NEW YORK (Press Release)– The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) on Friday, Feb. 6, expressed its outrage to Allseas USA, the U.S. affiliate of the Dutch company, Allseas Group SA, which named its newest ship after a convicted Nazi war criminal and SS member, the father of the company’s owner. ADL urged the maritime construction service company to rename the ship “in the interest of plain decency.”
In a letter issued to Frank Kluwen, the General Manager of Allseas USA, Inc., ADL conveyed its absolute disapproval over the name of the Pieter Schelte pipelay vessel and explained why such naming is highly offensive.
“If this ship is not renamed, it will carry the taint of its message to every port of call it makes,” said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director. “Honoring such a man glorifies the absolute evil of the Nazi quest for world domination, and defiles the memory of the millions of Jews and others victims who were systematically exterminated by the Nazis, as well as those who valiantly fought and sacrificed their lives in the name of democracy to defeat Hitler.”
According to reports, Allseas said it does not plan to rename the vessel.
“Such naming offends not only Holocaust survivors and the Jewish community, but all who reject the anti-Semitic, totalitarian ideology of the Nazi regime,” Foxman wrote. “We strongly urge your company to reverse that decision in the interest of plain decency.”
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Preceding provided by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL)