Gründe des Anwachsens der Abneigung gegen die amerikanische Militärregierung (streng geheim), 7. Novemder 1945.(Bericht des Staatspolitischen Auschusses an den Oberbürgermeister der Stadt Marburg, Eugen Siebecke)

Marburg/L., the 7-11-1945 

Reasons on account of which the disinclination to the

American Milltary Government increases[51]

The American occupation force has disappointed more and more in our town also the anti-fascist and democratical population.

Therefore one can watch a considerable disappearing of the population's confidence in the American occupation-army inwhich onewanted to see the democratical orderlyfactor which one was longing for. The modest hopes of the Anti-Nazis for a German Democracy are troubled and their intense longing for right and lawful conditions seem to be in vain. One marks the policy of the Americans as not being upright. But above all one watches a contradiction between democratical theory and practice.

The right, justice, humanity, the love and reconciliation which contain the public speeches of the American President is often missed by the friends of the Americans in the hard laws, measures and orders of the occupation-force after its entire victory over the Nazi forces. -

But above all put out of humour the continual personal unsteadiness of the leading men who were elected, acknowledged and because of their political reliability thoroughly examined by the Military Government.

This unsteadiness takes place because of the always repeated overhaulings which mostly lean upon dark denunciations of not to controi elements. -

So believe these man not to possess any more the full confidence of the Military Govern- ment in their faithful collaboration, although they work with the Milltary Government and for ft since months conscientiously and untiringly in order to re-build a new proper and democratical life. Here are some facts, appearances and occur-ences which have led to the regrettable consequences.

1). The management of the question of the prisoners-of war by the American military authorities disappointed specially the anti-fascist circles, as they saw return Nazis whereas they knew their relatives still in the prisoner-of war camp. All Anti-fascists ask daily why does one keep our innocent sons, brothers and fathers in the camp and perhaps one obliges them for years of compulsary labour, whilst real Nazis return home and can live here a peaceful life.

2.) There is ruling a common insecurity on the streets caused by the American soldiers and displaced persons. Rapacity sudden attacks are in Marburg the order of the day. The protocols of Marburg's police show enough prooves till today. A short time ago Dr. Happel, Fankfurterstreet 38 has been attacked by two American soldiers who plundered him, the 5th of November a police assistant has been stroken down at the summer swimming pool here by ten American soldiers. The 5th November American soldiers broke the window-glasses in the shop of Scharf, Wettergasse and Hoffmann, Steinweg. And glass is missing for the bombed windows of human dwellings.

3.) The news of numerous sudden attacks by displaced persons in American uniforms and with American weapons on lonely farms and mills affect strongly the confidence in the abillty of the occupation-force, to maintenance the peace and order in the country and to exterminate such gangs of robbers.

On the other hand one hears from the English occupation territory about the sovere measures of the Englishs against such cut-throats. The country-population has specially to complain about the way how the American soldiers carry on the hunting, in driving unfeelingly with their motor-cars over the fresh sowing of winter-corn and blinding in the night with headlights the dear and shooting it. -

lt is the same with the unwarranted fishing in all waters, which happens mostly by explosive means which are forbidden, and sowith dies also the entire fry and is endangered the entire breeding of fishes.

4.) For the measures of the milltary confiscation of apartments one often has no comprehension. lt is known that one confiscated the house of a blind teacher for blind persons in the Wilhelm-Roserstreet, although he always has been a Nazi-adversary. Then one con- fiscated in the midst of Nazi-houses the house of a certain Mr. Schneider [52]  in the Marbach, who is an Anti-fascist.

There appear also to the American army belonging persons and want to have apartments or rooms for doubtful female persons without having an official American assignment for such rooms. So, for example one has forced the placing under cover of a certain Mrs. Wilhelmi and daughter. Houses confiscated for weeks are empty or occupied only scarcely. In the houses which had to be given to coloured troops, for example Im Gefälle, reside in the nights white weriches, who are partly foreign in this region, and they steal everything they can.

