- Heimatvertriebene
"Heimatvertriebene" (German for "expellees") are
ethnic Germans who fled or were expelled after World War II from many countries, who found refuge in bothWest Germany ,GDR andAustria . Refugees who had fled voluntarily but were later refused permission to return are often not distinguished from those who were forcibly deported.In a document signed in 1950 the "Heimatvertriebene" organisations recognized the plight of the different groups of people living in today's Poland who were resettled there by force. The Heimatvertriebene are just one of the groups of millions of other people, from many different countries, who all found refuge in today's Germany.
Some of the expellees are active in politics and belong to the political right-wing. Many others do not belong to any organizations, but they continue to maintain what they call a lawful right to their homeland. The vast majority pledged to work peacefully towards that goal while rebuilding post-war Germany and Europe.
The expellees are still highly active in German politics, and are one of the major political factions of the nation, with around 2 million members. The president of the
Federation of Expellees isas of 2004 a member of the national parliament.Although expellees and their descendants were active in West German politics, the prevailing political climate within West Germany was that of atonement for Nazi actions. However the CDU governments have shown considerable support for the expellees and German civilian victims.
See also
*
Aussiedler ( )
*Federation of Expellees
*Expulsion of Germans after World War II
*Glossary of the Third Reich
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