Austria to Seek Funds for Nazis’ Slave Laborers
Seeking to allay fears about a right-wing resurgence in Austria, the new chancellor promised Wednesday to seek compensation as quickly as possible for those forced into slavery by the Nazi regime.
Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel affirmed his administration’s loyalty to European values and called on “our European and transatlantic partners,” including the United States, to “review their prejudices and preformed opinions in the light of Austrian realities.”
“The new government will press for former Nazi slave laborers, who are, after all, now at an age where they need help quickly, to receive justice,” Schuessel told parliament. He said Austrian companies that used slave laborers would be expected to make payments to victims.
The U.S. gave a cautious welcome to the comments, but Israeli and Jewish representatives, speaking at a congressional hearing in Washington, said they would be reluctant to deal with an Austrian government influenced by Freedom Party leader Joerg Haider. A coalition of the Freedom Party and Schuessel’s People’s Party was sworn in last week.
Haider has praised Adolf Hitler’s “orderly” employment policies and lauded veterans of the murderous SS, though he has since apologized.
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