Walter Obodzinsky, also known as Volodya Obodzinsky (5 July 1919 – 6 March 2004), was a Polish-born member of the Wehrmacht. He gained notoriety when the Canadian government sought to revoke his citizenship in 1999, on the basis that Obodzinsky had concealed his past Nazi activities.

Life

Obodzinsky was born July 5, 1919, in Turzec, Poland. Between 1941 and 1944, Obodzinsky collaborated with Nazi occupiers in Belarus, serving as a member of the auxiliary police,

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...

and Jagdzug. Obodzinsky joined an auxiliary police unit under the command of Heinrich Himmler in 1941. The unit later participated in the massacre of 1300-1500 Jews in the ghetto of Mir, Belarus. From March to July 1944, Obodzinsky was a member of the

. He deserted the Wehrmacht in July 1944 while stationed in France. From December 1944 to May 1945, Obodzinsky fought on the Italian front with the Second Company of the 21st Infantry Battalion of the

Polish Second Corps The Polish II Corps ( pl, Drugi Korpus Wojska Polskiego), 1943–1947, was a major tactical and operational unit of the Polish Armed Forces in the West during World War II. It was commanded by Lieutenant General Władysław Anders and fought wit ...

Canadian deportation proceedings

In late 1946, Obodzinsky gained temporary admission to Canada from Italy. He was permanently admitted to Canada in 1950, and gained Canadian citizenship in 1955. In 1994, based on information received by the Canadian War Crimes Investigation Unit from the British War Crimes Investigation Unit, the

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal police, federal and national police service of ...

opened an investigation into Obodzinsky's activities during World War II. In 1999, Obodzinsky was served with a ''Notice of Intent to Revoke Citizenship'' by the Canadian government, on the basis that he had not revealed his war crimes during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. In a 2003 ruling that ultimately revoked Obodzinsky's Canadian citizenship, Justice François Lemieux of the Federal Court of Canada described Obodzinsky as "an accomplice in the perpetration of atrocities committed, undeniably, during the German occupation of Belarus." The

Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

suspended its attempts to

denaturalize Denaturalization is the loss of citizenship against the will of the person concerned. Denaturalization is often applied to ethnic minorities and political dissidents. Denaturalization can be a penalty for actions considered criminal by the state ...

Obodzinsky following his death on March 6, 2004.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Obodzinsky, Walter 1919 births 2004 deaths German Army personnel of World War II Polish military personnel of World War II People from Łuków County Polish emigrants to Canada Polish Auxiliary Police Denaturalization case law Loss of Canadian citizenship by prior Nazi affiliation

Life

Canadian deportation proceedings

See also

References