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In the pre-war period, no-one took the fact that I was a Jew negatively. I never had an anti-Jewish incident. When the Slovak state [see Slovakia] [7] was being created, they walked and shouted: ‘Slovakia for the Slovaks, Palestine for the Jews.’ Slogans like that against the Jews. Then we of course could no longer go to school and they threw us out of high school. The anti-Jewish laws of course affected me very much. In the end 270 anti-Jewish laws were passed, the so-called Jewish Codex [8]. Besides being allowed to breathe, everything was forbidden. It was forbidden to go to the park, it was forbidden to go to the movie theater, it was forbidden to go visit the swimming pool, skating was forbidden, everything was forbidden. Of course I didn’t pay attention to all the prohibitions. For example, I didn’t wear a yellow star [see Yellow Star in Slovakia] [9], that didn’t even occur to me. I wasn’t afraid that I wasn’t wearing it. Of course, my parents didn’t approve, but I didn’t ask them. I simply said that I wasn’t going to wear it. It would have been different, if I had looked like a Jew. Those that knew me didn’t inform on me, and strangers didn’t even notice it. Of course I had to stop hanging out with my non-Jewish friends. Boys who I had played soccer with for Slavia were still my friends, but it wasn’t like before. There were even some among them that told the others: ‘Leave that Jewish boy, that Jew, be.’
I think that the first transport of Jews from Presov left on 22nd March 1942. On it were boys between the ages of 16 and 18. Then they also sent a girls’ transport out of town, but that one was turned back at Poprad. When my father found out that family transports were due to start, we hid. My father’s brother was already deceased at that time. He died in 1935 of pneumonia. I hid with my mother and father. Someone informed on us though, the guardsmen [Hlinka-Guards] [10] came and took us away. We were gathered in one schoolyard in town. The next day guardsmen came and announced to us that the Germans would ‘shine a light’ on all of us. They took us to the train station where we were supposed to be put on transports. There were 700 people there, and we were waiting for another 300 from Bardejov who were supposed to arrive by train. However, the train didn’t arrive, and because they hadn’t gathered together 1,000 people, which was how many were needed to make up a transport, they only sent us to Zilina.
I think that the first transport of Jews from Presov left on 22nd March 1942. On it were boys between the ages of 16 and 18. Then they also sent a girls’ transport out of town, but that one was turned back at Poprad. When my father found out that family transports were due to start, we hid. My father’s brother was already deceased at that time. He died in 1935 of pneumonia. I hid with my mother and father. Someone informed on us though, the guardsmen [Hlinka-Guards] [10] came and took us away. We were gathered in one schoolyard in town. The next day guardsmen came and announced to us that the Germans would ‘shine a light’ on all of us. They took us to the train station where we were supposed to be put on transports. There were 700 people there, and we were waiting for another 300 from Bardejov who were supposed to arrive by train. However, the train didn’t arrive, and because they hadn’t gathered together 1,000 people, which was how many were needed to make up a transport, they only sent us to Zilina.
Location
Slovakia
Interview
Otto Schvalb