Jewish News from Austria #12http://jewishnews.at/jewish-news-from-austria-12/en-US2010-02-08T23:22:07ZSquarespace Site Server v5.9.1 (http://www.squarespace.com/)Dear Readers,http://jewishnews.at/jewish-news-from-austria-12/2007/1/4/850396.htmlAdministrator2007-01-05T01:11:57ZJuly, 2005
 

The first three articles of this summer issue are dedicated to outstanding individuals: Ambassador Ernst Sucharipa, who was a tireless negotiator on restitution matters; Ari Rath, former publisher and editor-in-chief of the Jerusalem Post; and Stuart Eizenstat, former Deputy Secretary of the Treasury and Special Representative for Holocaust Issues.

You will find a press release by the Israelite Religious Community of Vienna welcoming the agreement that offered them an additional 18.2 million Euros for confiscated property/assets during the NS era. The press release is followed by two statements on the matter, by the Austrian Federal Chancellor and the Austrian Foreign Minister, respectively.

The research work of the Austrian Historical Commission has been completed. The result is a collection of 49 volumes with altogether 17,000 pages weighing 50 pounds and measuring eight feet in length.

Read about the results of the OSCE Conference on anti-Semitism in Spain; and the Israeli Ambassador’s appeal to Austria and the European Union. The U.S. Administration congratulated Austria’s government on the decision to submit the legal dispute over six paintings by Gustav Klimt to arbitration in Austria.

A group of Viennese has started an interesting project of personal remembrance. On the occasion of the inauguration of the new Theodor Herzl Museum in Jerusalem, the Austrian State Secretary for the Arts, Franz Morak, met with Israeli President Katzav and the Speaker of the Knesset, Reuven Rivlin. Peter Singer’s fascinating memoirs on his grandfather, David Oppenheim, Pushing Time Away: My Grandfather and the Tragedy of Jewish Vienna, have come out in the Europa Verlag.


Yours sincerely,

 

Christoph Meran
Director
Austrian Press and Information Service
www.austria.org

]]>Israelite Religious Community Offers Condolences To the Passing of Ambassador Sucharipahttp://jewishnews.at/jewish-news-from-austria-12/2007/1/4/850395.htmlAdministrator2007-01-05T01:11:30ZOriginal Text Service (OTS) (06/23/05)

Austria’s Jewish Communities are shocked by the news of the sudden death of Ambassador Ernst Sucharipa.

On behalf of the Federal Chancellor, Dr. Sucharipa was involved in negotiations on restitution during 2000 - 2001 and worked closely together with Jewish members on matters affecting them. In the course of numerous discussions, he proved to us not only his profound knowledge of the material but also his understanding of the concerns of the victims and their descendants.

In appreciation of Dr. Sucharipa, the Israelite Religious Community would like to express to his family and friends our deepest sympathy. May his memory be eternally blessed.

The Israelite Religious Society in Austria:

Dr. Ariel Muzicant, President
Dr. Avshalom Hodik, Secretary General
Erika Jakubovits, Executive Director

For additional information please call the Israelite Religious Community at: 011 431-53104-0

]]>Ari Rath Becomes Austrian Againhttp://jewishnews.at/jewish-news-from-austria-12/2007/1/4/850393.htmlAdministrator2007-01-05T01:10:51ZAustrian Press Agency (APA) (06/05/05)

Plassnik presented citizenship to the former Editor-in-Chief of the "Jerusalem Post"

Jerusalem - At the age of eighty the former editor-in-chief of the Jerusalem Post, Ari Rath, is once again an Austrian. At a reception in Jerusalem, Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik presented Rath with a "surprise gift" documenting citizenship. After having previously declined citizenship in the past, Rath submitted an application for naturalization in May of 2005.

Born in 1925 in Vienna, Rath was forced to emigrate in 1938 and went to Palestine where he gained initial journalistic experience as an assistant correspondent to the Special Meeting of the United Nations in New York that was called to solve the Palestinian problem. From 1975 to 1989, he was publisher and editor-in-chief of the Jerusalem Post, which under Rath represented a liberal line. To this day he is still considered one of the most distinguished journalists in Israel.

