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The Wiesenthal Centre has criticised some countries - including New Zealand - as total failures for refusing to prosecute the Nazis in their midst.
The centre - named for Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal who died in 2005 - gave the United States the only "A" grade, for having denaturalised 64 Nazi war criminals and collaborators. But in a report marking Holocaust Remembrance Day, it gave New Zealand, Austria, Australia, Scotland and Estonia failing grades of "D" for "insufficient and/or unsuccessful effort".
Grades of "F" were issued to Syria and Sweden for deciding not to investigate or prosecute any Nazi suspects. Sweden's laws place a time limit of 25 years on war crimes prosecutions.
Wiesenthal dedicated his life to documenting the crimes of the Holocaust and tracking down many perpetrators.
The centre said the US had permanently removed 54 Nazis, had another 16 cases in litigation and had another 222 persons under active investigation. Canada, Germany, France and Italy were given "B" grades.
The Wiesenthal Centre gave "C" grades to Britain, Argentina, Lithuania, Latvia, Croatia and Costa Rica, saying those nations have had "minimal success which could have been greater".
- NZPA
