Memorandum on the organization and functions of the office for the handling of problems in the eastern territories (Rosenberg), including the placement of Jews in ghettoes and forced labor as a "temporary solution" for the "Jewish problem"

29 April 1941
General organization and tasks of our office for the general handling of problems in the Eastern territories
The Chief of this office under whom a personal expert plus the necessary office staff is to be placed, is to be assisted in all general problems of the office by his permanently assigned representative (Gauleiter Dr. Meyer). The permanent representative heads a main office which organizes the whole interior service as well as a number of departments which have to work on special problems.
1. Political department.
This department is charged with the task of further working out the staked-out political goals in the several projected five areas, and to sum up the historical reasons for the new partitioning of the whole east European area. It must result from this work, that the proposed district shall not be of a haphazard nature, but are due rather to the historical and national developments, and thus represent a political necessity for the future. The substantial treatment of those problems is closely connected with the history and nature of the several nationalities in the East, which also will have to be treated. To this is to be added the appraisal of the individualisms of these nationalities which live within or out of Europe for the purpose of a later outside commitment in the projected administrative districts.
A general treatment is required for the Jewish problem for which a temporary solution will have to be determined (forced labor for the Jews, creation of Ghettos, etc.) The church problems of the whole East are of a varying nature (character) and require an intensive treatment in relation to the past, to the now existing laws and to the interested future relationship.
While the work itself is being done, there will arise a great number of special problems out of the whole of the general problems. With the present state of the work, one should not anticipate the special problems.
693256—46—44
685
1024-PS
Rank of the Chief and his representative: Ministerialdirector and Ministerialdirigent. Proposed as the Chief of this office: Reichsamtleiter Dr. Georg Leibbrandt. His representative: Consul general Dr. Bräutigam.
2. Economic-Political Coordination.
Until further final decisions have been reached about the substantial treatment of economy, technics, traffic, postal service, highway dept, labor service, this dept, has no immediate pertinent tasks to solve, such as the political dept. The main task of the dept, of economic-political coordination will consist rather of coordinating the different above mentioned territories in their demands and their utilization so that the known political goal can be attained as quickly as possible in the five large districts by the use of the psychological possibilities.
The top priority of the demands of the occupational force is the assured supplying of the Germans with raw materials and food. In the long run in certain districts this goal may be attained with less force, through an understanding, special treatment of the individual nationalities rather than by this national and political situation, the solution of this problem is forced by means of the military or police strength.
Tne Chief of this dept, of economic-political coordination will have the task to coordinate the orders of the plenipotentiary of the Four Year Plan with the wishes of the economical and financial resources by cooperation with the representatives of the highway dept, and labor dept, in order to assure the utmost safety and by using the existing files of the people who know Russia to secure the biggest possible assistance in all these economic-political necessities. Connected with this is the contingency of all the desired amounts of raw materials and food, namely in this respect that those districts, in which a political autonomy and a lasting cooperation is projected are to be considered more than other ones for which such a possibility does not seem indicated for the future. One must proceed in the same way to solve the currency question. After a certain period of transition, it must be decided where national currency issuing banks will have to be created in connection with the overall political solution, and where this is not deemed necessary. The same holds true for postage stamps and other questions, which will arise in concrete forms, in connection with the course of this work.
According to the decisions of the Reichsmarshall, the economy is to be coordinated under the authority of one person. Consequently, the representatives of the brandes for food, the currency
686
1024-PS
and financial questions, the industrial economy and the question of utilization of labor are subordinated to the plenipotentiary for the whole economy. Therefore, the Deputy of the Four-year plan represents all of the economic branch in discussion about economic-political coordination, while the representatives of the other mentioned depts. will enter the conferences under his direction. In other words the head of the department of economic-political coordination has to bring about a combination [Gesamtheit] with the political goal of
1. Safeguarding of the German War Effort and supplies.
2. Attaining of political goals in the East.
The conferences will take place, if necessary, under the leadership of the permanent representative of the Chief, or in the form of a round table discussion of the participants under the presidency of the head of the economic-political coordination dept.
Position (Rank) : Ministerialdirector. Representative:
Ministerialdirigent.
Proposed as the head of the Dept, for economical-political coordination: Reichsamtleiter Walter Malletke. Representative. Reichs-hamptstellenleiter Hermann Freiherr von Harder. In addition, a small number of permanent assistants and the necessary office are envisaged.