Rath expressed concern to members of the Austrian press about the present tension between Ariel Sharon’s government and radical settlers over the Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. He feared that among the settlers some of the extremists could cause great damage.

]]>Federal Chancellor Schüssel Awarded Stuart Eizenstat The Grand Decoration of Honor in Goldhttp://jewishnews.at/jewish-news-from-austria-12/2007/1/4/850390.htmlAdministrator2007-01-05T01:09:43ZOriginal Text Service (OTS) (05/03/05)

Vienna - Federal Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel bestowed the Grand Decoration of Honor in Gold upon former U.S. Deputy Secretary of the Treasury and diplomat, Stuart Eizenstat. In his capacity as Special Representative for Holocaust Issues, Eizenstat was instrumental in bringing about the Austrian Reconciliation Fund that came into existence in the year 2000.? "Today we celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Second Republic, the end of World War II and the liberation of the concentration camps. It is a year of reflection and it is the right moment to celebrate once again with Stuart Eizenstat the realization of the Reconciliation Fund," said Schüssel in his eulogy. He emphasized Stuart Eizenstat’s landmark efforts in achieving late justice for the victims of National Socialism.

Chancellor Schüssel recalled the infinite number of negotiations that finally led to the successful conclusion of the Reconciliation Fund. With the Washington Agreement that transpired with the help of Eizenstat, the essential gaps in post-war Austrian legislation were closed. The Federal Chancellor said: "During this time, Stuart Eizenstat revealed not only his fine diplomatic and legal skills, but also his tremendously dedicated commitment to the difficult issues involving restitution. Together we succeeded in changing the myth that everything possible was done which could have been done for the victims and forced laborers."


*Some 30,000 victims from 78 countries have been compensated over the past ten years. In addition, humanitarian as well as research projects are also continuing to be financed.

]]>Eizenstat: The World Has Still Not Fully Learned The Lessons of the Holocausthttp://jewishnews.at/jewish-news-from-austria-12/2007/1/4/850387.htmlAdministrator2007-01-05T01:08:24ZThe Austrian Parliament (05/04/2005)


In terms of human rights, Austria can call the world to task.

Vienna - "It is clear that the world has still not fully learned the lessons of Mauthausen and of the Holocaust when we consider the killing fields of Cambodia, the ethnic cleansing in the Balkans, the genocide in Rwanda, and now another in Darfur. Austria has the moral stature to speak to the world." With these words, the former U.S. Under Secretary of State, Stuart Eizenstat, who contributed considerably over the past few years to solving restitution issues, closed his speech in Parliament’s historical assembly hall. Eizenstat was the main speaker at the Commemoration Day Against Violence and Racism.

In a thank you speech eliciting sustained applause from the audience, Eizenstat recalled the liberation of Mauthausen sixty years ago as well as the contribution made by the United States toward Austria’s independence. Around 200,000 people were kept as prisoners at Mauthausen; between 105,000 and 119,000 of them were exterminated, and about one third of them were Jews. Mauthausen, opened a few months after the Anschluß, served a double purpose: Elimination of political prisoners and Jews as well as the extraction of profit through the use of slave laborers. Within the entire network of Nazi concentration camps, Mauthausen was designated as the only Class III camp (entailing "extermination by work," and "return not desired.") The cruelty of the Nazi guards remains to this day beyond human comprehension.

"How then do we properly honor the victims who died, those fortunate enough to survive, and their families and at the same time make this special Commemoration Day against Violence and Racism relevant to today’s 21st century world?" Eizenstat asked. "We know we can’t restore the past. We cannot bring back to life musicians and writers, poets and artists, entrepreneurs, engineers and scientists, farmers and shopkeepers, ministers and rabbis and, yes, we can’t bring back to life mothers and fathers, and children never able to add their spark to the world. All of these people are irreplaceable."

"But, permit me to suggest three ways of remembering," continued Eizenstat, "in many of which Austria is taking the lead, and commendably so: First and foremost is to perpetuate the memory of those who suffered by telling the brutal and harsh truth of Mauthausen and of Austria’s complicated role in World War II. And this, Austria is now doing," Eizenstat stated. "Austria is not alone among nations in struggling with the passage of time to confront the past." He then added that it took his country, the United States, 40 years to come to terms with the forced internment of Japanese-Americans in U.S. camps. And even more so, there was the long road towards the emancipation of American slaves. Too, we have only recently seen how Japan’s inability to fully face its past has caused tension throughout Asia, he contended.

