In Germany revealed the fact of employment of prisoners on railways GDR

In Germany, a scandal erupted over history : the facts were revealed using forced labor of political prisoners in the construction of railways in the German Democratic Republic (GDR ), which , as we know, was one of the countries of the socialist camp in Europe .

According to the magazine Der Spiegel, the organization “Union of Associations of Victims of Communist tyranny ” commissioned a study in which it was found that the railways GDR largely built by prisoners who were paid minimum wages , and the railway company has received a huge profit .

” We have all the evidence that Deutsche Reichsbahn ( German Imperial Railway) in the period from 1951 to 1989 extracts substantial profits from forcing prisoners to severe physical and health hazards work, which pays so bad , that we can talk about the operation ” – quoted the head of the research project Christian registry office InoPressa.

According to the study , every year on the East German railways ran from 1.2 to 1500 prisoners. Noted that they were engaged mainly in heavy work : an example of the ” Building pathways , breakage of rail cars .”

Most interesting is that these findings are supported by documentary evidence. For example, it turned out that the amnesty of prisoners affect the company’s profits. ” The documents clearly demonstrate the fact that the amnesty of prisoners certainly led to millions in losses for railways GDR ” – the article says.

Note that the flagrant use of prison labor , though there have been many years ago , but may affect the business and in our days. Thus, the authorized government of Germany on the development of the eastern regions of Germany Iris Glyayke demanded from the main railway operator in Germany, Deutsche Bahn, which came after the reunification of Germany Deutsche Reichsbahn, its own investigation .

According to the official , the company must deal with ” this part of their own history , to help in its investigation and , if necessary, to pay compensation.”

However, in Russian history so far do not need to go deep . Suffice it to recall , for example, that in 2010 the head of the colony in the Komi disassembled using convicts 50 kilometers of rails. However, the jailer used forced prison labor is not creative , but for selfish purposes . Abducting 50 kilometers of railway track , a senior warder sold them on the “black ” market , earning the implementation of “extraction ” of more than three million rubles.

A year earlier, it turned out that in the Tyumen region, former head of the detention center of the city also used Zavodoukovsk labor arrested for personal use – untried erected for the adventurous warden estate. According to investigators, is ” slavery ” the official practiced in 2005-2007 .