“PRIJATELJI LA BENEVOLENCIJE” · Gestapoa pošto me je moj Grčki prijatelj Kristos upoznao sa...

68 SPRING 2015

BULLETIN OF JEWISH SOCIETY

“THE FRIENDS OF LA BENEVOLENCIJA”

BILTEN JEVREJSKE ZAJEDNICE

“PRIJATELJI LA BENEVOLENCIJE”

SaLon I MI SaLon je naš list – hroničar, namijenjen da prvenstveno odslikava rad naše Za-jednice, i da po malo skrene pažnju i poduči. SaLon je osnovala Zajednica i logično da njegov život zavisi od života zajednice. Izabrala je i redakciju. Ova se mijenjala i nakon dužeg vremena ustalila i, ... počela umarati. Da bi list bio usp-ješan on mora imati predane čitaoce ali i široku bazu saradnika. U našem slučaju uslovno široku, jer smo i inače malobro-jni, ali onakvih saradnika koji imaginaci-jom i mislima mogu osmisliti sadržaj. Takvih medju nama ima zasigurno. No pokazalo se vremenom sve teže i teže privoliti ljude na saradnju. Više puta se redakcija obraćala čitalaštvu, ponekad apelom, ponekad vapajem da zagriju stolicu i obogate sadržaj svojim prilozima. No pozivi su padali na gluve uši. Redakcija je sve više počela za-padati u začarani krug svog vlastitog zamora i nemoći da kreira svježe novine, u nedostatku raznovrsnih priloga.

Zajednica živi i radi a SaLon ostaje kao riba na suhom. Nemajući izbora, redak-cija se obratila Odboru sa prijedlogom da se dok se ne nadje bolje rješenje, broj godišnjih izdanja smanji sa četiri na dva. Kontinuitet postoji a ostavlja se vre-mena da redakcija duboko udahne i sroči pristojne brojeve. Odbor je ovu sugestiju nevoljko prihvatio pa nas, eto, dva puta godišnje, u proljeće i na jesen. Ako ova situacija prodrma nevoljke saradnike iz zimskog sna niko ne kaže da nećemo izaći i češće. Loptica je na vama saradnici! Redakcija

THE SaLon AND WE The SaLon is our magazine devised to foremost be a chronicler of our activities and at the same time means to

inspire and educate. The SaLon was founded by our community and consequently its life depends on the community. The elected Editoral Board has un-dergone many changes with the passage of time, eventually settled and then … has begun to show signs of creative fatigue. In order to be successful any magazine must have loyal readership and a broad base of contributors. 'Broad' in our case should not be taken literary as we are a small com-munity, but contributors who by their creative poten-tial, various interests and ideas can make the con-tents of the magazine interesting. We certainly do not lack individuals like these. However, it has be-come increasingly more difficult to engage our members in this task. The Editoral Board has ap-pealed for help many a time by directly asking our members to put a pen to paper but this appeal has fallen on deaf ears. The Board itself has become trapped in the vicious circle of its own creative im-potence by lack of fresh blood and new ideas.

The irony of the whole saga is that our community thrives while at the same time The SaLon looks like a fish out of water. Having had no other option the Editoral Board asked the Committee of the 'Friends of La Benevolencija' to cut the number of issues from four to two a year until an adequate solution is found. The continuity will not be lost , it will only give the Editorial Board enough breathing space and more material to make issues interesting to their readers. Though half-heartedly the Committee has accepted the reasons behind this proposal and it has been decided that from now on there will be a spring and an autumn issue of the magazine. If this decision prompts some of the reluctant contributors to wake up from hibernation the decision can be easily reversed. So dear contributors, the ball is now in your court!

Editorial Board

P. U januaru smo obilježili 70 godina otkako je

oslobođen logor Aušvic od strane Sovjetskih trupa.

Svoje ste događaje dosta opisivali u mnogim

intervjuima. Možete li ukratko ponoviti to i za čitaoce

SaLona? Gdje i u kakvom okruženju vas je zatekao

početak rata? Možete li se sjetiti trenutka kada vam

je postalo jasno da je dolaskom nacista vaš život

došao u opasnost? Kako ste se sklonili od nacista?

O: Zovem se Fredi Noler. Preživio sam Holokaust.

Rođen sam u Beču u Austriji 1921. godine, pa lako

možete zaključiti da sam sada mladić od 93 godine.

Prava opasnost je počela kada je Njemačka

anektirala Austriju 1938. godine, čime smo postali

dio njemačkog Rajha. Čak i prije nego što se to

dogodilo znali smo u kakvoj su opasnosti Jevreji i ne

samo Jevreji u Njemačkoj. Čuli smo za Kristalnu

noć i druge strašne događaje. Tada je moj

otac odlučio da nas troje djece treba da

napustimo zemlju. Srednji brat je došao u Englesku.

Najstariji je otišao u Ameriku. Meni je bilo 17 godina.

Nije bilo mogućnosti za dalje školovanje. Mene su

tako poslali prijateljima u Antverpen u Belgiji. Više

nikada nisam vidio svoje roditelje. Tamo sam dospio

u logor za izbjeglice. Logor je bio pun Jevreja i

drugih naroda koji se nisu „uklapali“ u njemačku

rasu. Godine 1940 Njemci su okupirali Belgiju.

Govorio sam francuski i želja mi je bila da

pobjegnem u Francusku, ali Francuska je bila pod

neposrednom opasnošću od njemačke invazije.

Francuska pogranična policija je provjerila moj

njemački pasoš na kome je stajalo veliko crveno

slovo „J“ koje je značillo da sam Jevrej. Uprkos

slova „J“ u njemačkom pasošu odmah su me

uhapsili kao „saveznika neprijatelja“ i poslali me na

jug Francuske u takozvanu „neokupiranu

Francusku“, u malo mjesto blizu španske granice

koje se zove Sent Siprien. Tamo sam proglašen za

neprijatelja Francuske i dospio u kocentracioni logor

sa stvarnim njemačkim nacistima. Kada su nacisti

Hladan februarski dan, neobično hladan za

londonske prilike. Sjedim za stolom u toplim

prostorijama Centra za preživjele žrtve

nacističkog pogroma u Drugom svjetskom

ratu. Oko mene čuju se razgovori na različitim

jezicima: poljskom, mađarskom, češkom,

fancuskom, njemačkom, hebrejskom, jidiš, tu

i tamo „čak“ i na engleskom, ali sa jakim

stranim naglascima. Govornici nisu mlađi od

80 godina, dosta oronulog zdravlja. Mnogi od

njih, ali ne svi, jedva se kreću, uglavnom uz

pomoć kojekakvih pomagala za hodanje, ili uz

pomoć osoblja Centra ili ličnih njegovateljica.

Društvo mi prekoputa stola pravi živahan

stariji gospodin imenom Fredi Noler. Da ga ne

znam osobno, nikada ne bih pomislio da je to

što jeste: preživjela žrtva Holokausta.

Ljubazno se odazvao pozivu za intervju u

povodu Dana sjećanja na sve žrtve

holokausta, nadasve onoga od strane nacista

u Drugom svjetskom ratu. Dana 27 januara

1945. Godine oslobođen je koncentracioni

logor Aušvic i taj dan je izabran u UK kao Dan

sjećanja na sve žrtve holokausta bilo gdje i

bilo kada se dogodio. Ispijamo kaficu. Ja

pitam on odgovara susretljivo sa tonom

humora u svakoj rečenici. Da tog

bezgraničnog optimizma nije bilo, kako on

kaže, ne bi preživio sve one strahote.