The inside of these houses is completely distroyed and enormous dirty. But it is mostly conoerning poor people who have built their small houses with their money hard earned. Also the products of the gardens are plundered. And when the coloured troops change, foreign persons Im Gefälle for the most part Letten run into the houses in order to steal there what perhaps remained there for the poor owners. Every troop which leaves takes along furniture, stoffed chairs, chairs and household furniture, and this all after the war has finished already a long time ago.

5.) So well and feelingly some American military motor-cars drive, so are on the other hand many complains about harsh driving specially of the big American motor-vans which are driven by coloured drivers. Almost daily one brings ran over children or women in the hospital. The civilian motor-cars are rammed on the streets and pressed in the ditch. So have been damaged very much the automobils of two members of the Political Committee by American autos. It is concerning Mr. Theo Abel and Gottlieb Pfeil.

Also the traffic-orders of the town-police are not always observed by the American drivers.

6.) A special disturbance is carried in the population by certain methods of the Nazism- destruction. The Anti-fascist part of the population has the true intention to follow the American orders and to connect them with their own activity against the Nazis. But the population refuses the old Gestapo-methods, which have been used by some investigators of the American Military Government, specially in the past time, against respectable men. -

The entire system of the investigators seems extremely immoral, particularly the responsible offices and personallties try in the most fair and consistent way to earry on the Nazism-destruction. Undoubtedly they have the opinion that only a look on the Fragebogen is not suffielent enough to determine over the future of a family, but that one has to act in a severe but just way, purposefully but also humanly.

Among the persons connected with the party destinyly or by compulsion are valuable persons, who refused the entire Nazi-ideology and were adversaries of the Nazi-methods.

During the war station Luxemburg often has emphasied it. To seduce such persons by investigators and to throw suspicion on thern does not find the agreement of just thinking Anti-fascists. This procedure can only arise from hate-feelings or has personnel motives and must intensify the radicalism at the left and specially at the right side. Concrete cases of this kind in the latest time are the dismissal of the Civilian Pool manager Schreyer, of the leader of the Wirtschaftsamt Laucht and of the Studienrat Zuschke.[53] The use of such investigators and of other denouncers by the American milltary authority one compares with the measures of the English occupation force. The Englishs, so one teils here cause to set a surety of 500.- RM f rom everybody who denounces. This caution-money becomes forfeited when the denunciation proves to be groundless. Therein is a high moral. -

This is an education-method for responsibility and cleanliness which is just right for the Germans, which often see Democracy therein that one person can be the devil of the other one. Every thought is far away from us to make petty causes of the German guilt, of Hitler's and his followers guilt, or even to try to wipe out this guilt. Every respectful democrat ad- mits the almost not to expiate guilt of this crinne at the German peopfe and at the human race, and understands also that an occupation force cannot make friendship with the Ger- man people in half a year or orte year. We have to expiate and we will expiate. But we want also to have hope for a real Democracy. We want to be supported by a strong hand, and this we see in Marburg in the American occupation.

We do not want, that the other part of the population cries grining sneeringly: There you see the democrats from America! What did they now bring you? -

[51]  Bericht des Staatspolitischen Ausschusses an den Oberbürgermeister vom 7. 11. 1945. SPA-Akten, Magi- stratsarchiv Marburg. Gimbel zitiert diesen Bericht in einer deutschen Fassung, die im Magistratsarchiv nicht mehr aufzufinden ist: "Gründe des Anwachsens der Abneigung gegen die amerikanische Militärregierung (streng geheim), 7. November 1945" (GIMBEL, Eine deutsche Stadt, S. 108). Aus der Übersetzung ins Englische geht nicht mehr hervor, daß es sich um einen Geheimbericht handelte.

[52]  Heinrich Schneider aus Marbach, Sozialdemokrat, wurde Vorsitzender der SPD des Landeskreises Marburg. Später war er hessischer Innenminister (1955-1969).

[53]  Wirtschaftsamtsleiter Laucht wurde von der Militärregierung entlassen, da er angeblich Nationalsozialisten wirtschaftlich begünstigt hatte. (Vgl. GEIGER, Angestellter des Wirtschaftsamtes, an SPA, 30. 10. 1945, SPA-Akten, Magistratsarchiv Marburg).  Über die Entlassung Studienrat Zuschkes ließ sich Genaues nicht feststellen.