For Immediate Release
August 12, 2013
Statement on the Death of Laszlo Csatary
Ottawa, ON – Today, it was reported that Laszlo Csatary has died in Hungary. Csatary was convicted in absentia by a Czech court in 1948 for his involvement in Nazi war crimes. This past June, he was further indicted in Hungary for assisting in the deportation of thousands of Jews in World War Two – including many he had personally abused.
Csatary lived in Canada from 1949 to 1997, when he fled the country in anticipation of deportation orders. Although stripped of his citizenship by the Federal Cabinet, Csatary is in many ways emblematic of the failure of Canadian authorities to prevent our country from being a safe haven for war criminals in the post-war years.
In response to today’s reports, Shimon Fogel, CEO of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, issued the following statement:
“Justice delayed is ultimately justice denied – and it’s deeply saddening that Csatary's thousands of victims were denied any measure of justice. It calls for Canada’s redoubled efforts to extradite those Nazi-era war criminals who continue to evade justice to this day, such as Helmut Oberlander, as well as those from other conflicts who have likewise abused Canada's hospitality.”
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The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs is a non-partisan organization that serves as the advocacy arm of the Jewish Federations of Canada.
For more information, or to arrange an interview with Shimon Fogel or a Canadian Holocaust survivor, please contact:
Martin Sampson
Director of Communications and Marketing
The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA)
msampson@cija.ca
613-219-3500