SIR,—Mr. Denis Healey seems to miss the whole point of
Mr. Darsie Gillie's letter in your issue of August 27. Of course there were sadists of different nationalities who were prepared to use the opportunity presented to them by the Nazis to indulge their particular vice.
Where I think Mr. Healey is in error is in saying that, 'No State allows its soldiers to disobey orders on the grounds of con- science.' This should be qualified by admitting that no serving officer in the forces of many countries would dare to give certain orders to their men, particularly orders which out- rage the conscience of. the majority of their men. We have only to examine the different conduct of Italian and German forces in occupation to understand the limits imposed on the Italians by the nature of the men serv- ing under them.
German military discipline Under the Nazis appears to have replaced the individual conscience of the serving soldier and officer entirely. This is revealed by events comparable to ' Oradour' throughout Europe. To quote the example of foreign individuals of specially recruited brigades in Italy or central Europe or of Soviet or Japanese behaviour is beside the point.
It is surely true that in some countries today there are considerable limits imposed on the orders that can be given to conscript troops which are imposed by the nature of the conscience both of the majority of officers and of men. There appear to have been no such limitations regulating the con- duct of military discipline in the German army.
Awareness of this habit of complete sub- mission to military discipline is surely behind much of the objection in Germany itself to any form of rearmament and we must surely admit that any such influence must represent a grave danger in Europe. How long will it take for the conscience of the ordinary German soldier to become more robust ?- Yours faithfully, F. C. A. CAMMAERTS
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