Authority (EDPB), a decision was made last month to postpone the full release of files and instead publish only the list of names.
Although the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) protects personal data, it does not apply to those who have died – the vast majority of those listed in the archive.
The Dutch Data Protection Authority pointed out, however, that the files of the individuals listed, including those who are still alive, contain sensitive data, including their religious affiliation and political convictions.
No date has been set for the full publication of the dossiers, disappointing some of the victims’ relatives.
However, journalists and historians, as well as descendants of victims, will be able to request permission to access the files in person at the Dutch National Archives in The Hague.
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