"Exile in Asia" - National Fund presents volume 4 of the series "Lives Remembered"

On Tuesday, 1 December 2015 at 6.30pm the National Fund of the Republic of Austria for Victims of National Socialism shall present the fourth volume of the series "Lives Remembered. Life Stories of Victims of National Socialism", dealing with "Exile in Asia", in cooperation with the MAK – the Austrian Museum for Applied Arts / Modern Art at the MAK FORUM.

The journalist Sybille Hamann will guide the audience through the evening. Following some words of welcome from the curator of the MAK’s Asia collection, Johannes Wieninger the event shall be introduced by Secretary General Hannah Lessing. Renate S. Meissner, editor of the series, will then present the book to the public. To follow, Sybille Hamann will lead a group discussion with three survivors’ children, Lilian Kauders, Irma Schwarz and Ruth Steiner, as well as the historian Margit Franz. They will discuss individual fates and things that were specific to exile in Asia.

Volume 4 is the second of four planned volumes in the series "Lives Remembered" which deals with life in exile beyond Europe’s borders. The three-part edition documents 23 life stories, spanning almost 1,000 pages, of people who found short-term or permanent refuge in China (Shanghai, Hong Kong, Beijing), India, Burma (present-day Myanmar), Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines. Certain political events, such as the Japanese occupation of several of these countries, meant that some escapees were to fall victim to persecution a second time. The stories are complemented by a wealth of historical and recent photos from private archives. A guest contribution by the historian and expert on German-speaking exile in India, Mag. Dr. Margit Franz, illuminates the special situation in Asia, the political (colonial) and cultural backgrounds and the circumstances and networks that had an effect on and among the refugee society.

The Secretary General of the National Fund, Hannah Lessing had already presented the three-part volume 4 in Hong Kong and Shanghai during her business trip to East Asia last week. During this trip, on 25 November 2015 a memorial plaque co-funded by the National Fund was unveiled at the Jewish Refugees Museum in Shanghai. The plaque recalls the 2,000 Austrian Jews who fled to Shanghai between 1938 and 1941. In her speech, Lessing highlighted the plaque’s ability to build bridges, between the past and the present as well as between Europe and Asia.

The series "Lives Remembered" is intended for all interested readers, but above all it is aimed at school and university students in Austria. Over 36,000 copies of the three foregoing volumes have been distributed to Austrian schools for use in class. Volumes 1 and 2 are now out of print; volume 1 is available as an e-book, volume 2 can be downloaded on the website of the National Fund as a PDF. Volumes 3 and 4 can be purchased from the National Fund at cost price.