Networking workshop: ‘Places of Nazi forced labour in northern Bohemia and Saxony’

09. 10. 2024

Last Saturday, a networking workshop was held in Ústí nad Labem on the topic of Nazi forced labour in the border region of Saxony-Bohemia. Participants were representatives of various organisations and institutions that deal with this topic from different perspectives.

The speakers included Mr Jan Hasil from the Archaeological Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, who spoke about the status and prospects of forced labour archaeology in Bohemia. Another interesting contribution was made by Petr Pijáček from the association ‘Političní vězni’, about the forced labour camp Rovnost at the time of the communist regime in the former Czechoslovakia.
From a German perspective, the activities of the authorities responsible in Saxony and the area of tension in which they operate were discussed in more detail. Between the presentations, the focus was on exchange and networking between the participants. Among other things, the exhibition ‘Ztracená paměť’, conceived by the Institute and its partners, was presented.

In the afternoon, the workshop concluded with an excursion to the Rabštejn underground factory, where prisoners from the Rabstein concentration camp, a satellite camp of the Flossenbürg concentration camp, were used to produce aircraft parts for the company Weserflug GmbH.

We would like to thank you for the opportunity to participate, the interesting contributions of the guest speakers and the lively exchange of ideas.