Names of 425,000 Suspected Nazi Collaborators in the Netherlands Published Online for the First Time

For the first time, the names of about 425,000 people suspected of collaborating with the Nazis during the German occupation of the Netherlands have been published on the Internet. These names belong to individuals who were investigated under a special legal system created at the end of World War II. Of these, more than 150,000 people have been punished in one way or another.

Previously, access to the full records of these investigations could only be obtained by visiting the National Archives of the Netherlands in The Hague. The Huygens Institute, which helped digitize the archive, argues that this was a major obstacle for people who want to explore the occupation of the Netherlands, which lasted from the invasion in 1940 to 1945.

The archive contains dossiers on war criminals, about 20,000 Dutch people who joined the German armed forces, and alleged members of the National Socialist Movement (NSB), the Dutch Nazi Party. However, it also contains the names of people who have been found innocent. This is because the archive consists of files from a Special Jurisdiction that has been investigating the activities of alleged collaborators since 1944.

The online database contains only the names of suspects, as well as their date and place of birth, which can only be searched using certain personal data. It does not specify whether a specific person was found guilty or what form of cooperation they were suspected of. However, it will tell users which file to request to see this information if they visit the National Archives. People accessing physical files must declare a legitimate interest in viewing them.

In the Netherlands, there has been some concern that personal information relating to a sensitive period of history is becoming publicly available, and therefore information published on the Internet was initially limited.

"I'm afraid there will be a very unpleasant reaction," Rinke Smedinga, whose father was a member of the NSB and worked at the Westerbork camp, from where people were deported to concentration camps, told the Dutch online publication DIT. "It needs to be anticipated. You can't just let this happen as a kind of social experiment."

Tom De Smet, director of the National Archives, told DIT that it is necessary to take into account the relatives of both collaborators and victims of the occupation. But he added, "Collaboration is still a major trauma. They don't talk about him. We hope that when the archives are opened, the taboo will be lifted."

In a letter to Parliament dated December 19, Culture Minister Eppo Bruins wrote: "The openness of archives is crucial to overcome the consequences of the difficult common past [of the Netherlands] and for its understanding by society." He said the amount of information available online would be limited due to privacy concerns, and those who visit the archive in person would not be allowed to make copies. The Bruins have expressed a desire to change the law to allow more information to be publicly disclosed.

The online database website states that the names of people who may still be alive are not listed online.