Western (R): Germany (RG). Refugees and Expellees

A file of correspondence concerning national minority populations in West Germany. The documents discuss a recent increase in the number of Polish nationals applying for visas to emigrate to West Germany; and the British belief that a "considerable proportion" of the applications are due to "economic hardship". The documents also cover a series of rallies held in West German cities by the West German Federation of Expellees, an organisation dedicated to representing ethnic Germans who were forcibly expelled from Central and Eastern Europe at the end of the Second World War. These rallies attracted large crowds, and drew strong criticism from the Polish and Czechoslovak governments. Other documents in the file comment on an agreement between the two Germanies for East Germany to release 2,600 West German political prisoners in exchange for West German goods.