FREDDY KNOLLER

okupirali Francusku, područje Južne Francuske je

palo pod kontrolu „Višijevske Francuske“, na čijem

čelu se nalazio Maršal Peten, kolaboracionista

Njemačke. Oni su radili sve što su im Njemci rekli

da rade. Tako su oslobodili sve prave Naciste, ali ne

mene, pošto sam bio Jevrej. Uslovi u logoru su bili

strašni: glad, tifus, ljudi su umirali. Ja nisam htio da

umrem.

P: U momentima kada je vlastiti život u pitanju

mjenjaju se moralni koncepti. Da li ste imali vlastito

iskustvo u tom pogledu ... Kako sada gledate na to?

O: U logoru pod takvim uslovima, prirodno je da

sam kao mlad čovjek, pun snage i želje da ostanem

živ, uspio da pobjegnem kroz bodljikavu žicu i

dođem do obližnjeg mjesta koje se zvalo Želak, gdje

su živjeli moji rođaci. Tamo sam radio sa lokalnim

seljacima i pomagao kod žetve i sličnih stvari. Tako

sam zarađivao novac. Kada sam zaradio oko 100

franaka kupio sam krivotvorene lične dokumente.

Postao sam francuski građanin. Lagao sam da sam

iz pokrajine Alzas-Loren, gdje su Njemci govorili sa

francuskim akcentom. To se uklapalo u moje

uslove, pa sam tako postao francuski

građanin pod imenom Robert Mecner, rođen

u Mecu, porijeklom iz Alzas-Lorena. Tako, kao mlad

čovjek, pun života, pod takvim uslovima nisam

mnogo mario za moralne koncepte. Kao slobodan

čovjek htio sam da odem u Pariz, imajući na umu

sva zločesta mjesta i djelove grada: Mulen Ruž sa

polugolim plesačicama na pozornici; Monmartr,

Šanzelize, Ajfelov toranj. Mojim rođacima se nije

svidjela ta luda ideja – kako su rekli. „Pariz je

okupiran, tamo su sada nacisti“, vrištali su oni i

molili da ne idem tamo. Uprkos tome uradio sam

ono što sam htio. Otišao sam vozom do Pariza.

Stanica Gar de nord puna njemačkih vojnika , ali

sam prepoznao i mnogo mediteranaca kako

razgovaraju sa njemačkim vojnicima, bilo je tu i

mnogo lijepih djevojaka prekrasnih glava. Uskoro

sam uspio da odvedem grupu njemačkih vojnika u

noćni bar koji se zvao „Paradis“. Prišao sam grupi

njemačkih vojnika i rekao im da sam Francuz iz

Alzas-Lorena i da govorim njemački i fancuski. Tu je

bio i Grk po imenu Kristos, koji je postao moj prijatelj

i koji me uskoro upoznao sa vlasnikom kabarea.

Dobivao sam proviziju za Njemce dovedene u

Nastavak na strani 4

FREDDY KNOLLER

kabare. Moram vam reči da smo zaradili mnogo

novca. Primjetio sam da je među civilima bilo onih

koji nose duge crne kožne kapute i šešire. Znao

sam da su bili Gestapo. Jednog dana jedan od njih

mi je prišao i zapitao zašto pričam sa tako mnogo

njemačkih vojnika. Objasnio sam mu da sam im bio

vodič i pokazivao lijepa mjesta zato što nisu

poznavali Pariz. Strpali su me u kola i odveli do

štaba Gestapa. Bilo im je čudno da ja govorim tako

čistim njemačkim jezikom, nimalo kao Francuzi.

Pokazao sam im svoja falsifikovana dokumenta koja

su pokazivala da je moj „identitet“ – Francuz iz

Alzas-Lorena. Čak i danas mnogi ljudi iz te

pokrajine govore jednako francuski i njemački. Rekli

su mi da im trebaju prevodioci. Nikad neću

zaboraviti jedan detalj iz štaba Gestapa. Na stolu

glavnog oficira nalazila se glava čovjeka

napravljena od gipsa. Objasnio mi je da je to glava

tipičnog Jevreja, tako da ih mogu lako prepoznati na

osnovu struktur njihove glave. Onda se oficir digao,

stao iza mene i uhvatio moju glavu sa obje ruke,

proučavajući strukturu moje glave. Laknulo mi je

kada je zaključio da je moje „porjeklo dobro

njemačko“. Bilo je nevjerovatno jer sam mislio da

neću izaći živ iz štaba Gestapa. „Hoću da dođeš u

ponedeljak, želim da te predstavim svojim oficirima,

bićeš naš prevodilac. Dobro ćeš zarađivati i radićeš

sa svojim ljudima“. Međutim, napustio sam štab

Gestapoa pošto me je moj Grčki prijatelj Kristos

upoznao sa gospodinom Albertom koji je pripadao

francuskom pokretu otpora. Gospodin Albert me je

poveo vozom iz Pariza do mjesta koje se zvalo

Fužak i koje je bilo okruženo planinama – skrivalište

pokreta otpora. Tu je bilo i starog i mladog narod,

pravi prijatelji. Učili smo kako da pucamo iz puške,

pravimo i postavljamo eksploziv, kako da vršimo

sabotaže. Mogu vam reči da sam bio tako sretan,

konačno sam bio u položaju da se borim protiv svog

neprijatelja mjesto da zarađujem novac od njih. To

je bila 1943. godina. Onda sam upoznao lijepu

francuskinju, zvala se Žaklin. Zaljubio sam se. Ali joj

je narav bila dosta teška. Jednog dana to više

nisam mogao da izdržim i rekao sam joj da mi je

dosta. Ošamarila me je i otrčala. I tako smo se

razišli. Sljedećeg dana sam otišao do mjesta gdje

smo se obično sastajali, emocije su me ponukale na

to, htio sam da pokušam da se izvinem ili ne znam

ni sam šta. Umjesto nje, tamo su me čekala dva

francuska žandara. Zatvorili su me, htjeli su da

znaju sve o pokretu otpora. Bilo je očigledno da me

Žaklin prijavila. Nastojao sam da ništa ne kažem, ali

su me brzo udarili po licu, svuda je bilo krvi, po mom

tjelu su gasili opuške pa sam im rekao da prestanu i

da ću im reči istinu a to je da nemam nikakve veze

sa pokretom otpora, da je moje pravo ime Fredi

Noler i da sam jevrejski momak iz Beča i da se

sakrivam od nacista. Žandari su me odmah odveli

do Gestapa. Transportovali su me do privremenog

logora blizu Pariza, punog Jevreja. Ubacili su me

zajedo sa drugima u stočni vagon gdje smo čekali

na deportovanje ka istoku. Dana 6. oktobra pojavilo

se moje ime za deportovanje. Bilo je po 100 ljudi u

svakomvagonu. Nije bilo moguće disati. Bio je tu i

doktor Robert Vajs, postao mi je dobar prijatelj. Pod

takvim uslovima je pokušao organizovati život.

Nismo znali kako dugo ćemo čekati u vagonu na

deportaciju na istok. Za klozet smo imali plastičnu

kantu, bez ikakvog zaklona. Možete li to zamisliti?