The supreme headquarters of the Armed Forces has appointed as representative to the director of this, office the Chief of the Armed Forces operational staff [Wehrmachts fuehrungstab] General of the Artillery Jodi, and as his representative Brigadier General Warlimont. General Jodi or Brig. Gen. Warlimont are to be included in conferences of the political dept, and the dept, of economic-political coordination, held under the chairmanship of the director or his representative, during which military matters are being discussed.
3. Legal Dept.
It is the task of the Legal Dept, to prepare those drafts for laws which are deemed necessary for the governing of the Eastern territories, with due consideration to general directives of tne director or his representative. If called for, a representative of the Legal Dept, is to sit in on the conferences of the Political Dept, and the dept, of economic-political-coordination in order to keep abreast with the problem arising from this subject matter and accordingly to make the draft for the necessary decrees or, otherwise, to formulate the presented drafts of the various depts. in accordance with the general goals and future constitutional demands. The ordinances for the execution of the decrees of the
687
!Ö24—PS
director of the office are to be agreed upon in advance with the head of the Legal Dept; these (decrees) are to be brought before the representative of the director in case no argument can be reached. Rank of the head of the dept: Ministerialdirector. Representative: Ministerialdirigent. Proposed for the job; proposal is asked of the Reichsminister and Chief of the Chancellory. Experts of the constitutional conditions in the East should be consulted as advisors, first of all Staatsrat Freiherr von Freitagh Lorringhoven (other proposal: Regierungspresindent Dr. Runte from Brusberg.)
4. Dept, for Culture and Science.
The work of this dept, does not seem as pressing as the political, economic-political and legal-political problems. However, now is the time to project the installation of these cultural and educational institutions for those territories that are in need of special care on the part of Germany. The task would be to further those national sciences and history of literature and universities which conform with the political goal. Rank of the director : Ministerialdirector. Representative: Ministerialdirigent. The director has not been proposed as yet.
5. Enlightenment and Press.
It is the task of this dept, in an active manner, to publicize the substantially worked out decision of the several depts. for all of those circles for which these decisions are meant. Furthermore, to maintain the entire connections with the Reichs ministry for the Enlightenment of the People and Propaganda and to employ the facilities of this ministry in the fields of radio, public address systems, films, etc., in order to obtain the political goals in the Eastern European area. Furthermore, the enlightenment of the whole German people and the army is to be promoted in such a way as is deemed necessary by the hand of this office. During press conferences, the representative of the dept, for enlightenment and press has to acquaint Germany's newspapers and magazines with the necessary instructions, and to make statements for the foreign press, if deemed necessary. This task to be carried out in agreement with the Chief of the German press. It is furthermore the task of the head of this dept, to establish the fastest possible connection for communication between the main office and the future administrative offices of the Eastern European area. The additional influence upon the foreign nationalities should be the presentation of the aims of National
688
1024-PS
Socialist Germany, given in the individual languages of> the various people.
Rank of the head of the dept.: Ministerial-director. Representative: Ministerialdirigent. A number of necessary officials and expert and usual staff. Proposed; General commissioner Fritz Schmidt den Haag. Experts Dr. Karl Neuscheler, at the present in Meuskan, and Dr. Gamber, at present in Belgrad (DNB). At present further necessities cannot be foreseen and if necessary an enlargement upon the work will be contemplated with new demands.
The representative of the Fuehrer is to be contacted (asked) whether or not he desires to be represented at the director of the dept., or his representative. Furthermore, it is deemed necessary that the Reichsfuehrer SS and Chief of the German police appoints a permanent representative to this office with whom administrative decrees concerning safeguarding by police forces are to be discussed. The representative of the Reichsfuehrer SS and Chief of the German Police can be consulted in all conferences pertaining to the security of the Eastern territories.
The Reichs commissioner for the solidification of the Germanic National Characteristic will also appoint his representative, who, at the proper time, will take over the task on orders of the head of the administrative district, the tasks in those administrative districts where this employment is deemed necessary.
Communications to the Administrative districts in the East ,
Each administrative district in the Eastern European area will establish a representative in Berlin, which is to be immediately subordinated to the permanent representative of the director of the office. These representatives have the task to regulate all questions of entering and knowing their respective areas and to receive and work out all wishes of the various Reichs Offices of party and state, which pertain to the represented administrative areas. -The directives to the heads of the administrative districts will originate only from the head of the office. This representative will tend all the other pending negotiations.
The administrative districts in the East European areas will be organized according to the needs of the main office, so that in general, one section of the office in Berlin corresponds to an office in the administrative districts. This is a process through which will require a much higher specialization.
689