Board of Trustees and Committee of the National Fund and Simon Wiesenthal Prize Jury Unanimously Reappointed - First Resolutions Adopted

The Board of Trustees of the National Fund of the Republic of Austria for Victims of National Socialism and the Fund for the Restoration of the Jewish Cemeteries met today for the first time in the current legislative period under the chairmanship of the Second President of the National Council, Peter Haubner.

The Second National Council President, Peter Haubner, has taken over the chairmanship of the Committee of the National Fund and the agendas of the Simon Wiesenthal Prize in addition to preparing and chairing the Board of Trustees on the basis of the amendment to the law of April 2025.

The Main Committee of the National Council unanimously elected twelve Members of the Board of Trustees on 10 June 2025. Andreas Minnich (ÖVP), Sabine Schatz (SPÖ), Karl-Arthur Arlamovsky (NEOS), Wendelin Mölzer (FPÖ) and Eva Blimlinger (Grüne) were elected to the Board of Trustees from the parties represented at Parliament. The following Members from the Austrian public, cultural and academic arenas and representatives of the victim groups were also elected: Oskar Deutsch (President of the Jewish Community of Vienna), Barbara Glück (Director of the Mauthausen Concentration Camp Memorial), Udo Jesionek (former President of the Vienna Juvenile Court, representative of the Protestant Church), Gerald Netzl (Working Group of Nazi Victims’ Associations), Andreas Sarközi (Cultural Association of Austrian Roma), Bishop Manfred Scheuer (Diocese of Linz, representative of the Catholic Church) and Helmut Wohnout (Director General of the Austrian State Archives). The mandates are valid for the duration of the legislative period and the Members remain in office until new elections are held.

In addition to the Members appointed by the Main Committee, the Board of Trustees also includes ex lege the Presidents of the National Council and Members of the Federal Government. It is chaired by the Second President of the National Council, Peter Haubner, who is deputising for the President of the National Council, Walter Rosenkranz. The Third President of the National Council, Doris Bures, is also a Member of the Board of Trustees. On the part of the Federal Government, the Members of the Board of Trustees are Federal Chancellor Christian Stocker, Vice-Chancellor Andreas Babler, Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger, Social Affairs Minister Korinna Schumann, Finance Minister Markus Marterbauer and Education Minister Christoph Wiederkehr.

Members of the Committee of the National Fund reappointed

The Board of Trustees reappointed Clemens Jabloner, Susanne Janistyn-Novák and Ferdinand Trauttmansdorff as Members of the National Fund Committee following unanimous approval by the Main Committee. They had already exercised this function in the previous legislative period. Other members of the Committee are Brigitte Bailer and Gerald Lamprecht (delegated by the Austrian University Conference), Otto Hochreiter (delegated by the Austrian National Committee of the International Council of Museums) and Ljiljana Radonić (delegated by the Austrian Academy of Sciences).

Members of the Simon Wiesenthal Prize Jury reappointed

The Members of the Simon Wiesenthal Prize Jury, Brigitte Bailer, Oskar Deutsch, Ariel Muzicant, Katharina von Schnurbein (Chairwoman), Barbara Stelzl-Marx and Monika Schwarz-Friesel were also unanimously reappointed.

The Prize, endowed with 30,000 euros, is awarded annually by the National Fund in recognition of special civic engagement to combat antisemitism and promote Holocaust education.

The Simon Wiesenthal Prize 2024 will be awarded on 18 September 2025 in Parliament’s plenary chamber. From around 220 entries received from 30 countries, the jury shortlisted ten projects that epitomise exemplary civic engagement to combat antisemitism and promote Holocaust education. Three of these projects will be honoured at the award ceremony in September.

A particular highlight of the event will be the special tribute paid to contemporary eyewitnesses for their many years of tireless commitment to remembrance and educating the public about the crimes of the Nazi regime.

Funding of 2.8 million euros approved for projects and programmes

At its first working session, the Board of Trustees decided on the allocation of funding for projects.

Around 1.2 million euros in funding was approved for the National Fund. This is earmarked for social and medical programmes for survivors of National Socialism, academic research into National Socialism and educational and commemorative projects.

Funding totalling approx. 1.5 million euros from the Fund for the Restoration of the Jewish Cemeteries in Austria was approved for projects to restore Jewish cemeteries in Vienna. These projects involve the Währing Cemetery and Gate 4 of the Vienna Central Cemetery.

Financial statements 2024 and budget plan 2025 and 2026

The Board of Trustees approved the financial statements of both Funds for 2024 and adopted the budget plans for 2026 (approx. 11.2 million euros). The budget for 2025 (approx. 13.4 million euros) had already been approved by the Board of Trustees in the previous legislative period. This means that the tasks of the two Funds are financially secured.

Statement from the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Peter Haubner:

“I am delighted that the Members of the Board of Trustees and the Committee of the National Fund of the Republic of Austria for Victims of National Socialism and the Fund for the Restoration of the Jewish Cemeteries were unanimously elected by the parliamentary Main Committee. This sends a strong signal and proves that this important and indispensable instrument of Austria’s historical dialogue will be able to continue its work consistently and with purpose in the future. When I took over the chairmanship of the National Fund, my main aim was to restore calm, continuity and a constructive culture of dialogue, so it is very satisfying that we have succeeded in doing so.”

Statement by the Managing Board of the National Fund, Hannah Lessing and Judith Pfeffer:

“The resolutions passed by the Board of Trustees today lay the foundations for the continued work of the National Fund and the Fund for the Restoration of Jewish Cemeteries. The Main Committee's unanimous support for the appointment of the Board of Trustees and Committee Members emphasises the importance and continuity of our work. At a time when antisemitism is on the rise worldwide and the atrocities of the Nazis are being called into question, it is particularly important to continue the reckoning with National Socialism, to commemorate the victims, and to promote civic engagement — and to do so with clarity, reliability, and determination. The National Fund will continue to fulfil this objective responsibly and diligently in the future.”