• The impact of citizens opinions on Dutch police participation in the deportation of the Jews 1942-1943

Guus Meershoek

Dutch police in 1940

Civilian:

• Cities: Gemeentepolitie • Smaller towns: Gemeenteveldwacht• Villages: Rijksveldwacht

Military:

• Border regions: Koninklijke Marechaussee• Riot police Politietroepen

Jordaan-riot, Amsterdam 1934

German interferences and strategy

• Merging forces into state-police• National recruitment and training centre• Putting reliable Dutch officers at the top

of main forces

• Relying on local, trusted institution (Jewish council, local police forces)

• Territorial scissors movement

Scissors movement in rounding up

Four crucial moments in deportation

August 1942: chiefs of city police in A. and TH offer assistance

October 1942: too much hidden resistance in A. and TH, start rounding up in countryside

February 1943: ordinary policemen refuse after call of conscience archbishop

May 1943: end of almost all assistance

Citizens opinions & impact on police

• Population well-informed, anti-semitism not socially accepted: February-strike, tolerated by local police

• Summer 1942: rumours of mass-murder in Poland

• Local authorities loyal, patrolmen comply• Inner emigration population, covered

resistance in police• February 1943: call of conscience archbishop

Conclusion

• German authorities took the lead• Well-functioning polity stimulates compliance • Police enforced estranged

• Police and population well-informed• Some reports of genocide in summer of 1942

• Population went into inner emigration• Call to conscience came too late