50 Theses on the Expulsion of the Germans from Central and Eastern Europe 1944-1948

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The flight and expulsion of more than 14 million Germans
from their 700-year old homelands in Central and Eastern Europe
during the years 1944-48 into a truncated and occupied Germany
brought about a humanitarian catastrophe that resulted in the
deaths of some two million human beings. This
forced displacement of entire populations regardless of personal
guilt or innocence, the loss of Germany‘s Eastern provinces and the
destruction of the centuries-old German presence in Bohemia, Moravia
and the Danube Basin are historical events of far reaching political,
economic, cultural and psychological consequences. And
yet, the subject matter has remained largely unknown, almost
taboo for more than 65 years.
These expulsions surpassed the “ethnic cleansing” in the former
Yugoslavia in the 1990s or the Rwanda genocide of 1994,
but unlike these other tragedies, no international tribunal ever
investigated or attempted to punish those responsible. International
public opinion remains indifferent to German suffering.
This book fills a gap and facilitate learning about the subject,
laying down the facts and elucidating the main historical and
international law implications. It places the events in a broad context
and examines the application of relevant human rights norms
and international law principles. The original German version of
the Theses (2008) was well received by scholars, journalists, politicians,
and teachers; this revised and updated English version is particularly
well suited for didactic use.
Alfred de Zayas is an American lawyer and historian. He holds a J.D. from
Harvard and a Dr. phil. in modern history from Göttingen. He
is working as Independet Expert of the United Nations. He has taught
both international law and world history at universities in the US,
Canada, Germany, Switzerland and Spain. For 22 years he was working as
senior lawyer with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner
for Human Rights, where he was Chief of Petitions and Secretary
of the Human Rights Committee.