Austria does not have a single memorial specifically commemorating the genocide of Roma and Sinti during National Socialism. The demand is in the Chamber just in time for today’s World Day.
More than half a million Roma and Sinti were murdered by the Nazis during World War II. In Austria there were between 4,000 and 5,000 members of the groups who did not return from the concentration camps. In Austria, this fact is often not taught in schools, complains the community. The awareness of the history or even the existence of Gypsies and Sinti would form a great white spot in the collective knowledge of Austria. There is still no single memorial dedicated exclusively to the victims of the World War of this group of people. That must change now. On today’s World Day of Roma and Sinti, a catalog of demands is in front of the Chamber. This was presented yesterday by representatives, as reported by “Standard”.
It wasn’t until November 2021 that a wall named Shoah was opened in front of the National Bank. This contains the lists of those who were persecuted during National Socialism in Austria. Among them are Roma and Sinti. However, it is precisely this anonymity and “joining” that is a thorn in the side of interest groups. A monument of its own is urgently needed to properly honor the victims among the Roma and Sinti. A memorial to the “Porajmos” is desired, in English “the devouring”, as the Holocaust is called in Romani. This should be erected as centrally as possible in Vienna to remind future generations of the atrocities committed against the group. Ideally, the next World Roma Day should take place on April 8, 2023 with an existing monument.
Ancient AKH as a possible site
Possible sites for the memorial are Human Rights Square or Ceija-Stojka-Platz in the seventh district, Dr.-Karl-Lueger-Platz in the first district and the Old General Hospital in the ninth district. In the interview “Padrão”, the member of the National Council of the Greens and spokesperson for the memory policy, Eva Blimlinger, speaks in favor of the former AKH as a local. The sheltered inner courtyard would be ideal for the format that ethnic groups want for “I can imagine QR codes that lead to videos and information on the web,” says Blimlinger, who has a virtual memorial in mind. Unlike a classic stone plaque, the names can also be added here later.
No matter which location you decide on, it’s critical that “all groups come to an agreement,” says Blimlinger. We owe this in particular to students from the relevant interest groups. There is now support for the monument from all political parties. National Council President Wolfgang Sobotka also supports the venture. MEPs Lukas Mandl (ÖVP) and Andreas Schieder (SPÖ) also call for August 2 to be declared a day of remembrance for Roma and Sinti. On this day in 1944, 3,000 Roma and Sinti were killed in the Auschwitz death camp.
(vah)