STOISITS: REVOKED CITIZENSHIP

A man from Upper Austria was born in Wels 65 years ago and has been living in Stadl-Paura for decades. After his mother’s death in November 2007, an error which was made by the District Administration Wels in 1965 became evident. The man had not been nationalized after the end of World War II when he was still a teen. However, the District Administration had issued a proof of citizenship. The end of the war had influenced the events linked to the citizenship: the man’s parents originated from Bessarabia and the Bukovina where they belonged to the German speaking minority. In 1939, the German speaking population was relocated into the “German Reich”. After the parents' divorce at the beginning of the 1950ies the mother remained in Upper Austria. The father moved to Styria where he was nationalized in 1956. It has to be assumed that the formal error originated here: Because the father had been nationalized, not the son. The mother applied for the German citizenship many years later and received it without any complications.

After the mother’s death the man’s passport had been revoked by the authorities and he has been stateless ever since.

The Head of Department responsible of citizenships of the Upper Austrian local government reasoned that exceptions cannot be made: a legal basis for nationalization is not given. The only thing left to do is applying for nationalization. An application of this kind is connected to costs between 1200 and 1400 euros for the applicant.

During the broadcast, the Ombudswoman argued that the responsible authority had made an error at the time and now the error is being denied. Further, the Ombudswoman pleaded for non-bureaucratic nationalizations in particular cases of this kind and described the very clearly defined situation in countries as Switzerland and Germany with exceptive legislation. The Ombudswoman demanded a legislative initiative in order to provide a legal basis.

FOLLOW UP – TURF WAR ENDANGERS NECESSARY SUPPORT FOR HANDICAPPED SCHOOLGIRL

In October 2011, the Bürgeranwalt reported the case of Andrea whose support was endangered due to a turf war between the Federal State and the province. The parents of the heavily handicapped Andrea had turned to the Bürgeranwalt.

In fact, assistance for handicapped schoolchildren in private schools is guaranteed exclusively for the time of compulsory school age. After the ninth school year the Federal State exclusively supports assistance at public schools. The province of Vorarlberg declared that it would financially support Andrea’s personal assistance for another year. However, it reserved a right to claim for the return. The representative of the Federal Ministry for Education emphasized the importance of the wellbeing of the child and in exceptional cases – lacking public schools in a reasonable distance – the costs for personal assistance can be taken over. The Bürgeranwalt inquired on whether the costs have been covered. Wolfgang Stelzmüller, Head of Department at the Federal Ministry of Education, was able to report that the case had been reexamined: the Ministry will now cover the costs for Andrea’s personal assistance and mobile help service. A solution has been found for Andrea and her parents.