Subscribe to Print Edition | Wed., October 15, 2008 Tishrei 16, 5769 | | Israel Time: 02:12 (EST+7)
Haaretz israel news English
web haaretz.com
  Back to Homepage
Haaretz Toolbar
Diplomacy
Defense Jewish World Opinion National
Print Edition
Car Rental
Books Haaretz Magazine Business Real Estate Easy Start Travel Week's End Anglo File
Last update - 11:16 07/10/2008
Austrian teens visit Auschwitz - then vote for Joerg Haider
By Michal Levertov, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: Auschwitz, Israel news 

An activist in an Austrian organization commemorating the Holocaust, who traveled last month with a group of 16-year-olds from his country to visit the Auschwitz Nazi death camp in Poland, found to his horror that the youngsters were planning to vote for the extreme right wing political parties in the Austrian elections.

The activist, in his twenties, said that despite their far-right leaning, the teens expressed a genuine interest in learning about the Holocaust, and approached the tour with the appropriate seriousness.

The election, in which far-right parties doubled their representation at the end of last month, was the first election in which the young students were eligible to vote. The activist said he overheard the students saying they were planning to vote for Heinz-Christian Strache's Freedom Party or Joerg Haider's Alliance for the Future of Austria - "because of the foreigners."
Advertisement
It was in fact those who were most interested in learning about the Holocaust were the ones who led this trend, said the activist. In response, the group's counselors tried to stress in their discussions the relationship between the lessons of the past and judgments on the present - but were unsuccessful. "The youngsters were unable to make the connection," the activist reported with regret.

Though the unprecedented success of the far-right in the recent election has many Austrians worried, it did not come as a surprise. It is a product of the larger parties' failure to maintain a stable government, a growing hatred for foreigners in the face of immigration from Eastern Europe, and a long-standing legacy in Austria of denying responsibility for the crimes of the Third Reich.

Massive efforts, some more genuine than others, to reverse this legacy have been undertaken in Austria over the last ten years, with some positive, but insufficient, results. For example, the question of the ownership of artwork displayed in a large exhibition at Vienna's Leopold Museum sparked an impassioned national debate. Austrian Culture Minister Claudia Schmied announced that legislation over the last decade regarding the return of artwork looted by Nazis to its rightful owners was not adequate, and allows museum patrons to circumvent the requirement to return the works. Her call to expand the legislation was met with strong opposition and with heated public and political discussions.

On the other hand, projects directly examining Austria's civilian responsibility for the fate of the Jews during the Holocaust have been flourishing recently. A large portion of these projects has been initiated locally by ordinary citizens, academic bodies, artists and NGOs. Thus, when residents of Vienna's Servitengasse Street began inquiring about the fate of the Jews that inhabited their homes before the Holocaust, the project turned into a large-scale research venture which included the name of every street resident and the contacting of their remaining relatives around the world. The project's findings were recorded in a book, a documentary film and an impressive memorial erected on the busy street.

Austria's denial of its role in the Holocaust can be attributed to an exonerating document that the allies signed in November 1943. The Moscow Declaration, signed by the foreign secretaries of the Governments of the United States, the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union, maintained that Austria was the first free nation to be victimized by the Hitlerean aggression. However, though Austria comprised 11-12 percent of the population of the Third Reich, Austrians made up 30 percent of the Nazi killing machine.

The activist who let the group of students on a tour of Auschwitz summed up the experience, saying that the stance of Austria's far-right political movements does not only stem from an unwillingness to confront the past, but primarily from an inability to analyze the past in reference to the present. "The problem in Austria," he said, "is that though the education system teaches history, it has abandoned altogether the aspect of civics. In its absence, the students simply fail to comprehend the foundations of democracy and the direct link between preserving those foundations and the prevention of repeating historical tragedies."



Related articles:
  • IDF chief at Auschwitz: We take calls for Israel's destruction seriously
  • Son gets Dad's Auschwitz tattoo on own arm
  • Ex-kidnap victim: Austria's Nazi past contributed to abuse cases
    • Bookmark to del.icio.us  
     