For decades after the war, Austria did not confront its involvement in Nazi crimes because Austria "confirmed in assuming this attitude by the Moscow Declaration - viewed itself as "the first victim of Hitlerite aggression," Eizenstat continued. While no one can precisely date when Austrians began to face the full picture of their wartime involvement, there were two precipitating events, he maintained: The official reception of Reder after his discharge from imprisonment in Italy and the Waldheim debate. Then several courageous Austrian political and religious leaders acted out of conscience and conviction, Eizenstat continued, mentioning the names of Cardinal König, Federal Chancellor Vranitzky and Federal President Klestil. He, moreover, recalled the creation of the Historical Commission chaired by Clemens Jabloner, the unveiling of the Holocaust memorial in Vienna’s Judenplatz as well as the initiatives undertaken to teach young people about the Holocaust.

A second way of remembering is by doing justice to living survivors and the families of victims during their lifetimes and, beginning in the 1990s, Austria has done just that, said Stuart Eizenstat. The Holocaust was not only history’s gravest and most systematic genocide; it was also the greatest theft in history. Austria has made efforts to rectify this wrong, Eizenstat continued, making reference to the National Fund, which was created in 1995, well before there was international pressure. In addition, Austria was the first country to agree to contribute to a Reconciliation Fund for Nazi Victims; it was also the first country, and virtually the only one, to incorporate into its national legislation the Washington Principles on Art from the Washington Conference in 1997 dealing with looted art.

Eizenstat then spoke about the General Settlement Fund, the sum of which 200 million dollars, has not yet been disbursed because of the lack of "legal peace" for Austria in U.S. courts. "I hope that all the parties, including the U.S. judges responsible for this unconscionable postponement of justice, will be inspired by today’s commemoration to act immediately. I intend to intervene on my own in the case to stress the human dimension of the delay," Eizenstat announced.

However, he also added that it is critically important for Austria to rededicate itself to support and sustain the tiny but vibrant Jewish community that has emerged in the years after the war, contending that it is, moreover, painfully evident that anti-Semitism in Europe did not end with the Holocaust. All forms of anti-Semitism in Europe did not end with the Holocaust. All forms of anti-Semitism should be forcefully condemned and, where appropriate, punished.

The third way of remembering is to apply the lessons learned from the terrible crimes committed in Mauthausen by turning the Commemoration Day Against Violence and Racism into an agenda of action, Eizenstat concluded, mentioning Austria’s commitment to human rights as an example.

For full text, see:
http://www.parlament.gv.at/portal/page?_pageid=908,707658&_dad=PORTAL&P_PK=2005

]]>Press Statement of the Israelite Religious Community in Viennahttp://jewishnews.at/jewish-news-from-austria-12/2007/1/4/850384.htmlAdministrator2007-01-05T01:06:25ZIsraelite Religious Community
Vienna (05/25/05)


We want to thank all those who have made it possible to reach a satisfying agreement for all parties to the questions pending for a long time between the Kultusgemeinde and the Federal Government. First of all we want to thank the Federal Chancellor, Dr. Wolfgang Schüssel, followed by the President of the National Council, University Professor Dr. Andreas Khol, the members of the Board of the Reconciliation Fund, and last but not least, all those of good will who - openly or in the background - have paved the way for the agreement reached today.

In today’s meeting of the General Settlement Fund the decision has been taken that the Israelite Religious Community in Vienna will receive an amount of 18.2 million Euros in recognition of the losses and damages reported by the Jewish communities in Austria to the General Settlement Fund. In consideration of that, the Israelite Religious Community in Vienna will withdraw the applications submitted by it to the General Settlement Fund so that the total amount of General Settlement Fund which is limited to US$210 million will remain undiminished for the large number of the remaining applicants. This is in harmony with the repeated declarations by the Israelite Religious Community in Vienna that the total amount to the distributed shall exclusively benefit the individual victims of the National Socialist regime or their heirs. And, in addition, it shall also become possible to speed up the processing of the remaining applications and to thus allow for a quicker pay-out to the victims.

