WORLD —__—_ A CHALLENGE TO DEAL WITH WAR CRIMINALS LIVING INCANADA MOSCOW — Natalia Kolesnikova is a special assistant to the Procurator- General, the chief law enforcement of- ficer in the Soviet Union. Her special responsibility is the arrest and prosecu- tion of war criminals on the wanted list for crimes committed on Soviet territory during World War Two. When I interviewed her a few days ago, she told me that the United States is where the largest group of war criminals is hiding, with Canada and the Federal Republic of Germany sharing second place. Speaking about the Canadian government, she said that there seemed to be no political will to undertake any measures against war criminals who are in hiding in Canada. When I asked her for more specific information, she gave me the following details: DMITRY KUPIAK e Case number one: Dimitry Kupiak. Born 1918 in Lvov area in the Ukraine. According to witnesses, cooperated with nazi punitive troops during occupation. Appointed leader of military detachment under control of occupation forces. Per- sonally took charge of mass executions in Lvov area. Soviet authorities have sworn evidence that with his participa- tion more than 200 civilians, including old men, women and children, were murdered. Under his command, a puni- tive detachment set fire to the village of Adgmy, destroying 300 homes. He is liv- ing in Toronto: In 1964 and 1965, the Soviet govern- ment sent notes to the Canadian government demanding his extradition, but the Canadian authorities refused to act. They maintained that there is no law in Canada which would permit the extradition of a person charged with war crimes in another country, and that the Soviet demand had no judicial basis. In October, 1982, the Procurator- General’s office, through the Soviet em- bassy in Ottawa, again raised this case with a responsible official of the Depart- ment of External Affairs, and again re- quested the extradition of Kupiak. There was no answer. The Soviet side sub- mitted a file of 69 pages in this case. VASILY SAVELO e Case number two: Vasily Savelo. Born 1913 in Chernigov, in the Ukraine. During the nazi occupation was ap- pointed mayor of the village of Naumov- ka, in the Chernigov area. According to witnesses, took part in the mass exe- : cution of civilians, including old men, women and children. In September, 1942, he shot and killed a pregnant wo- man. Earlier, in March of that year, he, along with three other men, arrested 17 people suspected of sympathy with the partisans. He personally shot them in the head near the village of Khokhly, accord- ing to witnesses. Among those murdered were five children. When the Ukraine was liberated, he retreated with the German troops. After the war, he settled in Canada. His last known address was Winnipeg. In October, 1982 the Procurator- General's office, through the Soviet em- bassy in Ottawa, turned over a 63-page file to the External Affairs Department demanding the extradition of Savelo. There was no reply. LUKA OSTROVSKY e Case number three: Luka Ostrovs- ky, born in the Khmelnitsk area of the Ukraine. During occupation served in 8 e PACIFIC TRIBUNE, JUNE 5, 1985 the German police in the Khmelnitsk area. In 1942, according to witness, person- ally participated in the mass execution of Jewish people on the outskirts of the town of Gorodok. He escaped to the West and now lives in Montreal. In December, 1982, the Procurator- General’s office, through the Soviet em- bassy in Ottawa, submitted a file on Os- trovsky to the Department of External Affairs that ran to 60 pages, and de- manded his extradition as a nazi war criminal. Once again, there was no reply. IVAN DIK e Case number four: Ivan Dik, born 1919 in Dnepropetrovsk, in the Ukraine. Was deputy-head of a German-control- led police unit in the village of Selidovo, in the Donetsk area. According to witnesses, took part in the mass execution of Soviet people. Was personally seen killing many vic- tims, including small children. Accord- ing to witnesses who are still living, he killed no less than 15 people on one occa- sion. After the war, he settled in Canada and his last known address was P.O. Box 603, Humboldt, Saskatchewan. A 12- page file was submitted to the Depart- ment of External Affairs through the Soviet embassy in Ottawa, in December, 1982, but there was no reply. ‘Ultimate goal is justice’ From Moscow Jack Phillips Ottawa. In January, 1983, the Procur- ator-General’s office, throught the Soviet Embassy in Ottawa, submitted a 12-page file on Dmitriev to the Department of External Affairs. Again, no reply. NIKOLAI KROMBET e Case number six: Nikolai Krombet, born 1912. Was head of the Byshev Dis-: trict police station in the Kiev area of the Ukraine. According to witnesses, he took part in punitive operations and was person- ally involved in killing people. Those witnesses say he murdered 13 people in the spring of 1943, and 17 in the fall of that year. The witnesses are still alive. He is reported as now living in Montreal. In February, 1983, the Procurator-General’s office, through the Soviet embassy in Ottawa, delivered a 78-page file on Krombet