German officials begin replacing Holocaust memorials in Munich

July 27 (UPI) -- Officials in Munich, Germany, have begun placing new wall plaques to memorialize victims of the Holocaust, as a replacement for the brass cobblestone markers that some say are disrespectful.

When finished, the new walled memorials will commemorate 10,000 Munich residents who were killed under Nazi rule between 1933 and 1945.

The city began removing the commemorative cobblestones Thursday as the first plaque was put in to honor victims Tilly and Franz Landaue.

Franz Landaue died in 1943 in Kamp Westerbork in the Netherlands, and his wife a year later at Auschwitz.

The new markers will be placed at the victims' last known residences.

The primary reason for the replacements is because some, including Bavarian Jewish leader Charlotte Knobloch, have said the brass cobblestones are not good memorials because they get dirty easily and, because they are mounted in the ground, are often walked on.

"It is important to me that we find forms of individual remembrance of the victims of the Nazi era," Munich Mayor Dieter Reiter said. "They are to remind us of those who were murdered and set an example. Never again."

The cobblestones, which lie in the pavement outside victims' former homes or workplaces, were created by the German artist Gunter Demnig. They are placed in more than 1,000 locations across Europe.

A petition to stop city officials from removing them has collected more than 100,000 signatures.