In a letter published in today’s JEP, Michael Ginns, who was interned in Bad Wurzach for three years during the war, explains why the living history group Insel Soldaten does not have his support. The group were cast into the spotlight last month after a photograph of them dressed in German uniforms and sitting on a miniature train was published in the JEP. Since then, a number of articles have appeared criticising their activities. Jon Carter, the head of the Jersey Heritage Trust, said that he viewed their re-enactments as ‘insensitive, tasteless and insulting to the victims of Nazi tyranny’. But in an interview with the JEP, the head of Insel Soldaten, Simon Dodkins, said that he could not understand why opinion was divided within the Occupation Society as to whether dressing up as German soldiers was a good idea or not. In his letter, Mr Ginns, the vice-president of the society, says: ‘Personally, I am in total disagreement with the wearing of German uniforms of the Nazi era, which should be displayed behind glass in museum showcases.’
