It is often asked whether Josef Mengele ever regretted the horrid things he did at Auschwitz. The response is a resounding no, and we have this first-hand from his own son.
After World War II, Mengele hid in South America to avoid going to jail. But he still managed to have some surprisingly normal moments. He secretly went to Switzerland to go skiing with his family in 1956, including his 12-year-old son Rolf. They appeared to be just a normal family on vacation when seen on the ski slopes. He was a wanted criminal, but you would never know it.
As Rolf grew up, he and his dad kept in touch. Mengele sent his son 50 letters from 1968 to 1978. One would expect him to use those private letters to make the apology, but he didn't. He did not say that he did anything wrong. Rather, he only griped about the difficulties he faced in his own life. He felt it was very unfair that he had to run and hide from the law, and he did feel that he should have been treated like a well-known and respected scientist. He coldly stated that the lives of the innocent people he hurt were "unworthy" when he wrote about them.
The world finally learned the truth in 1985, a few years after Mengele died. Rolf did an interview with a German magazine. He showed old family pictures and explained to them the contents of these letters. Rolf was very clear that his father was never at all sorry. Right up until the day he died, Mengele never once regretted the terrible pain he caused.
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