Austrian Jews Win Representation on Government Body Dealing with Return of Property

The Jewish Community Council of Vienna was officially informed today by the Austrian Government that the Ministry for Property Security is prepared to accept a Jewish representative on the advisory committee dealing with restitution of confiscated property.

The move was made in order to bridge the differences of opinion between Jewish leaders here and the Government with regard to the restitution of Jewish property. Dr. Rudolf Braun, a member of the executive of the Jewish Community Council, will represent Jewish interests on the advisory committee.

The executive of the Council today decided to submit to leaders of the three political parties in Austria a memorandum outlining the Jewish viewpoint on problems concerning the restoration of property stolen from Jews during the Nazi regime.

The differences between the Jewish approach to the question of restoring Jewish property and that of the Government were highlighted during a conference here of Peter Krauland, Minister for Property Security, and leaders of the Jewish community headed by David Brill, president of the Council. The Jewish representatives emphasized that the Jews would feel that they were on an equal basis with other citizens only if their special position as victims of the Nazi regime was recognized by granting them compensation for the damages they suffered.

The Jewish representatives also reiterated their often-expressed desire to be represented on the committee drafting restitution legislation. Krauland was of the opinion that there was no need for special Jewish representation. He insisted that the Jews could be represented through the existing democratic parties.

While the Jewish community leaders hope that none of the three parties will reject their request for aid for Jewish victims of the Nazi regime, they expressed the conviction that the losses suffered by the Jews could be rectified only if Jewish representatives were on the committee preparing the legislation for restoration of property. They emphasized that experience has shown that non-Jews do not fully understand the Jewish problems and are not prepared to do end Jewish interests.