Urgent Information for Holocaust Survivors
During the past few weeks there have been intensified new items pertaining to the German Government and German Industry regarding payments for former slave and forced laborers.
The American Gathering is an active participant in the negotiations with the German Government and Industry along with the Center of Holocaust Survivors in Israel, the Claims conference and the U.S. & Israeli Governments. Whatever compensation will be forthcoming, which is too little and too late to begin with, shall be paid to all those entitled as defined by German law without a lot of red tape. The Claims Conference will take care of the distribution of the money without cost to you and administration expenses will be absorbed by Germany.
The framework of the agreement, widely quoted in the press as being in the amount of 10 billion DM, and for which the German Government and German Industry insist on legal closure, does not make it clear that in actuality less than 30% of this amount is assigned by the Germans for the Jewish Holocaust survivors. Most of the money will go to non-Jewish Forced Laborers.
Furthermore, we want to point out to you that the slave labor negotiation with the Germans is still ongoing and not finalized. A number of issues are yet to be approved by the lower house of the Bundestag in Germany. Thus, no application can be filed at present. We anticipate that the German legislation will be passed in the month of July and that processing of applications will begin shortly thereafter.
For your guidance, please keep in mind the following: The application form will be kept short, simple, and non-bureaucratic. The survivors will be able to apply directly to the Claims Conference. If there are any questions, the Claims Conference will answer them. At present, the proposed legislation to be passed by the German Parliament would provide payments based on the conditions as noted below (please keep in mind that the German Parliament may make some changes during the legislative process).
For more information, call: 1-800-957-3203 or 212-239-4230.
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