Dr Vajs je organizovao da ženei djeca budu

zajedno, stariji ljudi da se poredaju uz zidove. Na

podu je bilo nešto mjesta da se sjedi, ali ne za

svakog, tako smo se mi mlađi ljudi mjenjali za

mjesta. Sjećam se da smo četiri dana i četiri noći bili

bez ikakve hrane ili pića. Neki ljudi su gubili svijest i

umirali. Kad smo stigli, njemački vojnici su bili

svugdje i vikali su. Onda je jedan oficir razglasom

objavio da smo stigli u koncentracioni logor Aušvic,

ljudi koji mogu da hodaju da se poredaju sa jedne

strane. Tako smo ušli u logor. Prvi put sam vidio

ljude u prugastim uniformama. Odveli su nas do

jednog bloka, skinuli sa nas odjeću, dali „uniforme“,

onda u slijedećem bloku ošišali. Rekli su nam od

sada ćete nositi brojeve; nećemo vas prozivati

vašim imenom, nego vašim brojem koji ćemo

istetovirati na vašu podlakticu. Moje ime je postalo

157108. Od tog trenutka mi je bilo jasno da više

neću biti ljudsko biće. Prvi mi je posao bio da

prenosim 25 kilograma cementa; u blizini je bila

velika fabrika hemikalija. Morali smo trčati sa tih 25

kilograma. Mnogi su gubili svjest. Teški posao i

gladovanje bili su nepodnošljivi. Jednom sam

podlegao iskušenju i ukrao komad hljeba od jednog

zatočenika. To nije bilo sramno pod uslovima gdje je

imperativ bio preživjeti. Na sreću kasnije sam uspio

da se vidim sa svojim prijateljom Dr Vajsom, koji je

bio zadužen za bolnicu i koji mi je pomogao - tajno

Nastavak sa strane 3

FREDDY KNOLLER

me je puštao u bolnicu gdje bi mi dao dodatni

komad hljeba, zdjelu supe i jednom, to nikad neću

zaboraviti, dobio sam komad salame. Kakav luksuz;

nevjerovatan u Aušvicu. Potpuno sam siguran da je

moj život spašen dodatnom hranom koju bi mi Dr

Vajs prokrijumčario. Godine 1944 čuli smo zvuke

artiljerije sa istoka koji su vremenom postajali sve

intenzivniji. U januaru 1945. godine cijeli Aušvic je

evakuisan. Morali smo hodati po mrazu;

temperatura je bila -23 stepeni Celzijusa. Pola nas

je preživjelo taj marš.

P: Kako ste uspjeli poslije Aušvica i svih strahota da

ostanete fizički i psihički u dobrom stanju? Malo koji

preživjeli se može pohvaliti time.

O: Pa i to je zahvaljujući mom stavu, mom

optimizmu. Volio sam život i još uvijek ga volim.

Uvijek sam bio optimista i zadovoljan čovjek. Ovi

ljudi ovdje u našem Centru za preživjele holokausta

su svi preživjeli strahote koncentracionog logora

zahvaljujući njihovom optimizmu, želji da prežive i

svakako zahvaljujući njihovoj fizičkoj snazi.

P: Mislimo da u dosadašnjim razgovorima nije

posvećeno dovoljno pažnje bitnom aspektu vaše

ličnosti: vi ste bili i ostali talentovan muzičar; čak ste

se u dramatičnom okolnostima vratili u Belgiju po

svoj omiljeni čelo. Da li biste nešto rekli o tome?

O: Prije nogo što sam otišao u Pariz u Želaku moj

rođak je imao čelo. Naša cijela porodica je bila

naklonjena muzici, moji roditelji, moja braća

– svi smo mi svirali po instrument. Postojao

je poznati trio braće Noller. Izgubio sam čelo dok

sam bio u Belgiji. Kasnije. Kada mi se pružila prva

prilika vratio sam se u Belgiju da ga potražim pošto

je za mene muzika uvijek bila i još uvijek jeste

veoma važna.

P: Da se prebacimo u sadašnje vrijeme. Da li

pričate mladoj generaciji o onome što ste preživjeli?

O tome ste napisali dvije knjige.

O: Svi mi preživjeli se bojimo da će svijet zaboraviti

šta se dogodilo sa šest miliona Jevreja i još više

drugih koji su nestali samo zato što su bili drugačiji.

To je razlog zašto još uvijek govorim o tome.

Posjećujem oko šezdeset škola svake godine, bar

jednom nedeljno. Putujem po cijelom UK i iznosim

svoju priču djeci, učenicima, studentima i drugima

nadajući se da će ta djeca jednog dana pričati svojoj

djeci i unuvima šta nam se desilo da se takve stvari

ne bi nikad više dogodile.

P: Imate li neku poruku za čitaoce SaLona i za našu

mladu generaciju?

O: Moja poruka je slijedeća: Nemojte nikada

odustati. Budete optimisti. Život je divan. Ako ste

optimista imaćete sretan život. To je moja stvarna

poruka svima onima koji su čuli ili pročitali moju

priču. Važno je da ma šta da vam se dogodi o tome

mislite na pozitivan način.

Hvala.

FREDDY KNOLLER

Q: In January we marked the 70th anniversary of the

liberation of Auschwitz by the Soviet Army. You

have described your life events in many interviews;

could you briefly tell our SaLon readers about them?

Where and in what circumstances did you live at the

onset of WWII? Can you remember the moment

when you realised that your life was in danger from

Nazis? How did you hide from them?

A: My name is Freddie Knoller. I am a Holocaust

survivor. I was born in Vienna, Austria in 1921, so

you can easily figure out that I am now a young

man of 93. Direct danger started when Germany

annexed Austria in 1938, so we became part of The

German Reich. Before that happened we knew in

what danger Jews and not only Jews were in Ger-

many. We heard of Kristallnacht and other terrible

events. My father then decided that we three chil-

dren had to leave the country. The middle brother

came to England, the eldest went to America. I was

17. There was no possibility to study any more. So I

was sent to friends in Antwerp in Belgium.

Since then I have never seen my parents again.

There I came to a refugee camp. The camp was full

of Jews and other nations who did not “fit” into the

German race. In 1940 Germans occupied Belgium.

I spoke French, so I wanted to escape to France.

But France was under immediate threat from Ger-

man invasion. French border police checked my

German passport, which had a big red “J”, indicat-

ing that I was Jew. Despite of the “J” in my German

passport, I was arrested immediately as “an en-

emy’s ally” and they sent me to the south of France

in the so called ”Unoccupied France” to a little

place near the Spanish border, called Saint Cy-

prien. There, I was declared “enemy of France” and

they put me in a concentration camp with real Ger-

man Nazis. When the Nazis occupied France the

area of Southern France went under the control of

“Vichy France”, which was led by Marshal Pétain,

collaborating with Germans. They did everything

Germans told them to do. So, they released all real

Nazis, but not me, because I was a Jew. The condi-

tions in the camp were horrible; typhoid, people

were dying. I did not want to die.

Q: At times when life is in danger, moral concepts

change. Did you experience this? What are your

views about it now?

A: In the camp under such conditions, naturally as

a young man full of strength and will to stay alive, I

managed to escape through barbed wire and come

to nearby town called Gaillac, where my cousins

lived. There I worked with local farmers, helped in

harvesting and things like that. So I earned some

money. When I saved about 100 Francs, I bought

forged identification documents. I became a French

citizen. I lied that I was from Alsace-Lorraine where

Germans spoke with French accent. That was well

suited to my circumstances, so I became a French

citizen with the name of Robert Metzner, born in

Metz, originally from Alsace-Lorraine. So, as a

young person, full of life, under the circumstances, I

did not care much about moral concept. As a free

citizen, I wanted to go to Paris. I knew a lot about

Paris, I was in love with Paris, with its naughty dis-

tricts and places, Moulin Rouge with half naked la-

die dancers on the stage, Montmartre, Champ

Elysees, Tour Eifel. My cousins -were not happy

with such crazy idea – as they said: “Paris is occu-

A cold February day, unusually cold for Lon-don. I sit at a table in The Holocaust Survi-vors Centre. It is warm and cosy here. All around me I hear conversations in different languages: Polish, Hungarian, Czech, French, German, Hebrew, Yiddish and occa-sionally “even” English, but with a strong for-eign accent. None of these people is younger than 80, their health could be much better, their movements assisted by various devices or carers. Freddie Knoller, a vivacious senior gentleman keeps me company. If I had not known him personally I would have never guessed his background, namely that he is a Holocaust survivor. He kindly accepted our invitation for an interview on the occasion of The Holo-caust Memorial Day, commemorating all holo-caust victims, especially those by Nazis in Second World War. Auschwitz concentration camp was liberated on the 27th January 1945 and that day was taken to be The Memorial Day for all holocaust victims regardless of the location and time of their tragedy. We drink our coffees and he answers oblig-ingly my questions; humour is present in every sentence. Were it not for this limitless optimism, he maintains, he would not have survived all those horrors. I believe that our readers will be interested to learn about your remarkable life, especially during the perilous times of Nazi persecution.