    Seeds of the future
    An Israeli biofuel project using Africa's jatropha plant may end Mideast oil power.
    PFLP threat
    A Palestinian militant group vows to kill MK Lieberman to avenge Acre riots.
      1.   How is this different? 13:19  |  IsraeliArab 06/10/08
      2.   That`s Islamophobia for you. 13:43  |  Michael 06/10/08
      3.   Contradiction: The far right in Europe today is the biggest.... 13:59  |  Swiss (Dino) 06/10/08
      4.   It is not a result of anti semitism 14:40  |  Chris Linthwaite 06/10/08
      5.   whats changed ? take a look at Shas ! 14:46  |  SJ 06/10/08
      6.   Maybe Auschwitz INSPIRED them to vote for Right? 14:59  |  Jack 06/10/08
      7.   Gay Socialist Vegetarian Artists are Not Right Wing 15:12  |  UsedToPostHere 06/10/08
      8.   wE DON`T LEARN FROM HISTORY EITHER 15:15  |  sammy 06/10/08
      9.   using the holocaust 15:32  |  larry from delaware 06/10/08
      10.   Mother had only a few weeks to respond to study 16:40  |  Semsem 06/10/08
      11.   European rightism 17:24  |  Alicia 06/10/08
      12.   Michael 17:27  |  Brad 06/10/08
      13.   voting for Haider 17:52  |  rachel simson 06/10/08
      14.   #1IsraeliArab a lot difference? 18:08  |  HS 06/10/08
      15.   SJ TA 18:25  |  Pamela 06/10/08
      16.   IsraeliArab 19:02  |  IsraeliJew 06/10/08
      17.   Pointless Article... 19:13  |  Psalm 06/10/08
      18.   Enough of this self-righteousness 19:27  |  An Israeli 06/10/08
      19.   ISRAELI ARAB 19:33  |  joe 06/10/08
      20.   Austrian elections 20:52  |  gunter 06/10/08
      21.   re 3 The enemy of enemy is my friend? 23:44  |  alan the real one 06/10/08
      22.   Unlikely 01:03  |  Colin Wright 07/10/08
      23.   re #3 `Contradiction` 01:05  |  Colin Wright 07/10/08
      24.   Does this number make sense? 01:19  |  Mike 07/10/08
      25.   false parallel 02:12  |  Matthew 07/10/08
      26.   Austria and the numbers 04:24  |  Justine 07/10/08
      27.   Unfeeling ignorant Europeans need a reminder 09:43  |  gil62 11/10/08
      28.   Not repeting the past is not to abandone what was good 16:09  |  Anthony Riordan 14/10/08
      29.   80 million Humans not "6 million Jews only" 16:55  |  Anthony Riordan 14/10/08
      30.   1920`s only 50 - 80k, Jews in Israel 17:01  |  Anthony Riordan 14/10/08
     Read & React
    Bradley Burston: This year, this Jew is embracing Jihad
    Responses: 55
    Jesse Jackson: Obama will rid United States of 'Zionist' control
    Responses: 46
    Police arrest driver who sparked Acre riots for 'harming religious sensitivities'
    Responses: 317
    Sources: Hamas has raised price of Shalit deal in wake of Kuntar release
    Responses: 104


    More Headlines
    01:35 IDF troops kill Palestinian fire-bomber near West Bank settlement
    01:56 Shas hardens line after Kadima, Labor sign coalition deal
    00:52 Hezbollah hails 'heroic' Arab fight in Acre against 'barbaric' assaults
    19:30 Rice pledges to pursue Israel-PA peace until she leaves office
    07:37 This year, this Jew is embracing jihad
    00:09 Jesse Jackson: Obama will rid United States of 'Zionist' control
    21:09 Israeli biofuel project could spell end of Mideast oil power
    16:34 Palestinian group vows to kill MK Lieberman to avenge Acre riots
    13:54 Syria formally establishes diplomatic ties with Lebanon
    01:01 Woman dies in crash while driving pregnant daughter to hospital
    00:45 U.S. plan to pump $250b into banking system lifts Wall Street stocks
    01:15 Acre group to partially reopen festival shut by clashes
    01:43 As economic crisis hits tourism, Israelis likely to stay put
    20:06 Israel trip helps Brad Pitt shoot Angelina Jolie breastfeeding pics
    Previous Editions
    Special Offers
    Advertisement
    Fattal Hotel Chain
    Perfectly located hotels on best resorts of Israel.
    Living in Israel Studying in English
    Click & Meet our students from all around the world
    Dial 013 for your long-distance calls
    and get all your money back
    US CITIZENS
    Vote for real change. Request your ballot today!
    Eldan Rent a Car
    Israel's leading car rental company offers you a 20% discount on all online reservations
    Jewish Singles Personal Ads
    Find the love of your life on JDate.com
    Israel's Premier Real Estate Website
    www. israel-property.com
    Hebrew Summer courses
    From $39.95
    Junkyard
    Junk a car - get free towing nationwide and a tax-deductible receipt
    Home | TV | Print Edition | Diplomacy | Opinion | Arts & Leisure | Sports | Jewish World | Underground | Site rules |
    Real Estate in Israel | Travel to Israel with Haaretz | Hotels Israel | Restaurants Israel | Tourist attractions Israel | Shops Israel
    birthright Israel | Search engine marketing
    Haaretz.com, the online edition of Haaretz Newspaper in Israel, offers real-time breaking news, opinions and analysis from Israel and the Middle East. Haaretz.com provides extensive and in-depth coverage of Israel, the Jewish World and the Middle East, including defense, diplomacy, the Arab-Israeli conflict, the peace process, Israeli politics, Jerusalem affairs, international relations, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the Israeli business world and Jewish life in Israel and the Diaspora.
    © Copyright  Haaretz. All rights reserved