Despite the decriminalization of same-sex relations in 1971, thousands of people continued to be convicted for their homosexuality until the 2000s in Austria. The country will rehabilitate these people, victims of discriminatory legal exceptions.
Some 11,000 of them will now be able to receive compensation if they come forward, Justice Minister Alma Zadic (Greens) announced this Monday at a press conference in Vienna. Their sentence will be canceled and 3,000 euros will be paid to them, with an additional 1,500 euros for each year of imprisonment. Those who were prosecuted without being convicted will also be compensated, especially if they suffered moral or professional damage.
An envelope of 33 million euros
“It is clear that this financial compensation will never be able to erase the suffering and injustice suffered, but it is crucial that Austria as a state finally recognizes its responsibility,” stressed Alma Zadic. The law, which allocates the sum of 33 million euros for these purposes, must be adopted by Parliament by the end of the year, for entry into force in February 2024, said a spokesperson for the ministry. .
Even after decriminalization, 26,500 sentences were handed down until the beginning of the 2000s, mainly against men. Gay prostitution was prohibited until 1989, the right of association remained closed to LGBT+ activists until the 1990s and the age of consent for sexual relations between men was set at 18 years (compared to 14 years for sexual relations heterosexual) until 2002, well after Austria’s entry into the European Union (EU) in 1995.
More and more reports
After the dark hours of Nazism in an Austria annexed by Adolf Hitler in 1938, the LGBT+ community took time to see its rights recognized due to the hostility of the Catholic Church and the conservative ÖVP party, opposed to any development.
Austria legalized adoption and same-sex marriage in 2019 by decision of the Supreme Court and the subject now has broad consensus in public opinion. The minister, however, called for continuing the fight against hatred and violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people, citing an increasing number of reports.