Trial of the Major War Criminals before International Military Tribunal ...

espionage apparatus. On September 28th the Ordinance concerning
the Declaration of a State of Civil Emergency dated September 27th,
1941, was issued with his signature.
The Ordinance empowers the Reich Protector to declare a state
of civil emergency throughout the whole territory of the Protectorate
of Bohemia and Moravia, or in separate districts (Sec. 1
of the Ordinance).
The most important consequence of a" declaration of a State
of Civil Emergency is the transfer of a considerable part of the
jurisdiction on criminal matters to so-called "Standgerichte"
(Sec. 3 of the Ordinance).
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Of the greatest significance is finally the provision that during
a state of civil emergency deviations from the law in force may
be made when introducing and carrying out measures for the
preservation or restoration of public security and order (Sec. 2,
para 1 of the Ordinance).
(a)The State of Civil Emergency, Sept.28, 1941­
J an. 19 , 1.9 4 2.
The authorisation to declare a state of civil emergency was
used as early as September 28, 1941. By Decree of the same day
(Annex 12) signed by HEYDRICH the state of civil emergency was
declared for the districts of' the "Oberlandrat" in Prague, Brno
among others, and a few days later (Annex 13 and 14) in most of
the remaining part of the "Protectoraten.
The "Standgerichte" set up simultaneously, which acted throughout
the whole period, passed 778 death sentences (all were executed)
and handed over more than 1,000 persons to the Gestapo i.e. con-
centration camp. These figures rest on investigations carried out
up to now. The actual figures may be much higher.
The only rules regulating the institution, composition and
procedure of the "Standgerichte" are to be found in the Ordinance
of September 27th, 1941 (V.Bl. R.Prot. p. 527).
It does not in any way restrict the power of the Reich Protector
to declare a state of civil emergency, in other words, such a
declaration which implies the trallsfer of a considerable part of
the jurisdiction in criminal matters to "Standgerichte" is not
dependent on legal premises. All is left to the discretion and
arbitrary decision of the Reich Protector.