Didn’t the Allies divide Germany into four occupation zones after the unconditional surrender on May 8 1945? The Soviet Special Camp No. 7 in Weesow emerged from this division. It stands as a grim reminder of a tumultuous period.
Today we stand at the Gedenkstätte Internierungslager Weesow. It was initially established in May 1945 in the small village of Weesow northeast of Berlin. The Soviet secret service NKWD ran this camp. They used it to intern leading National Socialists and other influential figures.
Rudolf Witzleben was one such person. He was an engineer at AEG in Treptow. The NKWD arrested him in Berlin-Charlottenburg on June 7 1945. They accused him of being an agitator. Witzleben was then taken to the Soviet Special Camp No. 7 in Weesow.
Imagine the conditions here in Weesow. Houses were fenced in with barbed wire. Wooden towers kept watch over the grounds. People were arbitrarily arrested. They were forced into overcrowded barns and sheds. They slept on wooden planks, straw sacks or even outside.
By June, the camp swelled to 7000 or 8000 people. Overcrowding, poor nutrition and primitive living conditions led to a dysentery epidemic. Within four months, 1000 to 1500 people died here.
Rudolf Witzleben managed to write a secret message to his family on August 6 1945. It is still unknown how he smuggled the message out of the camp. Days later, he and other prisoners marched to Sachsenhausen. This became the new site of the camp.
The NKWD considered the security at Weesow inadequate. The camp also lacked connection to the sewage system. It had no railway either. These factors contributed to its closure in August 1945. Over 5000 weakened inmates had to make the 40 kilometer march to Sachsenhausen.
In total, more than 15000 people passed through the Weesow camp during its four-month existence.
After the camp closed, the site fell into disrepair. The gravel pit, which served as a mass grave, became a garbage dump in the GDR era. Secretly, relatives of the victims placed memorial stones there.
Today these memorials are integrated into the Gedenkstätte Internierungslager Weesow. It stands at the edge of the mass graves. It serves as a place of remembrance and reflection.
The Gedenkstätte Internierungslager Weesow reminds us of the many victims of the Soviet Special Camp No. 7. It stands as a stark reminder of the consequences of war and political repression. Let us remember their stories. Let us strive to create a world where such atrocities never happen again.