FROM REPRESSION TO REMEMBRANCE
THE NATIONAL FUND OF THE REPUBLIC OF AUSTRIA FOR VICTIMS OF NATIONAL SOCIALISM
“We acknowledge all the facts of our history and the deeds of all sections of our people, the good and the evil; and just as we take credit for the good, we must also apologise for the evil – to the survivors and to the descendants of the dead.”
Excerpt from the speech made by Dr Franz Vranitzky before the National Council on 8 July 1991.
Taken from the stenographic minutes of the 35th session of the National Council
In 1995, on the 50th anniversary of the Second Republic, the National Fund of the Republic of Austria for Victims of National Socialism was established at the Parliament as a late expression of Austria’s special responsibility towards the victims of National Socialism. Its establishment only became possible once the perception of the years of National Socialism in Austria had evolved: from viewing Austria as the first country to fall victim to Hitlerite aggression, to a more nuanced perspective that does not exclude aspects of responsibility.
In 1991, Federal Chancellor Franz Vranitzky made explicit reference to Austria’s historical responsibility in a speech before the National Council and, on behalf of the Federal Government, promised help to all those who had not yet received adequate consideration.
Four years after this declaration the National Fund commenced its work. Some 30,000 survivors from Austria living around the world have since accepted the gesture payment from Austria. Providing recognition and support for survivors will remain a key task of the National Fund in the future, as will advising the victims of National Socialism and their families.
Over the years, this original undertaking was joined by other tasks that were also an expression of historical responsibility,
such as those involving the restitution of looted art, the renewal of the Austrian exhibition at the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial, and the Shoah Wall of Names Memorial in Vienna.
In 2001 the Washington Agreement was concluded between Austria and the United States of America. It laid the foundation for restitution and compensation measures to be implemented by two funds, both administered by the National Fund: the General Settlement Fund for Victims of National Socialism and the Fund for the Restoration of the Jewish Cemeteries in Austria.
Advancing and passing on knowledge about National Socialism, its aftereffects and the fates of its victims is matter of particular importance, as is preserving the memory of the victims. The National Fund subsidises projects that promote remembrance and learning from history, and publishes memoirs of Holocaust survivors.
By passing the memory on to younger generations the National Fund is contributing towards a future in which there is no place for dictatorship, racism and Antisemitism.
VICTIM RECOGNITION
The National Fund was established in 1995 at the Austrian Parliament to express Austria's special responsibility towards all victims of National Socialism. As such, it is aimed at all survivors, regardless of why they were persecuted – whether on political grounds, on...
PROJECT FUNDING
Project funding has been a central activity of the National Fund from the outset. It caters to all victim groups subjected to Nazi persecution. Emphasis is placed on social and medical projects for survivors. Funding is also awarded to projects that undertake...
ART RESTITUTION
The Art Restitution Law of 1998 provided the National Fund with a legal mandate to monetize “heirless” art and cultural objects from the museums and collections owned by the Republic of Austria and use the proceeds to benefit the victims of Nazism. In 2006 an art...
AUSTRIAN EXHIBITION AUSCHWITZ-BIRKENAU
A new Austrian exhibition is being created to go on display in Block 17 of the former concentration and extermination camp and present Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum. The original exhibition, which was initiated and co-conceived by former inmates, opened in 1978. The...
THE RESTORATION OF JEWISH CEMETERIES FUND
The Washington Agreement also set out Austria’s international legal obligation to restore and maintain known and unknown Jewish cemeteries in Austria. In December 2010 the enactment of the Federal Law on the Establishment of the Fund for the Restoration of the Jewish...
FINDBUCH FOR VICTIMS OF NATIONAL SOCIALISM
The Findbuch (“finding aid”) can be accessed at www.findbuch.at and enables users to search Austrian archives for material on Nazi property seizures and Austrian restitution and compensation measures. It currently contains approx. 212,000 records from the Austrian...
CLAIMS COMMITTEE COMPENSATION OF ASSETS
The General Settlement Fund for Victims of National Socialism was established in 2001 on the basis of the Washington Agreement. Its objective was to provide a comprehensive solution to open questions of compensation for losses and damages incurred by Nazi victims as a...
THE ARBITRATION PANEL FOR IN REM RESTITUTION
The Arbitration Panel for In Rem Restitution was established on the basis of the Washington Agreement of 2001 and could recommend the restitution of real estate, superstructures, and the moveable assets of Jewish communal organizations, if they had been seized between...
RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE ARBITRATION PANEL FOR IN REM RESTITUTION
In total, the Arbitration Panel granted 140 applications for in rem restitution. The overall value of the properties that the Arbitration Panel recommended for restitution is approx. 48 million euros. The above images of Vienna and Austria show the geographical...
HISTORICAL RESEARCH AT THE GENERAL SETTLEMENT FUND
The historical research carried out at the General Settlement Fund formed an indispensable basis for the legal processing of the applications. In order to ensure the equal treatment of all applicants, care was taken to ensure that the same, in part very extensive,...
DOCUMENTING LIFE STORIES
DOCUMENTING LIFE STORIESThe documentation and publication of life stories is of key importance to the National Fund of the Republic of Austria for Victims of National Socialism. In view of the current change of generations it is crucial to document these biographical...
APPLICANTS
The applicants of the National Fund and the General Settlement Fund live or lived in over 80 countries around the world. The overwhelming majority of Austrians who fled persecution in Austria during the Nazi era did not return, but remained in their countries of...
COMPENSATION OF ASSETS
The Claims Committee of the General Settlement Fund could award compensation for individual losses and damage in ten different categories. This task was incomparably more complex than other national or international compensation measures, where claims could be filed...
THE PROCEEDINGS
The General Settlement Fund operated on the basis of the following principles: to treat equal things equally and unequal things unequally in a legal sense, to apply relaxed standards of proof, to maintain the transparency of all working processes and, not least, to...
PROCEDURAL STATISTICS
The General Settlement Fund received 20,702 applications for compensation of asset losses. They related to the asset losses incurred by 37,623 persons. Compensation was awarded for 18,155 applications; 2,547 applications did not meet the requirements for compensation....
WASHINGTON AGREEMENT 2001
On 17 January 2001 representatives of the Republic of Austria, the United States of America and Nazi victims’ organisations signed the “Joint Statement” in Washington DC. This formed the basis for the “Agreement between the Austrian Federal Government and the...