FREDDY KNOLLER

pied, there are Nazis there now”; they screamed

and begged me not to go there. Despite of all this, I

did what I wanted to do. I took the train to Paris.

Gare De Nord, full of German soldiers, but also I

recognised a lot of Mediterranean fellows talking to

German soldiers. There were beautiful young girls,

with lovely faces. Soon I managed to take a group

of German soldiers into a night club called

“Paradis”. I approached a group of German soldiers

telling them I was a Frenchman from Alsace-

Lorraine speaking both, German and French. There

was a Greek called Christos, who became my

friend and who soon introduced me to the owner of

the cabaret. I was paid commission for bringing

Germans to the cabaret. I must tell you, we earned

a lot of money. It came to my attention that

among the many civilians there were some

of them wearing long black leather coats and hats. I

knew they were Gestapo. One of them approached

me one day asking for why I was talking with so

many German soldiers. I explained that I was guid-

ing them, showing them beautiful places, because

they do not know Paris. They took me into a car to

the Gestapo HQ. They wondered how I speak so

pure German, not like a Frenchman.

I had showed my forged papers,

showing my “identity” as Frenchman

from Alsace-Lorrain. Even today

many people from there speak

French and German equally. They

told me that they need interpreters. I

will never forget a detail from Ge-

stapo HQ: On the main officer’s

desk was a man’s head made of

plaster. He explained that it was a

head of a typical Jew, so they could

easily recognise them by the struc-

ture of the head. Then the officer

got up, stood behind me, and took

my head with both hands, exploring

the structure of my head. I was re-

lieved when he concluded that I

came from “a good German back-

ground”. It was amazing; I thought

that I was never going to leave Ge-

stapo HQ alive. “I want you to come

on Monday; I want to introduce you

to my officers, so you will be our

interpreter. You will be earning good

money , and you will be working

with your people”. Anyhow, I left

Gestapo HQ because my Greek

friend Christos introduced me to

monsieur Albert who belonged to

the French resistance movement.

Monsieur Albert took me on the

train from Paris to a place called

Figeac, surrounded by mountains, hiding place for

the Resistance. They were old and young people,

real friends. We learned how to shoot from guns,

make and place explosives, how to do sabotage. I

must tell you I was so happy, finally I came to a po-

sition to fight my enemy instead earning money

from them. It was already 1943. Then I met a beau-

Continue on page 8

FREDDY KNOLLER

tiful French girl, Jacqueline was her name. I fell in

love with her. But her mood was quite difficult. One

day I could not stand that anymore, I said to her

that I had enough. She slapped me in the face and

ran away. So we set apart. Next day I went to the

place where we usually met, it was emotional, I

wanted to try to apologise, or whatever. Instead of

her there were two French gendarmes waiting for

me. They took me to custody; they wanted to know

all about resistance. It was obvious that Jacqueline

informed them against me. I tried not to say any-

thing, but soon they smashed me in my face, blood

everywhere, they quenched

their fags on my body, so I

told them to stop, I will tell

them the truth, that I have

nothing to do with resistance,

that my real name is Freddy

Knoller, a Jewish boy coming

from Vienna, and that I was

hiding from the Nazis. The

gendarmes took me immedi-

ately to Gestapo. I was trans-

ported to a temporary con-

centration camp near Paris,

full of Jews. They put me in a

cattle wagon with others and

we were waiting for deporta-

tion to the east. On the 6th of

October my name came for

deportation. There were 100

people in each wagon. It was

impossible to breath. There

was a doctor there - Robert

Weis, he became my good

friend. He tried to organise

life in such conditions. We

did not know how long we

will wait in the wagon to be

deported to the east. There

was a vinyl bucket as toilet.

No curtain around. Can you imagine? Dr Weis or-

ganised that women and children keep together,

older people to align against walls. There was

some seating place on the floor, but not for every-

body, so we younger people swapped the places. I

remember four days and four nights waiting without

any food and drinks whatsoever. Some people col-

lapsed and died. When we arrived, German sol-

diers everywhere, shouting. Then an officer with

loudspeaker announced that we arrived in Ausch-

witz concentration camp, men who can walk to line

up one side. So we walked into the camp. I saw for

the first time people with stripped uniforms. We

were taken to a block, undressed, given the

“uniforms”; then to the next block – they cut our

hair. They said from now you will be numbered; we

will not call you by your name, but by your number,

which we are going to tattoo on your arms. My

name became 157108. From that moment I knew

that I was not going to be human being any more.

My first job was to carry 25 kilos of cement; there

was a big chemical factory nearby. We had to run

with those 25 kilos. Many collapsed. Hard labour

and starvation were unbearable. Once, I fell to

temptation, so I stole a piece of bread from an in-

mate. There was no shame under the circum-

stances, where survival was imperative. Fortu-

Continued from page 8

FREDDY KNOLLER

nately, later, I was able to see my friend Dr Weis,

who was in charge of the hospital and who helped

me, secretly to sneak up to hospital where he gave

me extra piece of bread, a bowl of soup. Once, I

will never forget, I even got a piece of salami. Such

a luxury; unbelievable in Auschwitz. I am so sure

that my life was saved by extra food that Dr Weis

has smuggled to me. In 1944 we heard artillery

coming from the east, which was more and more

intense as the time went. In January 1945 the

whole Auschwitz was evacuated. We had to walk

under icing condition; it was -23 degrees Celsius

temperature. Half of us survived that march.

Q: How did you manage to retain physical and

emotional well-being after the horror of Auschwitz?

Few survivors could say the same thing about

themselves.

A: Well, this is again my attitude, my optimism. I

loved life and still love it. I was always an optimistic

and happy man. Those people here, in our Holo-

caust Survivors’ Centre, they all survived the horror

of concentration camp because of their optimism,

will to survive and of course because of their physi-

cal strength.

Q: We feel that in previous conversations with you,

not enough was asked about one of your important

traits: you were, and still are, a talented musician.

You even went back to Belgium under dangerous

circumstances to get your precious cello. Can you

tell us something about this?

A: Before I went to Paris, in Gaillac, my

cousin had a cello. We were musically ori-

ented all family, my parents, my brothers, we all

played an instrument. There was a famous trio of

the brothers Knoller. I lost my cello while I had been

in Belgium. Later on when I had the first chance I

returned to Belgium to find it because music had

always been and still is very important to me.

Q: Let’s go back to present. Do you talk about your

experiences to the younger generations? You wrote

two books about that.

A: This is the fear among all of us survivors that the

world will forget what happened with six million

Jews and yet more others, who perished, just be-

cause they were different. That is the reason why I

still talk about this. I visit about sixty schools every

year, at least once a week I travel all over the UK

and tell my story to children, pupils, students etc., in

hope that those children will one day tell their chil-

dren and grandchildren what happened with us and

that such things never, ever happen again.

Q: Have you got a message for the SaLon readers

and younger generation?

A: My message is: Never give up. Be an optimist.

Life is wonderful; if you are an optimist you will

have a happy life. This is actually my recommenda-

tion to everybody who heard or read my story. It is

important to staz positive whatever happens to you.

