Austria Confronts its Nazi Past

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 VIENNA 000383 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/AGS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM AU SUBJECT: Austria Confronts its Nazi Past Summary -------------- ¶1. The Austrian government, media, and cultural institutions, as well as the general public, commemorated the 70th anniversary of Austria's "Anschluss" with Nazi Germany on March 12, 1938 with various events, ranging from a special session of parliament to a "night of silence" on Vienna's Heldenplatz square. At its March 12 cabinet meeting, the government also decided on the establishment of a Wiesenthal Institute for Holocaust Studies. The Jewish Community chose March 11 for the opening of the Hakoah sports center. End Summary. Parliament Ceremony -------------- ¶2. At a special session of both houses of parliament on March 12, President Fischer, Chancellor Gusenbauer, Vice-Chancellor Molterer and Parliamentary President Prammer stressed the co-responsibility of Austrians for National Socialist crimes. The GOA representatives referred to the roots of the "Anschluss" in the fights between Christian-conservatives and Socialists in the 1920s and 30s. They concluded that cooperation and "bridge-building" of democratic forces was essential in preventing catastrophes such as the Anschluss. ¶3. Drawing analogies to the current tensions between Austria's coalition parties, the speakers urged SPO and OVP leaders to overcome their mutual distrust and suspiciousness. Before the special session, the SPO and OVP had each held separate events to commemorate the Anschluss. Wiesenthal Center -------------- ¶4. The government also used the occasion of the Anschluss anniversary to approve the establishment of a Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies in Vienna. As a result of lengthy negotiations, the Federal Government will, together with the City of Vienna, finance the center to preserve the legacy of Simon Wiesenthal. The center is to go into operation in 2011 to archive and analyze the thousands of files left behind by Wiesenthal. "Night of Silence" -------------- ¶5. Youth and senior citizen organizations, the Catholic Church, and the organizers of the project "A Letter to the Stars," held a vigil overnight March 12-13 on Vienna's Heldenplatz square in the course of which 80,000 candles were lit to commemorate the Austrian victims of the National Socialist Regime. The names of the 80,000 victims were also displayed on big screens. Heldenplatz was the site where some 250,000 Austrians cheered Hitler's arrival on March 12, 1938. "A Letter to the Stars" will continue the Anschluss anniversary commemoration events in May, when 250 Austrian schools will host 250 now-emigrant Austrian Holocaust survivors as speakers. Hakoah -------------- ¶6. The Jewish Community (IKG) used the anniversary to open the Hakoah sports center, the sitre of which had been restored to it in accordance with the 2001 U.S.-Austrian Washington Agreement on Holocaust Property. Hakoah, founded in 1909 as a Jewish institution, was "aryanized" in 1938. After 1945, the sports club was re-opened as a Jewish facility, but did not regain its original premises. In accordance with the Washington Agreement, the original premises have now been restored;" additionally, the Federal and the City of Vienna government provided financial support for the construction of the new facility. The site will also host a Jewish school and old-age home. At the opening ceremony, IKG President Ariel Muzicant noted that the Hakoah community center will be the largest such facility in Europe. Other Events -------------- ¶7. In addition to the GOA ceremonies commemorating the anniversary, there were numerous other events, including speeches, panel discussions and special exhibitions. The Anschluss has also been the dominant topic in the Austrian media in March: Public television and radio are airing series of programs on the Anschluss, ranging from documentaries to movies and TV debates. Universities, theaters and opera houses are also staging special events and performances on the topic of the Anschluss. Polls -------------- ¶8. Polls indicate Austrians have become more self-critical regarding the country's National Socialist past. Twenty years ago, 48 percent considered Austria the first victim of the Hitler regime, while only 25 percent believed Austria shared responsibility for Nazi crimes. VIENNA 00000383 002 OF 002 In a 2008 survey, 48 percent acknowledged Austria's shared responsibility, while the "first-victim" theory was only supported by one third of Austrians. ¶9. In this context, the statement by Otto Habsburg at the OVP's Anschluss commemoration event March 10 received wide attention. Habsburg said that, "no state in Europe is more entitled to call itself a victim of Nazi Germany than Austria." While Habsburg referred to the extensive efforts of the Austrian regime in 1938 to prevent the Anschluss, his statement was heavily criticized as reflecting the opinion of those who deny Austria's shared responsibility for National Socialist crimes. At the OVP event, OVP parliamentary floor leader Wolfgang Schuessel corrected Habsburg's comments by stressing that, "Austrians were also perpetrators" in the National Socialist era. Comment -------------- ¶10. The controversy surrounding the late Austrian President Waldheim in the 1980s forced Austria to openly confront its Nazi past and led to a transformation of the country's historical conscience. Previously, Austria primarily considered itself the "first victim" of Hitler's Germany. This image was bolstered by language in the 1943 Moscow Declaration by the Allied Powers, which was referred to in the Austrian declaration of independence in 1945. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, GOA officials began to acknowledge the shared responsibility of Austrians in National Socialist crimes. History education in schools also abandoned the "first-victim" myth and now focuses on the fact that Austrians were both victims and perpetrators under National Socialism. The Anschluss anniversary events this week reflect this self-critical confrontation of Austria's National Socialist past, and the country's matured national memory. KILNER