Measures providing for the liquidation of all laws restricting the civil rights of former Nazis were adopted today by the main committee of the Austrian Parliament. According to the proposed bill, which is identical to a measure vetoed by the Allied Control Council when it was passed in 1954, all civil service employees who had lost their jobs through such disability from 1933 to 1945, will receive full pensions.
The committee also approved a bill which would permit former Nazis who fled to other countries to regain their Austrian citizenship. In addition, provisions would be made for the return of confiscated property to the former Nazis by way of a special Parliamentary amnesty.
A number of Austrian war criminals recently released by the Soviet Union, including some who had participated in the massacre of Polish Jews, have formed a “Protective Organization for Late Returners,” with branches in Vienna and Salzburg. Those who were former civil service employees or policemen have demanded re-employment in consideration for their years of Soviet imprisonment.
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.