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, the company in Aachen, Germany, that developed thalidomide, has apologised to those affected by the drug – but campaigners have dismissed the apology as too little too late.

Thalidomide was used to treat morning sickness between 1957 and 1961, but was then withdrawn after it was found to cause birth defects. This week’s apology is the first issued by ³Ò°ùü²Ô±ð²Ô³Ù³ó²¹±ô.

“What they’re apologising for is not talking to survivors for 50 years,” says Martin Johnson, chairman of the .

Johnson says , issued on 31 August by Harald Stock, the company’s chief executive officer, did not go far enough because it does not discuss what, if anything, ³Ò°ùü²Ô±ð²Ô³Ù³ó²¹±ô knew at the time about the anti-nausea drug’s ability to cause birth defects when taken by pregnant mothers.

In his apology, Stock stated that ³Ò°ùü²Ô±ð²Ô³Ù³ó²¹±ô upheld industry standards prevalent at the time. “We regret that the teratogenic potential of thalidomide could not be detected by the tests that we and others carried out before it was marketed,” his statement read.

Johnson takes issue with this – he claims there was .

³Ò°ùü²Ô±ð²Ô³Ù³ó²¹±ô is currently facing lawsuits for compensation and Australia. According to Johnson, contain translations of company documents, which apparently reveal that the company was repeatedly warned or notified of cases of birth defects between 1958 and 1961 when the drug was withdrawn.

A spokesman for ³Ò°ùü²Ô±ð²Ô³Ù³ó²¹±ô said that most of the documents in the affidavit have been available in German archives for 40 years, and were extensively scrutinised during an earlier court hearing in Germany. The hearing ended in 1970 without a verdict, although ³Ò°ùü²Ô±ð²Ô³Ù³ó²¹±ô .

The affidavit material has not yet been admitted as evidence in the Australian case. “Neither ³Ò°ùü²Ô±ð²Ô³Ù³ó²¹±ô nor the court has had the opportunity to challenge or test such material,” said the spokesman, adding that ³Ò°ùü²Ô±ð²Ô³Ù³ó²¹±ô will give its own version of events and mount its defence during the trial.