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Gedenkdienst

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Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service
Purpose Holocaust Memorial
Founder and Chairman Andreas Maislinger
Andreas Maislinger (left) with Branko Lustig (right)
Office Innsbruck, Tirol, Austria
Foundation 1992, Innsbruck

The Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service (AHMS) is an alternative to Austria's compulsory national military service / alternative service founded in 1992. Since 1998 it is part of the Austrian Service Abroad. AHMS representatives[1] serve at major Holocaust memorial institutions in 23 countries worldwide.

Implementation

First young Austrian started in Auschwitz on September 1, 1992

The AHMS was founded by Andreas Maislinger, a political scientist from Innsbruck (Tirol, Austria) who adopted the idea from the German Action Reconciliation Service for Peace (Aktion Suehnezeichen/Friedensdienste). Maislinger himself had worked as a volunteer at the Auschwitz-Birkenau museum in 1980/1981, where the idea of the program was born.

After more than 10 years of struggling with Austrian politicians and dozens of newspaper articles of Andreas Maislinger the required legislation was enacted by the Austrian Government in 1991 and Maislinger began organizing what became known as the Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service[2], an independent, though largely government-funded foundation. The intent of the AHMS is to recognize Austria's part of the collective responsibility for the Holocaust and the responsibility of each one of us to ensure that it "never again" happens (quote from a speech by then Austrian chancellor Franz Vranitzky, Jerusalem, June 1993).

Structure and Development

The Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service is a unique international network that provides assistance to Holocaust-related archives and museums.

In 1998 Andreas Maislinger and Andreas Hörtnagl established the Austrian Service Abroad. Within this new umbrella organization, which is authorized by the Austrian Government to send the Austrian interns to partner organizations worldwide, the Austrian Social Service and Austrian Peace Service were added to the Holocaust Memorial Service.[3] [4]

Since 1992 there have been sent more than 500 AHMS interns[5], mostly in their 20s, either working to study and preserve Holocaust history in lieu of military service back home.[6]

In October and November 2009 Andreas Maislinger made a 3-week lecturing and promoting tour through Canada and the United States.[7]

Partner organizations

Casa Stefan Zweig
Jasenovac concentration camp
Centre de la mémoire d'Oradour
Amicale de Mauthausen
Jewish Museum Berlin
Yad Vashem in Israel
Synagogue next to Auschwitz Jewish Center
Centre For Jewish Culture in Kraków
Simon Wiesenthal Center
Virginia Holocaust Museum in Richmond
Holocaust Memorial Center in Detroit

 Argentina

    • Buenos Aires – Asociación Filantrópica Israelita (AFI) – Hogar Adolfo Hirsch (San Miguel)
    • Buenos Aires – Fundación Memoria del Holocausto

 Australia

 Austria

 Belgium

 Brazil

 Bulgaria

 Canada

 China

 Croatia

 Czech Republic

 France

 Germany

 Great Britain

 Hungary

 Israel

 Italy

 Lithuania

 Netherlands

 Norway

  • Oslo - Jewish Community

 Poland

 Russia

 Slovenia

 Sweden

 Turkey

 Ukraine

 United States

Austrian Holocaust Memorial Award

Andreas Maislinger also initiated the Austrian Holocaust Memorial Award (AHMA), rewarding people who actively contribute to the remembrance of the Holocaust. On October 17, 2006 the Chinese historian Pan Guang was awarded the first AHMA prize.[8] Further recipients were the Brazilian journalist Alberto Dines and French Robert Hébras, who was one of only six people, who survived the Massacre of Oradour

Honoring

In 2005 the founder of the Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service Andreas Maislinger received the Decoration for Services to the Republic of Austria in Silver from the president of Austria, Heinz Fischer, and the Medal of Merit of the state of Tirol from Herwig van Staa and Luis Durnwalder.

On November 8, 2009 Maislinger was awarded with a Lifetime Achievement Award for "his 10 year fight to obtain official recognition of alternative, philanthropic service" at the Annual Dinner[9] of the Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust together with Holocaust survivor and producer of Schindlers List Branko Lustig.[10]

References

  1. ^ The New Righteous: Austrian youth serve the memory of the Holocaust abroad (Paloma Friedman)
  2. ^ Austrian Holocuast Memorial Service (austrianinformation.org)
  3. ^ Bernard Schneider: Living in a Memorial (The Prague Post)
  4. ^ Soldiers 'serve' memory (Washington Jewish Week)
  5. ^ Austrian Interns Run Into U.S. Visa Problems (nytimes.com)
  6. ^ 2002: Ten Years of Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service (jewishnews.at)
  7. ^ Austrian political scientist Andreas Maislinger talks about Austria’s role (The Harvard Crimson)
  8. ^ Professor Pan Guang received Austrian Holocaust Memorial Award (cjss.org.cn)
  9. ^ L.A. Holocaust Museum Announces Honorees for 2nd Annual Dinner (lamoth.org)
  10. ^ LA Museum of the Holocaust honors AHMS Founder Andreas Maislinger (Embassy of Austria)

See also

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