Thank you.

FREDDY KNOLLER

Odbor Prijatelja La Benevolencije donio je na svojoj sjed-

nici odluku da posjetimo neke od naših članova koji iz

raznih razloga nisu više u stanju da sa nama održavaju

redovne kontakte. Naime, tri naša člana: Bulka Kamhi-

Danon, Sara Levinger i Cezar Danon su smješteni u Do-

move Jewish Care-a koji se brinu o Jevrejima koji su

došli u situaciju da ne mogu samostalno da se više brinu

o sebi. Shvatili smo njihov osjećaj osamljenosti i potrebu

da razumiju da zbog toga nisu zaboravljeni. Dobar povod

za ove posjete je bio praznik Svjetlosti Hanuka. Za sve

troje pripremili smo prigodne lijepo pripremljene pakete

sa burekitasima, domaćom halvom, haminadus jajima,

kutijom čokolade, vocem i saksijicom cvijeća.

Mia, Branka i ja smo se dogovorili da posjetimo Cezara.

Cezar je u Selig Court-u. Selig Court je moderan objekat

sastavljen od nekih 44 stana namijenjenih preživjelim

žrtvama Holokausta kojima je potrebna dodatna

statutarna briga za samostalni život. Ovaj objekat od

prizemlja i 4 sprata je sastavni dio kompleksnog adminis-

trativno- smještajnog objekta u koji je lijepo uklopljena i

upravna zgrada Jewish Care-a. Stanovi su orijentisani na

istok i zapad tako da dio njih gleda na ulicu, a dio na li-

jepo koncipirano dvorište koje služi za rekreaciju

stanarima.Objekat ostavlja utisak opuštenosti sa stano-

vima rasporedjenim oko svijetlog i komotnog koridora.

Osim samih stanova na svakoj etaži postoje lijepo uklopl-

jeni i ukusno namješteni zajednički prostori

za okupljanje i zajedničke aktivnosti koris-

nika stanova.

Najavljeni, ulazimo kod Cezara u stan.

Iako je znao da dolazimo, neizmjerno i isk-

reno se obradovao. Po stanu su pomalo

razbacane stvari. Cezar je uvijek u nekom

poslu. Najomiljenija tema su njegova us-

mena i pisana sjećanja na period prije, ali i

za vrijeme Drugog svjetskog rata. Napisao

je o tome i nedavno objavio knjigu i stalno

misli da još nešto treba dodati, popraviti,

umetnuti, povećati tiraž zbog velikog in-

teresa. U aktivnom životu Cezar je bio profesor na

srednjoj školi pa i sada izbija iz njega autoritet. Odradio je

pravog balkanskog domaćina – spremio iće i piće.

Prijatno smo ćaskali neko vrijeme, pomalo zatečeni to-

likom srdačnošću. Predali smo mu prikladni poklon Za-

jednice. Bio je dirnut, ne zbog sadržine, već zbog pažnje.

Razišli smo se, u mislima poučeni da je ova posjeta

razgalila Cezarovo srce, ali da je bila i potrebna i da

poziva na još ovakve geste, ne treba tražiti povod, treba

činiti.

Branko Danon

On its meeting in November last year the

Committee of the 'Friends of La Benevolen-

cija' decided that on behalf of the community we should

pay a visit to those of our members who for different rea-

sons were no longer able to participate in our activities.

Namely, three of our

members: Bulka Kamhi-

Danon, Sara Levinger

and Cezar Danon had

taken residence in Jewish

Care homes which cater

for people no longer ca-

pable of independent liv-

ing. We sympathize with

their sense of loss and

feeling of loneliness and wanted to show them that they

were not forgotten.'Chanukah', the Festival of Light

seemed like a good occasion for a visit. For all three of

them we prepared nice gift bags full of well-thought out

delights: burekitas, traditional home made sweets and

'haminadus' eggs, box of chocolates, some fruit and a

flower pot.

Branka Danon, Mia Kordic and I chose to visit Cezar Da-

non. Cezar lives in Selig Court. It is a modern building

accommodating some 44 flats intended for the Holocaust

survivors who are entitled to extra statutory care and help

for independent living. This five-storey building is an

integral part of the administrative-accommodation com-

plex into which the Headquarters of Jewish Care is nicely

incorporated. The flats are well appointed with East-West

aspect, some overlooking the sreet and others a well-

designed inner courtyard where residents can go and

relax. The building has a nice feel to it with flats arranged

along the wide, well-lit corridors. Besides, on

each floor there is a nicely furnished common

area for different activities.

And so we knocked on Cezar's door. Although he

expected us Cezar was delighted to see us. The

state of the flat bares witness of his different in-

terests of which writing is the prinicpal one.

Cezar is brimming with stories about the events

before and during the WWII. Recently, he has

published a book but feels that more stories

should be added, edited, that the circulation

should be increased for there is a marked interest

for his writing. In his professional life Cezar was a

teacher at secondary school and some of his previous

authority still shines through. Cezar played a good host in

the best of the Balkan tradition – he prepared 'meze',

even cooked some 'hamindaus' eggs himself and a glass

of whiskey did not go amiss. We had a lively chat and

were somewhat taken aback by this level of welcome.

We gave him a gift bag and he was very moved not by

the contents only but also by the very thought of it. We

said our good-byes aware that we touched Cezar's heart

and that the visits like these are necessary and should

happen more often. We should not wait for an occasion

but rather act on an impulse.

Branko Danon

CEZAR DANON CEZO

The three of us Dra-

gan Ungar, Tea Suva-

jdžić and I, Irena Alta-

rac took a taxi to pay a

visit to Sara Levinger.

The taxi stopped be-

tween two large build-

ings. These are the

Jewish homes for the

elderly: Rose One and

Rose Two. We admire

the architecture, the interior and everything else that we

see. After entering our names in the visitors’ book we go

on – everything there is of the highest class. The staff we

meet greet us with kindness and cordiality. They inform

us: “Sara will be soon here; she is at the hairdresser’s”.

In this home they have a hairdresser, a chiropodist, a

physiotherapist and a doctor with the relevant staff. Less

than five minutes later a carer wheels her on a chair. Im-

peccably dressed with freshly made hair she gave the

impression of somebody feeling like a queen as her

cheerful mood was indicating.

“I am so glad I came on time”, she goes on repeating.

“Here are the presents we brought you. We have bought

these, but this halva was made for all the three visits by

Branka Danon who is so good at Jewish specialities”.

“How are Vera and your sons, Dragan? How is Dra{ko

and how are Keka and her family, Tea? How are

Brankica and Braco, Irena”?

This means that her memory is perfect. A phone is ring-

ing “Mum, how are you _”, her daughter Jasna is enquir-

ing. “I have visitors just now” and she gives our names,

“and this morning my dear nieces Henika and Tanya

Konforti visited me also”. They lovingly visit her often.

“What do you say? You bought a new car? I am so glad.

What colour is it? …White!”

“I will come tomorrow from Cambridge to London to show

it to you and to take you for a ride”.

This pleasant visit comes to an end on this happy note.

Written by Irena Altarac

Iz Šalvate idemo taksijem u posjetu Sari Levinger. Dra-

gan Ungar, Tea Suvajdžić i Irena Altarac. Taksi stao iz-

među dvije velike zgrade, to su jevrejski domovi za stare:

Rouz jedan i Rouz dva. Ne znam čemu da se prije di-

vimo, arhitektturi, enterijeru, ili… Upisujemo se u knjigu

posjeta, idemo dalje, sve je na najvišem nivou. Poz-

dravljali smo osoblje koje se tog trenutka zateklo. Plijene

nas njihovom ljubaznošću, toplinom i dodaju: -“Sad će

Sara doći, trenutno je kod frizera.” U domu postoji frizer,

pediker, fizioterapeut i doktor sa svim potrebnim osobl-

jem. Nije prošlo pet minuta, jedna od njegovateljica ju

vozi u kolicima. Svećano obučena, nafrizirana, imala sam

utisak da se tog trenutka osjećala kao kraljica, ne samo u

našim očima, nego i njenim raspoloženim duhom.

