I hope it would be not incurious for you to take a look at an article written by certain Harry Mannil - a large businessman well-known in private circles. During the World War second he used to work for the Estonian Political police which was in fact a branch establishment of Gestapo that was functioning throughout the territory “liberated” by Axis. In the article that I mentioned above, a former aider of Nazis Mannil tries to set himself right - at least with the population and official authorities of Costa Rica, which is a country where Mannil’s business is most successful. Mannil had to go this length after he was tracked down by Simon Wiesental Center - a widely known Nazi hunting organization.
Here you can read the original article
(http://www.nacion.com/ln_ee/2007/junio/03/opinion1118307.html)
A translation into English goes below.
I am a respected businessman
Harry Mannil
La Nation has published a number of articles containing hostile, wrongful and unfounded accusations against me. The author of these articles is Mr Efraim Zuroff, director of Wiesenthal Center in Jerusalem. Providing the following facts and description of persecutions that I had to suffer during the past 13 years is a justified necessity.
How the injustice started.
Back into 1994 Dr Henry Kissinger, the former Secretary of State in the USA administration, quit the Baltic Institute for Strategic and International Studies based in Tallinn, Estonia. It was mainly due to the Zuroffâââ‰â¢s message in which he stated that my participation in the activities of the Strategic Management Committee was out of question and he directly blamed me in having collaborated with the Nazi during World War II. So I had to give up this job as well to sort it out in the wake of the incident.
Zuroff informed Dr Kissinger on number of old and false NKVD (Stalinâââ‰â¢s Political Police) staffersâââ‰â¢ accusations included into the Swedish report of the Sandler Comimission (extrajudicial political agency) in 1994. According to the report, I was working with the Estonian Political Security Police (September 1941 - January 1942) and during that period of time I was never involved in any criminal activity, persecutions, executions or crimes against humanity or other offences. The result of that Zuroffâââ‰â¢s message to Kissinger was that my name was added into the special list of those to keep an eye on so that I couldnâââ‰â¢t get into the USA.
On the 20th of November 1945 The Stockholm Police confirmed that I had never been accused of any crimes or detained and my name had never been linked to any violation of law as well. Naturally, that made possible my decoration with the Swedish Royal Order of Polar Star by the Swedish King, which followed 40 years later.
My own investigative effort. The false accusations by Zuroff forced me to petition the Estonian Supreme Court to make myself clean of any accusations. On the 11th of April 1994 the Supreme Court found no case relating my alleged guilt and made me absolutely innocent in the eyes of the Estonian Judicial system.
I also turned to the National Security Council with the request to start their own probe into my activities during the Hitler forcesâââ‰â¢ occupation of Estonia. On the 22nd of April 1994 the Council concluded that in 1945- 1994 I had never faced any accusation.
The Council also noted that my name had never been mentioned in any of the 17 Estonian KGB investigations to search for war criminals and bring them before court.
Some data and recent conclusions.
I addressed the U.S. Department of Justice with the request to explore my case. In the August of 1996 the Department of Justice found no documentary witness against me. My advocate Martin Mendelshon found it out that the decision to take up my visa was optional only due to the fact that when aged 21 I was working with the Political Security Police of Estonia as a clerk. They promised to restore my visa in case I could prove my innocence. How can I, I wonder? I have never been subject to accusation in any unlawful activities.
In 1998 Estonian prime-minister set an International Commission to investigate crimes against humanity dating from 1940 to 1991. A Finnish diplomat Max Jakobson was designated head of it while all the commission were all those well known citizens of Denmark, the USA and Russia. On the 27th of April 2001 the International Commission failed to find any references or any damning evidence proving my guilt. Once again I managed to defend myself from the false accusations by Zuroff. Just at the same time the Political Security Police of Estonia released its conclusions. They found no proof to add any meat to false accusations.
In the letter dating the 21st of May 2001 Zuroff urged the Estonian prime-minister to start a judicial probe. Well, already at the preliminary stage in the January of 2003 it confirmed my innocence. My prosecutor made an inquiry with the Estonian Judicial system and some PR-agency to start a hunting campaign to search for war criminals but got the refusal. The $ 10,000 sum failed to make them less reluctant to do the job. Cilja Laud, the representative of the Jewish Community, formally warned that Zuroff in no case was acting on behalf of the Estonian Jewish community and saw his imprudence as sign of anti-Semitism.
At the beginning of 2003 Zuroff initiated an incident in Costa-Rica, the country Iâââ‰â¢ve been really devoted to for number of years. On 4th of February they informed me about the refusal to allow me into the country next time. The decision was made on the basis of Wiesenthal Centerâââ‰â¢s data posted in the Internet. But on the 6th of November 2003 things made a sharp turn after the evidence doubted during the judicial proceeding, including U.S. Department of Justice subpoena and some new data from the Estonian Police, had been thoroughly examined.
Investigation conducted by the Estonian public prosecutor (dossier âââ¬Å¾Ã¢â¬â 01913000043) on Zuroffâââ‰â¢s request came to an end by the 30th of November 2005. There were interrogated about 56 witnesses. And requests for judicial and documental affidavit from the USA. Russia, Sweden, Finland and Germany were made. I myself was questioned three times. The court confirmed that I was innocent and the decision wasnâââ‰â¢t appealed by Zuroff.
A “Chase” in the Media. Perhaps, my chaser has forgotten that still there are certain laws, courts and sovereign states. Everywhere I was found not guilty. My nationality, my good conscious and the credit of my family are in no connection with Mr Zuroff’s increasing social wants and diminishing financial means.
The activities carried on by Mr Zuroff are wrongful, reckless and unfounded. I never committed any crimes against mankind. I was justified by every investigation that had been carried out since 1945. I have never been either a member or an adherer of the Nazi party. I never was among fascist occupants, either. In the time when I was a student leader at the University of Tartu, Security Service of fascist Germany ranged me as a politically unsafe figure. In September 1943, I had a chance to flee to Finland. Mr Zuroff never submitted to public any evidence of my fault, because there can be no evidence against the innocent one.
Mr Zuroff must admit his error on behalf of the organization he represents. As my family and I were forced to suffer irreparable financial and material damage, I hope that Mr Zuroff has enough courage to resign and admit his fault in the courts he went to defame me.
I have got perfect private and business relations with members of the Jewish community. In September 1979, I was invited to Israel in order to promote business relations with Venezuela. In Tel-Aviv, I met General Mota Gut from Entebbe. For many years I had been a supporter and a member of World Jewish Congress.
I am a respected businessman. I live in Venezuela and spend my vacation in Costa Rica. I am a member of the World Forum. I took part in the work of World Economic Forum (Davos) and Stanford Research Institute on the initiative of President Gerald Ford. I was a member of International Council of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. I also was head of a number of companies in different countries.
That would be my only account for La Nacion that I do out of respect for residents of the exemplary state of Costa Rica. In case there are any further false accusations in my address and forged information about me is being published on, Iâââ‰â¢ll be forced to bring it to the court in order to vindicate my honor and reputation.