The Israelite Religious Community in Vienna also declares its intention to withdraw from all matters connected with the class action of "Whiteman, et. al. v. Republic of Austria, et. al." as "amicus curiae." The Israelite Religious Community in Vienna shall nevertheless continue to strive that the legal closure required for distributions from the General Settlement Fund will enter into force as soon as possible.

]]>Schüssel: Additional Payments for Victims of National Socialismhttp://jewishnews.at/jewish-news-from-austria-12/2007/1/4/850383.htmlAdministrator2007-01-05T01:05:43ZFederal Chancellery Austria (05/18/05)

After the Council of Ministers meeting today, Federal Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel presented a comprehensive package of compensation and other measures for the victims of National Socialism. Among other things, this package provides for the annulment of NS court rulings. Mr. Schüssel explained that this did not mean amnesty but rather a basic cancellation of all NS verdicts.

A further point was a widening of scope on the Act Regarding Victims’ Welfare. Persons who were persecuted during the NS era for their sexual orientation or were considered "asocial," those who became victims of medical experiments or were subjected to sterilization will now also receive financial compensation. Applications for restitution claims must be submitted to the Ministry for Social Affairs. "As we have addressed the issue of NS injustice in the past by offering restitution to forced laborers who suffered under the Nazis, we will remedy this injustice by doing likewise," said the Chancellor.

A decision was also made for a one-time payment to be allotted to resistance fighters and victims of persecution. Based upon income, these payments range between 500 and 1,000 Euros. Financial payments to the widows of disabled war veterans will also be improved upon with a budget of 4 million Euros. Upon the initiative of the Minister of Social Affairs, about 15 million Euros will be appropriated for 50,000 so-called "Trümmerfrauen" or "rubble women," who will also receive one-time payments.


]]>Plassnik: "Victims of National Socialism to Receive Payments from General Settlement Fund as Quickly as Possible"http://jewishnews.at/jewish-news-from-austria-12/2007/1/4/850382.htmlAdministrator2007-01-05T01:04:46ZAustrian Foreign Ministry (05/25/05)

Foreign Minister welcomes agreement between General Settlement Fund for victims of National Socialism and Jewish Community of Vienna

Vienna - "I welcome the resolution to make 18.2 million Euros available to the Israelite Religious Community of Vienna (IKG)," said Foreign Minister Plassnik in response to the agreement reached between the Board of Trustees of the General Settlement Fund and the Victims of National Socialism and the Jewish Community of Vienna. This resolution had been passed with a particular view to the interests of the surviving victims of National Socialist injustice, said the Minister, adding that the Jewish community of Vienna will not withdraw the claims it submitted to the General Settlement Fund."It is my great concern that elderly victims receive payment before the end of their lifetime," said Plassnik. "Another significant aspect of this resolution is that the IKG and the Federal Government will jointly advocate a swift settlement of the claims."

"The resolution could make an essential contribution to ensuring that the legal closure required for payments from the General Settlement Fund is now quickly established," the Foreign Minister went on. The only thing now standing in the way of the establishment of legal closure, and thus payment, is the class action suit filed in the USA. Following the agreement now reached, the IKG will discontinue its support of this suit and withdraw from the legal proceedings related to the issue.

"Already at this juncture, further consideration should be given to how payments to the claimants can be made as quickly as possible," added Plassnik. "Even though all claims have not yet been assessed, I am in favour of giving immediate consideration to possible ways and means of realizing advance payments to entitled persons."


See:
http://www.bmaa.gv.at/view.php3?f_id=8384&LNG=en&version=

]]>Jabloner: Quickly Act on Restitutionhttp://jewishnews.at/jewish-news-from-austria-12/2007/1/4/850380.htmlAdministrator2007-01-05T01:03:23ZDie Presse (05/19/2005)

The results of the Historical Commission now appear in book form

Vienna - Some 160 researchers, 49 volumes, 17,000 pages, 50 pounds, and 8 feet: The written results of the Historical Commission concerning stolen property by the National Socialists and restitution measures have not only set quantitative but also qualitative records. The reports, which were published in book form two years following their initial presentation, represent the most critically assembled review of the NS era and its aftermath.

