A Holocaust survivor has slammed the 'Secretary of Evil's' sentence after she was finally held accountable for her actions.
Irmgard Furchner, now 97, was found guilty in Germany today (20 December) of aiding and abetting the murder of more than 10,000 people at the Sutthof concentration camp in Poland during the second world war.
But despite the scale of her crimes, prosecutors have recommended that she is handed a two-year suspended sentence.
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Furchner had previously claimed that while she worked in the camp between 1943 and 1945, she had no knowledge of the atrocities taking place.
However, this was thrown into doubt because of her role as secretary, which put her in daily contact with the camp's commander, Paul Werner Hoppe.
Her denial of involvement was slammed by Holocaust survivor Manfred Goldberg BEM, 92, who claims that reports about the harvesting of human hair were even sent to her office.
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As relayed by the Holocaust Educational Trust, he said: "The entry gate of Stutthof was known as the 'Gate of Death', entering was more or less equivalent to death.
"It is my belief that it would be impossible for Furchner not to know what was going on there, as she claims.
"Everything was documented and progress reports, including how much human hair had been harvested, sent to her office."
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But the survivor did praise the German court for finally convicting Furchner, who was a teenager at the time of her crimes.
He added: "This trial serves the purpose of letting the public know that there is no limitation of time for crimes of such cruelty or magnitude.
"My only disappointment is that a 2-year suspended appears to me to be a mistake. No one in their right mind would send a 97-year-old to prison, but the sentence should reflect the severity of the crimes.
"If a shoplifter is sentenced to two years, how can it be that someone convicted for complicity in 10,000 murders is given the same sentence."
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Goldberg's comments come after Furchner said she regretted being present a the camp during the Holocaust earlier this month.
Furchner told Itzehoe Regional Court: "I'm sorry for everything that happened."
She added: "I regret that I was at Stutthof at that time."
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Risa Silbert, 93, a survivor of the camp, also echoed Goldberg's criticism of Furchner's defence.
"Stutthof was hell," she said.
"We had cannibalism … people were hungry and they cut up the corpses and they wanted to take out the liver.
"If she worked as the commander's secretary, then she knew exactly what happened."
Karen Pollock CBE, Chief Executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust, added: "This trial has showed once more that the passage of time is no barrier to justice when it comes to those involved in perpetrating the worst crimes mankind have ever seen."Stutthof was infamous for its cruelty and suffering, with Holocaust survivors calling it 'hell on earth'. The testimony shared by survivors during this trial has been harrowing, and their bravery in reliving such horrific memories must be commended.
"While Furchner will keep her freedom - this was stolen from over 60,000 Jewish victims ruthlessly murdered by the Nazis at Stutthof.
"This trial is further proof - if needed - of the heinous crimes which took place during the Holocaust."
Topics: Crime, World War 2, World News
Emma Guinness