Austria’s refusal to pay Jewish claims has received considerable attention here in connection with the visit to Canada of Chancellor Julius Arab of Austria.
“The Austrian Government has lamentably failed to solve one of the most poignant legacies of the Nazi rule–the claims of Jewish victims of Nazi persecution in Austria,” a spokesman for the Canadian Jewish Congress said today. He pointed out that a large section of the Austrian population had participated in the seizure of Jewish property under Nazi rule.
The spokesman said that steps should be taken on behalf of survivors of persecution or their dependents, including the removal of discrimination against persecution victims living outside Austria. He urged the establishment of an heirless property fund. He pointed out that vast quantities of property, traceable and untraceable, had been taken from the Jews who were later exterminated.
“This vast mass of property remains in Austria and is heirless or unclaimed. It is desired that some payment be made in recognition of the existence of this heirless property, the funds so received to be administered by the Jewish organizations for the relief, rehabilitation and resettlement of the surviving victims of Nazi action in Austria,” he stated.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