One result of the initially published interim reports led to the negotiations on NS restitution. While the disbursement of financial payments to forced and slave laborers has been completed in accordance with the agreement of 2000, the 2002 Washington Agreement involving restitution for victims of NS confiscated property and financial assets has not yet been achieved. On the one hand, class action suits are still pending in the United States that are preventing legal peace; on the other hand, researching the individual applications submitted for restitution payments is proving to be extremely tough. Nonetheless, when these two matters are finally settled, the disbursement of payments can begin.

The Historical Commission’s president, Clemens Jabloner, used the presentation by Federal President Heinz Fischer as an appeal to quickly act on the outstanding restitution solution: "Only when the victims receive their money, will one be able to say that we have achieved a direct effect."

Publications by the Austrian Historical Commission: Oldenburg Publishing House, 27 volumes, 2,516 Euros; single volumes are available through the website: www.oldenbourg.at

]]>Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Conference on Anti-Semitismhttp://jewishnews.at/jewish-news-from-austria-12/2007/1/4/850374.htmlAdministrator2007-01-05T01:00:35ZAustrian Press Agency (APA) (06/09/2005)

Austria for More Efforts Made Towards Education


Head of Delegation Hans Winkler: Politicians should serve as models

Cordoba/Madrid - At the international anti-Semitism Conference of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in Cordoba, Spain, Austria emphasized the need for greater efforts to be made in school education when fighting xenophobia and intolerance. "Education of our youth plays a large role in the struggle against anti-Semitic prejudice and xenophobia," explained Austrian Head of Delegation and Deputy Secretary General for Foreign Affairs, Hans Winkler, while speaking to the press.

Because of the positive experience Austria has had with its so-called programs of "educating for tolerance" in Austrian schools, Winkler added that Austria wished to speak about it at the OSCE conference. There are many reasons for xenophobia and intolerance, some revolving around anti-Semitism, the Middle East conflict or international terrorism which one cannot easily resolve. "We can only try to improve upon the situation and we do that by educating our youth in matters of tolerance," commented Winkler. He demanded also from the politicians that they play a stronger role in promoting tolerance - through their actions and in their speeches - thereby serving as models for people to emanate.

However, through the excellent initiatives in youth education directed toward more tolerance, one has already achieved a "model character," which is one of the reasons that Austria has relatively few problems with xenophobia and anti-Semitism. The integration of the Moslem community in Austria is, therefore, functioning very well. With such an approach, extremists among Moslem immigrants don’t have reason to develop. Also, conflicts such as the debate over headscarves in Germany and France fail to arise.

One proof of this is documented in the survey of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) presented at the OSCE conference, in which Austria was shown to have a decline in anti-Semitic prejudice. Also, in answer to the question whether Jews are more loyal to Israel than their own country, thirty-eight percent of those asked in 2005 said yes, whereas in 2004, it was still forty-six percent. Also, as to the opinion that Jews spoke too much about the Holocaust in comparison to the previous year, the percentage fell from fifty-four to forty-six.

The survey, which has been conducted throughout twelve countries, concluded that even in 2005 the percentage rate of interviewees expressing anti-Semitic clichés, was still considerable. Hans Winkler is of the opinion that the number is "significant" enough to act as an incentive to fight harder against xenophobia, anti-Semitism and intolerance. The criticism of the OSCE that only about one-half of the fifty-five member states has honored its commitment in the fight again anti-Semitism and xenophobia is a matter which doesn’t include Austria. At the previous anti-Semitism conferences of the OSCE in Vienna and Berlin, all of the member states promised to register cases of xenophobia and intolerance to the OSCE in order to establish a system of control and information. Until now, only twenty-nine member states have forwarded that information onto the OSCE. "We have sent out data. However, we must still improve upon our statistics particularly in cases of crime having a background linked to racism," said Winkler.

According to the Head of Delegation, working together with politicians and experts from more than forty countries has shown that the OSCE can play a central role in fighting anti-Semitism and intolerance. Winkler emphasized that "anti-Semitism and intolerance" was one of the more important topics at the conference. "It is critical to avoid the gradual establishment of a hierarchy of discrimination," said Winkler. The Spanish hosts actually wanted to make anti-Semitism an exclusive topic at the OSCE conference.

]]>