- “Jao što mi je drago da sam na vrijeme došla”’ -

ponavljalla bi.

-“Evo ti Sara poklone koje smo donijeli, ovo smo kupili, a

halvu je za sve tri posjete maksuz napravila Branka Da-

non, koja briljira u jevrejskim specjalitetima”.

- “Dragane, kako su ti Vera i sinovi? Tea, kako je

Draško? Keka sa porodicom? Irena, kako ti je Brankica,

Braco”?

Dakle, pamćenje je perfektno. Zvoni telefon, -“Majkili,

kako si_”, zove kćerka Jasna, pita. -“Evo, upravo imam

goste”’, imenuje nas, “a znaš prije podne su mi bille moje

drage nećake, Henika i Tanja Konforte”! One ih također

sa velikom ljubavlju obilaze.

-“A šta kažeš, a kupila si novi auto, e baš me raduje, a

koje je boje?...Bijeli!

-“Sutra dolazim sa njim iz Kembridža u London, pa da ga

vidiš i da te malo provozam”

Radosna posjeta s time završava na obostranu radost.

Napisala Irena Altarac

SARA LEVINGER

Clore Manor Home odnedavno je novo prebivalište

članice naše zajednice, Bulke Kamhi Danon. Hladan,

tmuran i kišovit londonski dan, nije nas spriječio da je

posjetimo i u ime naše Zajednice uručimo lijepi poklon i

čestitku povodom praznika Hanuka. Zatekli smo je u

velikoj, svijetloj, toploj i lijepo uređenoj sobi u kojoj stanari

borave po danu. Neki od njih su drijemali, zavaljeni u

fotelje, neki su kratili vrijeme setajući s kraja na kraj sobe

ili sjedili za stolovima pijuckajuci kafu ili čaj. Sve što se

dešava u ovoj sobi odvija se pod budnim okom dežurne

njegovateljice, koja je sjedila za svojim stolom i kružila

okolo pogledom da joj slučajno nesto ne promakne.

Bulka je odmarala oči posmatrajući malu, zelenu,

staklenu baštu smještenu odmah uz dnevni boravak.

Čim je skrenula pogled i ugledala nas, požurila nam je u

susret. Njeni žustri pokreti dok nam je prilazila i stidljivi

smješak na licu, govorili su da joj je bilo drago što nas

vidi. A nama bilo drago da vidimo Bulku, urednu, lijepo

obučenu i počesljanu. očito da se o njoj vodi računa i da

u domu vodi život dostojan čovjeka. Sjeli smo za sto, a

ona je radoznalo i sa zahvalnosću, otvarala poklone i

gledala čestitku. Seka, Miro i ja smo htjeli dosta toga da

je pitamo: kako se osjeća, ima li apetit, kako spava, kako

je proteklo vrijeme od naše prethodne posjete, ko je još

dolazio da je vidi. Medjutim, ona nije baš bila

razgovorljiva, ali je zato, kao i uvijek ranije na našim

sijelima u klubu, bila raspoložena za pjesmu. Zapjevala je

“Adio Kerida” i “Kad ja podjoh na Bembašu”, a i mi

prihvatili pjesmu. Izgleda da je to bio malo neobičan

prizor za stanare doma. Uhvatili smo njihove radoznale

poglede, ali je bilo očito da im nisu zasmetali zvuci ovih

divnih sefardskih pjesama. Vrijeme u Domu je proteklo

brzo, a pošto Bulka ima svoju svakodnevnu rutinu koju

nismo htjeli da remetimo, oprostili smo se od nje, a ona

nas je ispratila pogledom koji je govorio: Dodjite opet.

Jadranka Romano Smiljanić

Clore Manor Home is

the new residence to

Bulka Kamhi Danon, a

member of our com-

munity. The cold, dull

and rainy day did not

prevent us to visit her

and hand her the gifts

and Hanukah card on

behalf of our Commu-

nity. We found her in a large, bright, warm and nicely fur-

nished room used by the residents during the day. Some

of them dozed off in their armchairs, others killed time

walking from one side of the room to the other or sitting

at tables sipping tea or coffee. A carer on duty sitting at

her table was watching attentively. Bulka was relaxing by

looking at a small, green, garden located immediately

next to the sitting room. The moment she saw us she

hurried to meet us. Her spry movements and shy smile

revealed that she was glad to see us. We, on the other

hand, were glad to see Bulka tidy, nicely dressed with her

hair neatly done. It was clear that they take good care of

her and that her life in this home is not lacking in human

dignity. We sat at a table and she opened with curiosity

and gratitude the gifts and looked at the card.

Seka, Miro and I wanted to ask her many questions: how

does she feel, is her appetite good, can she sleep, what

was she doing since our last visit, who else came to see

her? She was not very talkative, but as always before

during our parties, she felt like singing. She started with

“Adio Kerida” and “Kad ja pođoh na Bembašu” and we

joined her. It seems that it was a bit unusual for the other

residents. We caught their interested looks, but it was

clear that they did not mind the sounds of these lovely

Sephardi songs. The time in the home passed quickly.

We did not want to disturb Bulka’s daily routine and we

said good-bye to her. The expression of her eyes was:

Come again.

Jadranka Romano Smiljanić

BULKA KAMHI-DANON

ZAPIS SA ZAKINTOSA

Gordana Jolić

Posljednjih 7 godina idemo na ljetovanje u prelijepu

Grčku - nikako da se zasitimo njenih plaža, toplog,

kristalno čistog mora, gostoprimljivih ljudi, ukusne hrane i

onog iz djetinjstva poznatog hora mediteranskih cvrčaka.

Nakon dva odmora provedena na kopnenom dijelu

Grčke, odlučili smo da idemo na ostrva. Svako je

drugačije, i geografski i istorijski, a svako lijepo na svoj

način. Tako smo obišli Kefaloniju, Skiatos, Krit dva puta

(centralni i zapadni), i prošlog ljeta Zakintos.

I svaki put, osim razgledanja spomenika helenističke

kulture, kad god je moguće, pokušavamo da pronađemo

jevrejske tragove u ovom podneblju. U ovom tekstu ću

se osvrnuti na Zakintos, a u

drugom na Krit i sudbinu

Jevreja sa ovog ostrva.

Zakintos ili Zante, kako ga još

zovu pod italijanskim

uticajem, je najjužnije od

Jonskih ostrva koja su okitila

zapadnu obalu Grčke. Ovu

grupu još čine Krf, Kefalonija,

Itaka, Lefkada i nekoliko

manjih ostrva. Ne računajući turiste, na ostrvu površine

410 km² živi oko 40,000 stanovnika. Glavni grad je

istoimeni Zakintos, mali uspavan gradić u kojem se

prodavnice zatvaraju preko podneva.

Ostrvo Zakintos je tokom istorije bilo pod vlašću mnogih

osvajača. Nakon helenističkog perioda, došla je 400-

godišnja okupacija Rima, zatim stoljeća pod Vizantijom

iza koje je slijedila Franačka vlast od 12. do 15. vijeka.

