The concentration camps were not Polish, they were run by the Nazis

Please look into the first paragraph, where ‘Polish camp’ phrase appears (note the News Letter is happy to make the reference clearer and have amended our online version of the article).

Such a phrase is unfortunate and factually misleading, as there were no Polish concentration camps during World War II, only the concentration camps set up and administered by Nazi Germany in the Reich and occupied Europe, including occupied Poland.

I hope that you would agree with me that it is an important distinction, as without making it, one runs the risk of distorting the historical truth about some of the most horrific crimes perpetrated in the 20th century, or indeed of wrongly apportioning the blame for them.

This is also the reason why the intended mere geographical description could result in concealing the truth behind those events, potentially confusing the fate of victims with that of culprits and bystanders.

The wording ‘camp in Poland’ is inaccurate also on account of the formal decision by The World Heritage Committee of UNESCO of 27 June 2007, which changed the name of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp heritage site to: “the Auschwitz-Birkenau German Nazi concentration and extermination camp 1940-1945”.

I would appreciate, if you could consider rephrasing the above-quoted sentence so that the concentration camp is depicted correctly.

The following phrasing: ‘Nazi German camp in occupied Poland’ or ‘Nazi camp in German-occupied Poland’ might be a worthwhile alternative to the current one.

I would also like to encourage you to formulate an entry for your style book so as to ensure that your future publications would avoid misleading phrasing.

Examples of such style book entries include those by the Associated Press: “Concentration camps: For World War II camps in countries occupied by Nazi Germany, do not use phrases like Polish death camps that confuse the location and the perpetrators.

Use instead, for example, death camps in Nazi-occupied Poland.”

And The New York Times: “Given the sensitivity of this topic, take extra care in historical references to the Nazi concentration camps of World War II. For camps in countries occupied by Nazi Germany, avoid ambiguous or misleading phrases like ‘Polish concentration camp’ or ‘Polish death camp’, which could give the mistaken impression that the camps were run by Poland.”

I hope you might find the above suggestions fitting and useful, and amend the text accordingly to ensure clarity of the message you are sending.

Witold Sobków, Ambassador of the Republic of Poland, Portland Place, London