(1)
The twentieth century will also become as a century of the evictions into the
history. The Banater Swabian where twice victimized of Deportation, in January
1945 to the Soviet Union and in June 1951 in the Baragan- steppe. These were
events which shook the communities and their foundation, which brought
inexpressible sorrow over many families.
The Banater Swabian ignored the
Eastern part of the Romanian lowland, known as the Baragan. Before 1951, only
from the reports of the men who had performed their military service in the
cities on the edge of the Baragan, and from the geography books some information
about this area was known.
No tree grows on its back. A water
fountain is so far away, where one could die of thirst half way. The inhabitant
of the Baragan always hopes, someone would come along and teach him how to live
a better life in the Baragan, where there is no water and nothing grows out of
thistles. In less than one week the thistles cover the whole land.
When
the winter comes, the herdsman leaves this forgotten sake region to God and goes
home. However, Baragan covers it’s white fur and lies down to sleep for six
months. Nobody lives there during the winter months. This is the Baragan.
The deportation started in January, 1945 from 75,000 Germans from Romania were
forced to work in labour camps in the Soviet Union. The first steps were
directed to arrests, internments, ill treatments, and conditional murders of the
Germans. As a result the life of human dignity, and working conditions, the
diseases and the food shortage 11.000 died in the labour camps in the Ukraine
and neighbour of the Urals. German women between the ages of 18 - 32 and all
German men between 17 and 45 years. However, this age did not become imminent,
also the younger or older were deported. In a lot of cases there were small
children who were without fathers and mothers for certain length of time. Those,
who were taken by relatives or friends or were provided with religious helps,
were lucky.
All who stayed behind had to endure a difficult time. Their land, houses, the
cattle and all agricultural machines where taken away without compensation. In
their houses they had to accept Romanians from other regions, which imagined
themselves as the leader in the house and allowed the formerly German owner and
his family to work for them.
Romania implemented a 25Km Security Zone along the Yugoslavian border. On
the eve of June 17, 1951 (Pentecost Sunday) Military Soldiers and other
government officials, marched into dozens Banater village. The plan was to
deport all inhabitants who were landowners or connected with political affairs.
One policeman and with his four assistants went from house to house at two
o'clock in the morning. Beating on doors of the people who were on the
deportation list. A manuscript issued the Romanian Government was read to them,
stating the orders, which had to be followed.
"By
ten o'clock in the morning you are to be ready to leave.
They were not
told where they would be going. With the different age group, they know it
wouldn’t be Russia again. The youngest person was six weeks old and the oldest
was 92. Each family was allowed to bring with them; two horses, one cow, two
hogs, five chickens, feed for the livestock and one wagon.
The
soldiers escorted them with weapons to the railroad station, where their
belongings were loaded into a boxcar of a freight train. In some cases, there
were two or three families in one boxcar. Once they were loaded onto the freight
train, they could never leave the train again to return to their homes or visit
relatives. The train was surrounded with soldiers and their machineguns. After
being locked up with the livestock for a day and a half in the heat, the train
finally began to roll out of the train stations. Heading eastward the train
passed through Temeswar. Their destiny was unknown, the trains rolled through
Transylvania, the temperature was very hot. The people began to notice, the
livestock was getting restless account of thirst. After the train left Bucharest
toward the Danube, a relief showed on their faces, then they knew their
destination was not Russia. The train travelled for another few more days and
night, before it pulled into a siding. There, they had to unload everything from
the freight train. They discovered that was their new home, no civilization no
water in sight, it was the Baragan-Steppe. Continuation,- check-New
villages.