[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 49 (Thursday, April 5, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E557]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   A TRIBUTE TO PREBEN MUNCH NIELSEN

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. TOM LANTOS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, April 4, 2001

  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I invite my colleagues to join me today in 
paying tribute to one of the great heroes of World War II-- Preben 
Munch Nielsen, a Dane who has received little recognition for his 
heroism. In many ways, he is a symbol of the gallantry and heroism of 
the Danish people during the tragedy of that war.
  Mr. Speaker, as the only survivor of the Holocaust ever elected to 
the Congress, I want to pay special tribute to Mr. Munch Nielsen and 
also to the courage and strong commitment to basic human decency of the 
Danish people, who saved virtually the entire Jewish community of 
Denmark from the horrifying fate that befell six million Jews in the 
rest of Nazi-occupied Europe. The Danish people took spontaneous 
action--at great risk to their own lives--to save the lives of 
Denmark's Jews. That selfless action established that a people deeply 
committed to basic human decency can prevail against an overwhelmingly 
powerful evil force.
  In many regards, Preben Munch Nielsen's participation in the saving 
of Danish Jews is typical of what other Danish citizens did during the 
horriffic period of the Nazi occupation of Denmark. Munch Nielsen was 
born on June 13, 1926, and was raised in Snekkersten, Denmark, a small 
fishing village some 25 miles north of Copenhagen. Every day he 
commuted to Copenhagen, where he attended school with a few Jewish 
students. Munch Nielsen, however, did not think of them as Jews. As he 
explained, the Jews in Denmark ``were considered neighbors, friends, 
schoolmates and nothing else.''
  The Nazi-invasion of Denmark on April 9, 1940, initially brought 
little change to the lives of Danish Jews. The Danish government and 
the Danish laws remained in effect ensuring, among other things, that 
no Jew in Denmark ever had to wear the yellow star. Munch Nielsen 
joined the resistance movement, helping with the distribution of 
illegal papers.
  On August 29, 1943, the Danish Government resigned under strong 
pressure from the active Danish anti-Nazi resistance. The Nazi's took 
over the government and declared Martial Law that very same day. Under 
the military government, the night of October 1, 1943, was set as the 
date on which all Jews and communists were to be deported and 
transferred to concentration camps. On September 28, G.F. Duckwitz, a 
German diplomat with contacts among the Danish Social Democrats, 
learned about the deportations that were planned for two days later. He 
informed the leading Danish Social Democrat, Hans Hedtoft, who quickly 
passed on the warning to the Jewish community.
  Mr. Speaker, the actions of Preben Munch Nielsen were typical of the 
response of Danes to this effort to exterminate the Jews of Denmark. As 
Mr. Munch Nielsen said, participating in this effort to save the Jews 
was ``the only way to retain self-respect.'' He helped guide Jews to 
hiding places while they were waiting to be taken by boat from harbors 
and beaches along the Danish coast. He also helped transport Jews on 
the ``illegal'' boats and fishing vessels which crossed the straights 
to the freedom and safety of Sweden, and he aided the fishermen by 
calming frightened passengers during the crossing.
  The results of this heroic effort, Mr. Speaker, were remarkable. Of 
Denmark's 8,000 Jews, only 475 were caught and deported to the 
Theresienstadt concentration camp. What began as a spontaneous reaction 
to human injustice turned into a well-organized underground movement. 
Upon their return to Denmark, the Jews found their homes and assets in 
excellent condition. Neighbors and friends cared for their assets and 
sublet their properties.
  As a participant in this remarkable rescue, Preben Munch Nielsen 
personally was involved in helping to transport nearly 1,400 refugees 
to Sweden. On a courier mission to Sweden in November 1943 Munch 
Nielsen was urged by friends of the resistance movement to remain in 
Sweden because returning to Denmark was too dangerous. In Sweden, he 
joined the Danish voluntary forces in Sweden (``Den Danske Brigade'') 
and only returned to Denmark in May 1945, when Denmark was liberated 
from Nazi occupation forces.
  After returning to Denmark, Munch Nielsen began working in the 
import-export business. Only at the age of 59 did he consider a role as 
a public speaker and educator. After sharing his story with some Jewish 
travelers to Denmark, he was encouraged by friends to continue to share 
his personal experience and educate people about the rescue of the 
Danish Jews in 1943. Now a successful businessman, the head of his own 
company and the father of three sons, Munch Nielsen tours the world 
with his wife Sonja, sharing the magnificent story of the rescue of the 
Danish Jews.
  Mr. Speaker, I have the greatest admiration for Preben Munch Nielsen 
for his courageous participation in helping to save his fellow 
countrymen at the risk of his own life. I join Munch Nielsen when he 
says: ``That your fellow citizens should be doomed because their human 
value was considered nothing because of their race is an impossible 
thought.''

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