Vienna (PK) – On November 9, 2023, the Austrian Parliament commemorated the November pogroms 85 years ago. The memorial event began with opening words from National Council President Wolfgang Sobotka and a video greeting from Israeli Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana. Both drew parallels between the events of November 9, 1938 and the terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and emphasized that the fight against anti-Semitism is a current need. It is about defending democratic values against destructive forces.
After a speech by the President of the Jewish Community of Vienna, Oskar Deutsch, and a recording of the ORF documentary “Old Hate – New Madness” about the history of anti-Semitism, event moderator Lisa Gadenstätter held a contemporary witness talk with Shoah survivor and former Auschwitz inmate Benno Kern.
Sobotka emphasizes the urgency of the fight against anti-Semitism
It is not the first time that he has spoken words of remembrance and warning to the guests of a memorial event on the occasion of November 9th, the President of the National Council began his speech. The leitmotif of speeches at memorial events has always been “Never again”. Now, after October 7, 2023, “Never Again” is now. Both dates have a long history. October 7th will also cast a long shadow over the future. The strategy of the terrorist organization Hamas and the henchmen who finance and train it, the regime of the Iranian mullahs and other countries in the Middle East worked. With the aim of destroying Israel, they wanted to prevent Israel’s rapprochement and an already tangible reconciliation between Israel and its Arab neighbors.
The terrorist organization Hamas knowingly commits war crimes, including against the population of the Gaza Strip, in the cynical calculation of creating the “right images” for the media. As on November 9, 1938, an aggressor is at work here who wants to destroy the Jewish people throughout the world. Hamas terrorists are solely responsible for the suffering and human casualties in Israel and the Gaza Strip, Sobotka said, emphasizing that our condolences go out to all civilian victims and their families. Sobotka also emphatically reiterated the demand for the release of Israeli hostages kidnapped in the Gaza Strip.
Just as today Nazi terror, in all its forms and manifestations, is internationally condemned in the strongest terms, today an international alliance is also needed that resolutely opposes the terrorist organization Hamas and combats any relativization or perpetrator-victim inversion. Israel’s security and existence cannot be put into perspective and cannot be negotiated, emphasized the President of the National Council. I would therefore like to thank the Assembly for its unanimous declaration of solidarity with Israel, which represents an important sign of determination, unity and decency, despite all political differences. It is also an expression of solidarity with the Jewish community in Austria, which now has to worry about its safety again.
Sobotka and repeated: “Never again, this is now. This means that the protection of Jewish institutions and the fight against anti-Semitism must be given the highest priority. Anti-Semitism occurs on the left and the right, but it is also imported from countries where hostility towards Israel is part of the reason for state. Slogans such as “From the River to the Sea” would deny Israel’s right to exist and thus cross the red line.
Education is an important tool in the fight against anti-Semitism, Sobotka said. He also called for “an effective digital self-defense strategy for our democracy” so that we can take action against manipulative and non-transparent internet platforms and campaigns. “We are facing a pandemic of misinformation and manipulation”, warned the president of the National Council. Clear rules are therefore needed for online media and for dealing with artificial intelligence.
Online hate speech ultimately leads to street violence, which should have no place anywhere in Austria. Defending Jewish life also means defending democracy and the values and norms of our society. “We will know how to defend ourselves with determination; We owe it to our children and our children’s children”, Sobotka concluded his speech.
Knesset Speaker Ohana complains about rise in anti-Semitic incidents
In a greeting message sent by video, Amir Ohana, Speaker of the Israeli Parliament (Knesset), addressed the participants of the memorial event. Due to the current crisis in his country, he was unable to personally celebrate the November pogroms 85 years ago in Vienna as originally planned. This year’s anniversary is marked by the terrible attack carried out by Hamas terrorists against Israel a few weeks ago. The destruction he saw with his own eyes in places in southern Israel was another even more terrible “Kristallnacht.”
Ohana recalled that anti-Semitism has increased dramatically around the world in recent weeks. Ohana thanked the President of the National Council, the Austrian Parliament and the Austrian government for their strong and principled support for Israel in these difficult times. Your friendship and solidarity mean a lot and are a constant reminder of the inextricable bond that connects Austria and Israel. He would like to see more countries around the world stand by Israel as resolutely, unequivocally and unconditionally as Austria has done since October 7th. Israel is at the forefront of the fight against radical Islamic fundamentalism. For the good of the free world and humanity, it is important that we stand united against the forces of evil. Ohana concluded with the words “Am Yisrael haj – The people of Israel live!”
Lost cultural assets: synagogues in Austria
Austria’s destroyed synagogues and their virtual reconstruction were the focus of a presentation by Bob Martens of the Vienna University of Technology and Herbert Peter of the Academy of Fine Arts.
Martens recalled that until 1938 there were synagogues and prayer houses in all Austrian states, with emphasis on Lower Austria, Burgenland and Vienna. In 1938, in Vienna alone there were 25 synagogues and around 70 prayer houses. At that time, the Great Temple of Leopoldstadt was even one of the ten largest synagogues in the world. Architects, including well-known names such as Max Fleischer, Ludwig von Förster and Wilhelm Stiassny, generally had to deal with a very limited urban development situation when designing these buildings. Martens and Peter illustrated this using selected examples of Viennese synagogue architecture.
As visible signs of Jewish life, synagogues and houses of prayer in Austria were among the main targets of concerted anti-Semitic actions on the night of the pogrom, November 9-10, 1938. Martens and Peters cited the Fire Department’s fire book professional from Vienna about the operations of November 10, 1938. Except for the city temple on Seitenstettengasse, all of Vienna’s synagogues were burned down. During their operations, firefighters focused primarily on preventing the fire from spreading to neighboring homes. (Memorial event continued) sox
NOTE: Photos of this event can be found on the Parliament portal.