Romany groups yesterday announced that they will file civil
lawsuits against IBM in the Swiss courts over its alleged
involvement in the Holocaust. They claim that IBM’s Hollerith
tabulating machinery helped the Nazi regime identify Romany
populations, contributing to an estimated 600,000 to 1.5 million
deaths of Romany gypsies before and during World War 2.
Lawyers representing the groups say that the lawsuits will
demand $10,000 compensation for each person orphaned. This would
mean a potential pay out of $12 billion, with an estimated 1.2
million people falling into this category. Under Swiss law, all
claims must be filed individually. Lawyers say the first 1,000
cases will be filed in September.
The actions are being raised in Switzerland as Geneva was the
then headquarters of the German and Swiss subsidiaries of IBM. IBM
has told Reuters that it cannot comment without seeing the
lawsuits.
In February this year, IBM responded to a book by Erwin Black
which outlined its alleged involvement in the Holocaust, saying
that its German subsidiary at that time, Dehomag, had fallen under
the control of the Nazi Party.