Posljednji franački vladar Zantea, Grof De Toki je nakon

pada Konstantinopolja pristao da plaća porez turskom

sultanu. Ali, grof je 1479 propustio da plati taksu i

pobjegao na Peloponez, a turska flota je za kaznu

potpuno uništila Zakintos. Ostrvo je nekoliko godina bilo

gotovo potpuno napušteno dok ga grof nije prodao

Veneciji 1482. Venecija je pristala da plaća turskom

sultanu 500 zlatnih dukata godišnje za korištenje ostrva i

počela je postepeno da ga naseljava. U tom periodu su

se i Jevreji doselili na Zakintos – jedna od dvije sinagoge

koje su bile na ostrvu je podignuta 1489. Nakon

tristogodišnje vladavine Venecije, uslijedila je kratkotrajna

vlast Francuske republike 1797, pa 1800 rusko-turska

vrhovna vlast nad poluautonomnom Jonskom državom.

Francuska pod Napoleonom je zavladala 1807 da bi već

1809 počela pedesetogodišnja vladavina Britanije.

Grčki pokret za nezavisnost je ponovo dobijao na snazi,

te je formirana druga ‘Ujedinjena država Jonskih ostrva’,

ovaj put pod protektoratom Britanije. Tada je Zakintos

postao sjedište grčkog tajnog udruženja ‘Filiki

Eteria’ (Udruzenje Prijatelja), i utočište hajduka i boraca

za slobodu protiv Turske vlasti. Nakon stoljeća pod

stranom vladavinom, napokon je do ujedinjenja sa

Grčkom došlo 1864, kad je počeo ekonomski procvat

ovih ostrva. Začeta je industrija za proizvodnju sapuna

(od maslinovog ulja) i luka Zakintos je oživjela. Sa

porastom proizvodnje i trgovine, došlo je do razvoja

obrazovanja, literature, pozorišta i štampe (prvu javnu

štampariju na ostrvu uspostavili su Britanci). Nažalost,

ovaj procvat je prekinut dolaskom svjetkih ratova.

U novije vrijeme, nakon italijanske i njemačke okupacije u

drugom svjetskom ratu, Zakintos je zadesila posljednja

velika katastrofa – strašan zemljotres koji je potresao

Jonska ostrva 1953 i sravnio sa

zemljom Kefaloniju i Zakintos.

(Ako ste gledali film ‘Mandolina

Kapetana Korelija’, prisjetićete

kako je prikazan ovaj strašni

zemljotres na Kefaloniji.)

Danas je Zante okrenut turizmu, i

veliki broj posjetilaca iz zapadne

Evrope ovdje dolazi da uživa u

godišnjem odmoru. U tu grupu

nekako spadamo i mi, i nakon dolaska na ostrvo, proveli

smo za početak nekoliko mirnih dana, upijajući vrelo

sunce koje nam ovdje toliko nedostaje. Nakon izleta da

vidimo čuvene morske kornjače (Careta Careta) koje se

legu na ostrvu i plivaju u zalivu Laganas, odlučismo da

obiđemo glavni grad. Vrijeme se bilo naoblačilo, pa je bilo

lakše za obilaženje iako je vjetar razbijao talase u luci i

morske kapi prštale nadaleko, prijeteći mom foto-aparatu.

Zbog zemljotresa koji je uništio gotovo sve građevine

1953, i požara koji je je potom harao 10 dana i napravio

neizmjernu materjalnu štetu, arhitektura je novija i ne

toliko zanimljiva - kuće su sagrađene tako da budu

otporne na buduće zemljotrese. Sem stare crkve Sv

Dionizija, crkve Sv Nikole i narodne banke Grčke, od

originalnih građevina nije ništa ostalo netaknuto. Nešto

je rekonstruisano po uzoru na orginalne nacrte. I tako,

obilazeći gradske trgove, potražismo mjesto gdje je

nekad stajala sinagoga, takođe uništena u velikom

zemljotresu.

Dočekala nas je mala kapija i iza nje malo dvorište sa

dva spomenika. Uzbudljiva I neobična priča je vezana za

dvojicu ljudi kojima su sa zahvalnošću podignuti

spomenici na mjestu bivse sinagoge. Gradonačelnik

Lukas Karer i mitropolit Krisostomos su prema ovoj priči

spasili Jevreje koji su na Zanteu dočekali Njemačku

okupaciju.

Nastavak na strani 14

Na početku II svjestkog rata na ostrvu je bilo 270 Jevreja.

Italijani ih nisu dirali, ali kad je Italija kapitulirala i

Njemačka preuzela kontrolu nad italijanskom

okupacionom zonom, mnogi Jevreji su pobjegli u planine,

i samo je mali broj ostao u gradu. U septembru 1943

Njemačka vlast je izdala naredbu da se prikupe podaci o

Jevrejma sa Zakintosa. Njemački komandant Lut je

tražio spisak sa imenima Jevreja, na što su mu Karer i

Krisostomos donijeli spisak sa samo dva imena – njihova

vlastita! Nakon toga, Karer je u strahu za vlastiti život,

pobjegao na drugo ostrvo gdje se krio do odlaska

Nijemaca u septembru 1944.

Brod za deportaciju Jevreja je krenuo sa Krfa u junu

1944, ali kako je bio pun, nije ni pristao u luku Zakintosa.

Jevreji su se tada još krili po selima na ostrvu, gdje su ih

lokalni Grci pomagali, i nisu nikada deportovani. Postoji

nekoliko zanimljivih teorija koje ovo nastoje da objasne

ali nisu dokazane ni dokumentovane.

Najverovatnije objašnjenje je dato u knjizi “Agonija Grčkih

Jevreja” Stevena Bowmana, koji piše da je Ajhman

naredio Antonu Burgeru da obavi deportacije iz bivše

italijanske zone. On je samo jednom zakazao, i to u

slucaju Jevreja sa Zakintosa. Komandant lokalnog

njemačkog garnizona je navodno bio više zainteresovan

da ima brodove za evakuaciju svojih trupa, nego da

hvata po ostrvu šačicu Jevreja. Osim toga, grčki partizani

su na ostrvu vršili pritisak na njemačke patrole, pa se oni

nisu posebno trudili da ih pronadju.

U septembru 1944 Jevreji su se vratili svojim kućama i

krenuli da emigriraju u Erec Izrael avgusta 1946. U

zalivu Haifa Britanci su presreli njihov brod i deportovali

ih na Kipar. Tu su ostali nekoliko mjeseci da bi im

konačno bilo dozvoljeno u decembru 1946 da dođu u

Erec Izrael. 1948 godine u gradu Zakintosu je bilo ostalo

samo 70 Jevreja da bi većina nakon zemljotresa 1953

napustila ostrvo, otišavši u Atinu ili u Izrael. Posljednji

Jevrej na ostrvu umro je 1980 godine.

U martu 1978 Jad Vašem je proglasio Lukasa Karera i

mitropolita Dimitriosa Krisostomosa za ‘Pravedne među

Narodima’.

Sa zahvalnošću sljedećim izvorima:

‘Zakynthos, flower of the eastern Mediterranean’ by

Athena Dousaki

www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org

‘The Agony of Greek Jews 1940 – 45’ - Steven Bowman

Db.yadvashem.org

NOTES FROM ZAKYNTHOS

By Gordana Jolic

In the past 7 years we have been going to beautiful

Greece for our summer holidays. It seems we can’t get

enough of its beaches, warm crystal-clear seas,

welcoming people, tasty food and that instantly

recognisable choir of the Mediterranean crickets,

remembered from childhood. After two holidays spent

on the mainland, we decided to travel to the islands.

Each island was different, both historically and

geographically, and each beautiful in its own way. We

visited Cephalonia, Skiathos, Crete two times (Central

and Western) and last summer it was Zakynthos.

Each year, besides visiting the monuments of

Hellenistic culture, we try if at all possible, to find

Jewish traces in this country.

