DISINFO: Germans imprisoned by the Soviets were happy
SUMMARY
The conditions for (German) prisoners in the Soviet Union (in terms of food and support) were not so bad. Many prisoners, upon their return to Germany, remembered the warmth of their interactions with the Russian population, and in these days we can even call it human relations.
RESPONSE
This message is part of the Kremlin’s policy of historical revisionism.
Adelbert Holl in his memoir describes the daily life in the camps:
"the crowding, the dirt, the cold, the ever-present threat of disease, the forced marches, the indifference or cruelty of the guards. The Soviets treated German prisoners as slave labourers, working them exhaustively, in often appalling conditions. The prisoners could only struggle to survive, to support each other, and hope against hope to return home".
The working and living conditions were harsh and according to Soviet records, 381067 German Wehrmacht POWs died in NKVD camps (356,700 German nationals and 24,367 from other nations), while German historian Rüdiger Overmans also believes, in his book (Soldaten hinter Stacheldraht. Deutsche Kriegsgefangene des Zweiten Weltkriege. Ullstein. Page 246 ) that there were men who actually died as POWs amongst those listed as missing-in-action (MIA).