Gerd Honsik
Photo: AP
Holocaust denier gets 5 years in Austrian prison
Court convicts Gerd Honsik of denying Holocaust, promoting Nazi ideas. Nearly two decades ago he was found guilty of similar charges, but fled to Spain during his appeal. Prosecutor urged prison term on grounds Honsik's message might resonate with unemployed or uneducated
An Austrian court convicted a right-wing author on Monday of promoting Nazi ideas and Holocaust denial and sentenced him to five years in prison.
The trial, which began on April 20, the 120th anniversary of Hitler's birth, was spread over three days marked by theatrical outbursts by defendant Gerd Honsik, who was earlier found guilty of similar charges
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Honsik, 67, spent 15 years in Spain where he returned to pro-Nazi publicity work via the Internet which prompted further charges, prosecutors said. He was extradited to Austria in 2007.
Prosecutor Stefan Apostol said he would seek a longer jail term for Honsik, who had faced up to 20 years prison on the charges of "re-engagement" in public promotion of Nazi ideology in his magazine "Halt" and several books.
Honsik denied the charges and said he would appeal against the verdict.
Apostol called Honsik "one of the ideological leaders" of Europe's neo-Nazi scene and said he had distributed his "hate magazine" at schools. The Vienna court ordered offending editions of the magazine withdrawn from circulation.
Judge Andreas Boehm cited Honsik's previous conviction, his "repeated shows of contempt" for the law, his escape to Spain and continued propaganda activity there as factors in the verdict and prison term.
'National Socialism demonized'
Honsik called himself a social democrat who said his right to freedom of expression had been trampled on, saying he had only "rejected the textbook wisdom that demonizes National Socialism."He argued that he never outright denied the existence of gas chambers where six million Jews were killed, rather he had only ruled them out "wherever I had not verified the (facts) myself."
After Boehm repeatedly rejected Honsik's motions to admit evidence on Monday, calling it irrelevant, the defendant began screaming and beating his fists on his table in the dock.
"I want to be allowed to defend myself. I have nothing to lose. Statistically, I have only nine years to live!" he said.
Apostol said Honsik was dangerous because his ideas could strike a chord among people who were unemployed or had little education.
Two far-right, anti-foreigner parties combined for almost a third of votes in Austria's 2008 national election. They have been accused of harboring neo-Nazis, but denied it.
Austria was part of the Third Reich in 1938-45 and provided a significant number of top Nazi leaders, including Hitler.
Spain twice rebuffed requests for Honsik's handover, saying Holocaust denial and neo-Nazi propaganda were not illegal in that country. He was finally extradited after two European-wide arrest warrants were issued at Austria's behest.