to the Depart- ment of External Affairs. Again, as in the cases listed above, there was no acknowledgement of the file and the de- mand for extradition. FEODOR DMITRIEV ILLARION KOVALOV e Case number five: Feodor Dmitriev, born 1911. Was mayor and head of police in the village of Alexanderovka in the Donetsk area of the Ukraine. According to documented evidence, took part in mass executions during the occupation. In March, 1943, was seen by witnesses who are still alive when he used his pistol to shoot seven people in the village of Novo-Poltava, in the Alexandrov district of the Donetsk area. Those murdered were suspected of being in sympathy with partisans. After the war he settled in Canada. His last known address was 338 Gliddon Avenue, Se * Dmitry Kupiak (left) at a meeting in 1941 in the town of Kamya e Case number seven: Illarion Kovalov, born 1915 in Byelorussia. Dur- ing the occupation was head of the police station in the village of Makeevichy in the Mogilev area, Byelorussia. Took part in the mass executions of Soviet people, including women and children. Files on this case were sent to the External Affairs Department in 1967, through the channel listed above. The Canadian government refused to extra- dite him, using the same arguments they used in the Kupiak case (number one). He is reported as residing in the Montreal area, at 5939-3rd Ave., Rose- nka-Buska organized to support the nazi occupiers. From 1941 to 1945 he is charged with murder and torture as leader of a military police unit. In 1946 he fled to Canada. In 1967 the Soviet Union charged him with war crimes, but Ottawa refused his extradition. In 1972 Kupiak ran unsuccess- fully for Parliament for the Progressive Conservatives in a Toronto riding. He still lives in Toronto, recently granting an interview with the Globe and Mail. The USSR again in 1982 demanded Kupiak’s extradition, without success. . mount. In 1982 further information was sent to External Affairs in Ottawa. This time there was no reply. PUNTULIS and RAUCA The Special Assistant to the Procurator-General also told me about two other cases of wanted persons who died recently. Harold Puntulis, born 1909, was head of the police station in © Rezekne, Latvia. According to wit- | nesses, he personally killed no less than 2,000 children, mostly Jewish. The Canadian government several times refused to extradite him and pro- tected him till he died in 1982. There was also the notorious case of | Helmut Rauca, a German citizen before World War Two, who joined an SS mili- tary unit. He was personally in charge of mass executions in Kaunus, Lithuania. In most cases the victims were Jews. Rauca came to Canada in 1950 and became a Canadian citizen in 1956. In 1982 the Procurator-General supplied Canadian authorities with more than 300 documents on this case, all taken from German forces when they retreated to — the West. Finally, Rauca was ordered to be extradited to the Federal Republic of | Germany by the Ontario Supreme Court, © on the demand of FRG authorities. It © should be noted that the Canadian au- thorities took no action against Rauca for more than 30 years. He died a natural death in the FRG. 2 * ee When I raised the question of Ottawa’s claim that Canada cannot extradite per- sons wanted for war crimes here because there is no extradition treaty between Canada and the Soviet Union, I was told that there are recognized principles of © international law which should prevail © over national law. For exaniple, the London Agreements | of October 1945, in respect to the pro- — secution and punishment of the main military criminals of World War Two, were signed by the representatives of the Soviet Union, Great Britain, France and _ the USA. Earlier, on October 30, 1943, — the Allied countries issued a strong de- claration about the responsibilities of the Hitlerites for the atrocities they had committed. According to these docu- ments, military criminals were to be extradited and taken to court in the coun- tries where they were wanted, and charged according to the laws of those countries. Canada associated itself with those declarations, but failed to take action accordingly in the post-war period. On December 3, 1973, the General As- sembly of the United Nations adopted Resolution No. 3074, calling for ‘the finding, arrest, extradition and punish- ment of persons guilty of military crimes and crimes against humanity. Special assistant Kolesnikova insists that the problem of bringing war crim- inals to justice is more than a judicial — ‘problem. “‘It is also a political problem,” she told me. ‘‘It is connected with the fight to prevent another world war. Those who protect war criminals — those who protect the neo-nazis — fol- — low a policy favorable to those who are trying to bring about another war. Such a war would be a nuclear war and there would be no winners.” Her last words could be construed as a challenge to Canadian authorities: ‘‘Why not take them to court in your own country? We will be happy to supply our files and to send those witnesses who have survived to this day. Out ultimate goal is justice, not extradition.”’