Eric Hafemann's spirited and often bombastic defence of his client, Helmut Oberlander, in a Sep. 03, 2004 letter in The Record reached the extreme when he equated, albeit rhetorically, Oberlander's war experiences with those who were in concentration camps.

Oberlander served the Germans well: He received a War Service Cross for saving two wounded German soldiers. He fought with the Wehrmacht after his killing group was disbanded and in 1944, after his supposedly harrowing treatment by the Germans, he opted to become a naturalized German citizen. I wonder how many concentration camp survivors became naturalized German citizens.

However, with respect to whether Oberlander's Canadian citizenship should be nullified, after a thorough analysis, Justice Andrew MacKay found that Oberlander's claims were not credible.

Regardless of the outcome, it is a travesty to suggest that Oberlander was subjected to the same treatment as those who were herded into concentration camps, where most of them were murdered.

Lili Pasternak
Waterloo