Hamburg District Court Reconsiders Case - A new Holocaust denial trial begins in Hamburg.
Since last week, Ursula Haverbeck, an elderly Holocaust denier, has been obligated to present herself before the Hamburg Regional Court. Haverbeck, who is widely recognized in far-right circles, was assigned a ten-month prison sentence by the Hamburg District Court on November 12, 2015. However, she has appealed against this verdict, resulting in the case occupying the legal system once again nearly nine years later.
For decades, criminal courts have been confronted with Haverbeck's assertions. Now, the Hamburg Public Prosecutor's Office accuses the woman from North Rhine-Westphalia of incitement in two different cases. In two separate incidents, Haverbeck allegedly told journalists, during the Lüneburg trial against former SS member Oskar Gröning on April 21, 2015, that Auschwitz was not an extermination camp but rather a labor camp. Additionally, she denied the general mass murder of people in Auschwitz-Birkenau in a TV interview with the NDR magazine "Panorama." Both of these contributions were exhibited in court during the first day of the trial. According to historians, the Nazis murdered at least 1.1 million people in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp by themselves.
A doctor accompanied Haverbeck in a wheelchair to the proceedings. "I've never denied the Holocaust," insisted the elderly woman. She maintained that she had simply posed questions. The court, however, clarified that the statements in the TV contributions were more than queries; they were factual claims. The judge asked Haverbeck to elaborate on her present stance regarding these claims.
Haverbeck was previously convicted in 2004 and issued a fine. Her most recent sentence came in 2022 from a Berlin court, which sentenced her to a year in prison without parole for incitement. The judgement stands, but Haverbeck has not yet begun serving her term. She has previously spent over two years in prison for Holocaust denial in Bielefeld (NRW).
Two additional dates have been set for the trial, but Haverbeck expressed her discontent with the process, citing her advanced age as an impediment. "You really seem to be in good shape," responded the judge. The trial will resume on Wednesday.
Read also:
- The Hamburg District Court's reconsideration of Haverbeck's case highlights the persistent challenge of extreme views on History, as Ursula Haverbeck, a Holocaust denier from North Rhine-Westphalia, stands trial once again for incitement to hatred.
- The public prosecutor's office in Hamburg is accusing Haverbeck of making inflammatory statements in two separate instances, including denying the existence of extermination camps during a Lüneburg trial and contesting the mass murder at Auschwitz-Birkenau on a TV program.
- Despite her repeated conviction for Holocaust denial, Haverbeck, now in her advanced years, has expressed dissatisfaction with the ongoing legal processes and the difficulties she faces in participating due to her age.
- The Hamburg Regional Court, which is currently hearing the case, has clarified that Haverbeck's factual claims, despite being presented as questions, are deemed incitement and require a further explanation from the defendant.
- In the face of Justice's relentless pursuit of accountability, Haverbeck, who has served time in Bielefeld's local court, awaits a potential additional sentence, as she continues to challenge the established historical narrative around National Socialism.
- This particular trial, which has been revisited due to her appeal, serves as a reminder of the ongoing impact of Holocaust denial and the role of legal processes in confronting and challenging such extremism in Germany.
