Westerbork, a municipality in Drenthe where a camp was opened in 1939 to accommodate German-Jewish refugees. The camp was
built with advances from the Dutch government under the responsibility of the Committee for Special Jewish Interests (CBJB),
founded in 1933, and the associated Committee for Jewish Refugees (CJV). Both committees also provided the financing and repaid
the advances. It was only after the German invasion that the government was forced to take over responsibility on 20 May 1940.
Since 1942, it had been a complete town with all kinds of facilities, but with a drastically changed purpose. From Westerbork,
a hundred thousand Jewish men, women and children were sent to extermination camps. Within the camp, 'Gutscheine' were used
as 'Vergünstigungen an Haftlinge' (privileges for prisoners).
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