Zakynthos, or Zante as it is also known due to Italian

influence, is the southernmost of the Ionic islands

which adorn the western shores of Greece. To this

island group also belong Corfu, Cephalonia, Ithaca,

Lefkada and a few smaller islands. Not counting the

tourists, this island of 410 km² has a population of

40,000. The capital is the homonymous Zakynthos, a

small sleepy town in which the shops close for the

afternoon.

The island of Zakynthos was throughout its history

ruled by numerous conquerors. The Hellenistic period

was followed by 400 years rule of Rome, then centuries

under the Byzantium, followed by the Franks from 12th

to 15th century. The last Frankish ruler of Zakynthos

was Count De Toki who agreed to pay tax to the

Turkish sultan after the fall of Constantinople.

However, Count de Toki failed to pay tax in 1479, fled

to the Peloponnese and as punishment the Turkish

fleet completely destroyed Zakynthos. The island was

almost entirely deserted for a few years until the Count

sold it to Venice in 1482. Venice agreed to pay the

Turkish sultan 500 ducats a year for the use of the

Nastavak sa strane 13

up the hot sunshine we miss so much here. After the day

out to see the famous sea turtles (Careta Careta) which

nest on the island and swim in the Laganas Bay, we

decided to visit the capital city, Zakynthos. The weather

turned cloudy, so it was easier to go sightseeing,

although the wind was breaking the waves in the

harbour, threatening my camera with sea

spray.

Because the 1953 earthquake had

destroyed almost all the buildings in the

city, and was followed by a great fire

which raged for ten days afterwards,

immeasurable damage was done. The

architecture today is mostly modern and

not so interesting, as the houses were

built to withstand future earthquakes.

Apart from St Dionysus church, St

Nicholas’ church and Greek National

Bank, no other original buildings were

spared. Some buildings and town are

now modelled after original plans. And

so, walking around the city squares, we

looked for the place where the

synagogue, also destroyed in the

earthquake, used to stand.

We were greeted by small gate, in front

of a small yard with two commemorative

slabs. There is an unusual and exciting

story about the two people to whom

these monuments were erected with

gratitude in place of the former

synagogue. The story tells of Mayor

Lukas Karrer and Archbishop Chrysostomos who saved

the Jews of Zakynthos during the Nazi occupation.

At the beginning of the Second World War, there was a

population of 270 Jews on the island. The Italians did not

harm them, but when Italy capitulated and Germany took

control over the Italian occupation zone, majority of the

Jews fled to the mountains, with only a small number

remaining in the city. In September 1943 Nazis

demanded the information on Zakynthan Jews. German

Commandant Lut asked for the list of their names, to

which Karrer and Chrysostomos brought him the list with

only two names: their own! It is no surprise that soon

after, Karrer, fearing for his life, fled to another island

where he was hiding until the Germans left Zakynthos in

September 1944.

A deportation boat with Jews from Corfu left in June 1944, but as it was full it did not dock in Zakynthos. The Zakynthan Jews were still hiding in the countryside where the local Greeks helped them, so they were never

island, and began to bring the settlers in 1484. It was in

this period that the Jews settled on Zakynthos – one of

the two synagogues on the island was built in 1489.

Three hundred years of Venetian rule were followed by

the short-lived rule of the French Republic in 1797. This

was followed in 1800 by

suverainty of Turkey, with

Russia looking after the

religious rights of the semi-

autonomous Ionian state.

France under Napoleon got to

rule over Zakynthos in 1807,

and then only two years later,

the British occupied the island

and ruled for 50 years. During

this time, Greek movement for

independence was gaining

strength and the second

‘United State of the Ionian

Islands’ was formed, this time

under the protectorate of the

British. Zakynthos became the

headquarters of the secret

Greek society ‘Filiki

Eteria’ (Society of Friends) and

a refuge for guerrilla and

freedom fighters against the

Turkish occupation.

After centuries of being under

foreign rule, at last Zakynthos

and the other Ionian islands

became part of the unified

Greece in 1864, and began thriving. Industries were

created, mainly for soap (made from local olive oil) and

Zakynthos harbour was bustling. The increase of

manufacture and trade brought the growth of education,

literature, theatre and press (the first public printing press

on the island was founded by the British). Unfortunately,

this was cut short by the onset of the two world wars.

In the later years, after the Italian and German

occupation in the Second World War, the last great

catastrophe befell Zakynthos - a terrible earthquake

which shook Ionian Islands in 1953 and raised Zakynthos

and Cephalonia to the ground. (If you have seen the film

‘Captain Corelli’s Mandolin’, you will remember how

vividly this terrible earthquake in Cephalonia was

depicted.)

Zakynthos of today is living from tourism; a great number

of tourists from Western Europe come here to enjoy their

holidays. Belonging somehow to this group, after

arriving to the island we spent a few quiet days soaking

Continue on page 16

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Shalvata - Jewish Care, Att Mr Branko Danon

Parson Street - Corner of Church Road

London NW4 1QA

Email: salon@benevolencija.eu.org

REDAKCIJA <> EDITORIAL BOARD

Branka Danon, Branko Danon, Želimir Kučinović, Sveto Gaćinović, Vesna Domany-Hardy, Dragan Ungar

TEHNIČKI UREDNIK I KOMPJUTERSKA OBRADA <> DESIGN AND COMPUTER PROCESSING

Dejan Stojnić

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SaLon je besplatan i izlazi tromjesečno

Mišljenja u SaLonu nisu nužno

i stajališta urednika ili izdavača.

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SaLon is free of charge and published quarterly

The opinions expressed in SaLon are not

necessarely those of the editors or the publisher

Rukopisi i slike se u pravilu ne vraćaju.

® SaLon

SADRŽAJ / CONTENTS

deported. There is a number of interesting theories trying to explain how this was possible, but they were not proven or documented.

The most probable explanation was given in Steven Bowman’s book ‘The Agony of Greek Jews’ where he writes that Eichmann ordered Anton Burger to deport Jews from the former Italian Zone. He failed only once, with Jews from Zakynthos. The commander of the local German garrison was allegedly more interested in having boats for evacuation of his troops, than in catching a handful of Jews. Besides, the Greek guerrilla on the island was putting pressure on German patrols, so they were not trying very hard to find them.

In September 1944, the Jews returned to their houses in Zakynthos and emigrated to Erez Israel in August 1946 on the illegal emigration boat. In the bay of Haifa, the British stopped their boat and deported them to Cyprus, but subsequently allowed them to Erez Israel in December 1946. In 1948 there were only 70 Jews left in Zakynthos, only to leave the island after the 1953 earthquake, departing for Athens or Israel. The last Jew on the island died in 1980.

In March 1978 Yad Vashem recognized Loukas Yiorgios Karrer and Archbishop Dimitrios Chrysostomos as Righteous Among the Nations.

With thanks to the sources:

‘Zakynthos, flower of the eastern Mediterranean’ by Athena Dousaki

www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org

‘The Agony of Greek Jews 1940 – 45’ by Steven Bowman

Db.yadvashem.org

Continued from page 15

UMJESTO UVODA/

/ SaLon I mi / Branko Danon ............................. 1

INSTEAD OF EDITORIAL

/ The SaLon and We / Branko Danon ................ 1

INTERVJU/

/ sa Fredy Knoller-om / Dragan Ungar ...... 2,3,4,5

INTERVIEW

/ with Fredy Knoller / Dragan Ungar ......... 6,7,8,9

BILI SMO U POSJETI/

WE PAID A VISIT/

/Cezar Danon/Branko Danon ……. .................. 10

/Sara Levinger/Irena Altarac ……. ................... 11

/Bulka Kamhi Danon/Jadranka Smiljanić ……. 12

ZAPISI/

/Zapis sa Zakintosa / Gordana Jolić …. .... 13,,14

NOTES/

/Notes from Zakynthosa/Gordana Jolić ….14,15,16