Eva Adorian

“One day there was yet another selection and we did not know what we should do. We remained standing there after the first selection. Those Kapos came there and said that those who were weak or ill or did not have enough strength should raise their hands. It would be better for them to stay here. Mom has always been a sickly person. She wanted to raise her hand. I didn’t know, but somehow I still understood that nobody was allowed to be sick or weak there. Really – I was pushing her arm down by force so that… But what I want to say: those Kapos knew what they were doing. They must have known what it meant. Even if they had been given an order, they could have whispered: don’t do that. But they have not done it. And this is what I cannot forgive them.”

“Transports of old people from Germany started arriving there at a certain time. They were so-called privileged people. Their husbands or fathers had been in the German Army in World War One or they had some merits... They were all people like that. They were indeed great patriots. They had been told – yeah, you will go to a spa resort – and these people arrived there as if they really travelled to a spa. (With nothing, just like when you go to a spa). They packed things for a stay in a spa. And then they arrived into the reality, where they did not even have a bed. They slept on straw mattresses one next to each other. These people broke down, because they came there and they were absolutely not prepared for what was there. The conditions were horrendous. There was no space... It was so horrible!”