English Translation

Volksdeutsche Mittelstelle fe,44 Berlin,the 15.September Der Wirtschaftsbeauftragter 1944 Potsdamerstr.81b $xm$ R 109 eyegt Minlsteramt tea Ciredace ) Eicg.: 20 SEP. 1944 To the Herrn Deutschen Reichsminister für-Böhmen-änd-Mähren SS-Obergruppenführer Carl Hermann Fr a n k Prag Czernin Palais Very revered Obergruppen Führer! From the leadership of the German ethnic group in 'Slovakia, the following report is sent to me: "Regards: Batja in Slovakia On the question of the Bata-Kozern in Slovakia, we find in principle that neither the money traffic is conducted via German credit institutions, nor that ever there was an opportunity to establish contact with the experts of the company. The personnel occupation of the Bata, Slovakia A.G.'is completely Czechoslovak colored and stellates against the ethnic group unfriendly and often inhibiting. It seems essential to us that in the circumstances resulting from the betrayal, the base of Banat plays an important role for our linguistic areas in Central Slovakia. (Main area in Batovany, new extensions and Nedozery, Bad Bojnice and huge forest complexes in the area of German Probens). The batas legschaft stood öder still on the side of the partisans. The head of propaganda Gaspar held a radio address a few days ago, in which he attacked the Czech wholesalerdom, which was raised in the Slovak state and is now rebelling against it. Here, the Bata company as well as monopoly companies and banks were named. In Slovakia, Bata was a nationalization position in the German Probner region. The idea emerged here that, after clarification of the local conditions, the ethnic group could claim the possession of Bata. We tried at the time to bring the Palffian property, Weinitz Castle (Bojnics) into German hands with the large forest property, which in effect dominates the entire Hauerland. This failed and became the property of Batas. In view of the fact that the finished and ongoing projects of the Bata Group approximately -2- St.M.√E-319/44