§ LORD HANKEYasked Her Majesty's Government whether, after the end of World War II, the Russians held courts-martial, comparable to those held in the British, American and French occupied zones of Germany, either in the Russian occupied zone of Germany or in the territories of the satellite countries; if so, whether any figures can be made public as to: (1) the number who were sentenced to death and executed; (2) the number who received lesser sentences; (3) the number still in prison, and (4) the number released on completion of sentence or on grounds of clemency.
THE PARLIAMENTARY UNDER-SECRETARY OF STATE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS (THE MARQUESS OF READING)Soviet military tribunals for the trial of war criminals were set up in the Soviet-occupied zone of Germany, and as part of a quadripartite report to the Council of Foreign Ministers the position was stated by the Russian element to be as follows on January 1, 1947
Soviet Zone—Persons individually guilty of war crimes and crimes against peace and humanity.1040WA
Number in custody 14,820 Number tried 14,240 Number convicted: (a) Death penalty 138* (b)Other penalties 13,060 Number acquitted 142 (*This figures does not take into account war criminals who were executed wherever they committed their crimes, e.g., trials in the U.S.S.R., Poland, Czechoslovakia, etc.) In August, 1947, the trials of major offenders and offenders as defined by Control Council Directive No. 38 of the 12th October, 1946, were handed over to the German courts in the Soviet zone, except for specially important cases which might be referred to the military tribunals. The Soviet-administered internment camps were handed over to the East German authorities in February, 1950, and in July of the same year the Soviet Zone Information Office released the following figures of the number of war criminals already convicted by military tribunals and of those awaiting trial:
Number convicted by military tribunal and serving sentences 10,513 Number handed over for further investigation 3,432 Number released, not having committed any major crime 15,938 These figures are not accepted in West Germany.
It is impossible to give information on the number still serving terms of imprisonment, or on releases, since the number of prisoners transferred from the Soviet internment camps has been continually increased by political prisoners and ordinary criminals. Similar trials in the satellite countries were not carried out by the Soviet authorities, but by special tribunals and People's Courts established by the satellite Governments themselves. No statistics are available.
House adjourned at twenty-six minutes past six o'clock.