Diplomats gather for memorial service

Diplomats, activists and political leaders were among hundreds who gathered today to bid farewell to Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal and to honour his decades-long pursuit of the Second World War’s most heinous criminals.

Hundreds filled the spare hall at Vienna’s Central Cemetery to capacity in tearless tribute to the 96-year-old activist who died in his sleep yesterday. His dark shrouded coffin lay in the centre. His friends, Austria’s leaders and the media gathered around.

Among those offering their reminiscences was Vienna Mayor Michael Haeupl, who thanked Wiesenthal for remaining for decades in Austria’s capital. He stayed at an uncomfortable time, when many here did not wish to be reminded of the country’s actions under Nazi rule.

“He was treated unfairly,” Haeupl said. “And when this unfairness comes from friends, it hurts twice as much.”

People of all ages and faiths, Austria’s Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn, Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel as well as the interior and justice ministers, attended the ceremony. It was open to the public but held under tight security.

Schuessel told the crowd Wiesenthal’s mission had offered an example for post-war officials dealing with war criminals, saying the late Nazi hunter’s belief that individuals should be held responsible set the tone for UN war crimes tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda.

The Israeli Ambassador to Austria, Dan Ashbel, described Wiesenthal as the conscience that led to justice for the victims.

“You left us with the task of reminding humanity of the Holocaust and to warn of misanthropy,” Ashbel said. “We share your hope for a better world and will carry on your mission and work.”

Following a half-hour ceremony, people filed past the casket, which sat atop a wheeled trolley.

Several wreaths, including two large ones with purple and white flowers, lay nearby. Their ribbons, in the blue and white colours of the Israeli flag, carried wishes from Israel and from the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum.

Those paying respects included Carla Amina Baghajati, who represented the Islamic Community in Austria.

“I felt obliged to pay respects to a man who had done so much,” Baghajati said. “He was a person who spent his lifetime seeking justice.”

Also in the crowd was 73-year-old PaulaHerzfeld who lives in Lisbon, Portugal, but happened to be in Vienna when she heard of Wiesenthal’s death. She credited Wiesenthal and his centre for tracking down the truth of the fate of her grandparents, who perished in a Nazi camp in Poland.

“I am not an important person … but I wanted to be here today.” she said. “He was a great man and did a great job.”

Tributes to Wiesenthal have poured in, including from US President George Bush, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl.

“He felt he had to do something for those who didn’t come back,” Nazi hunter Serge Klarsfeld said. “He was a witness.”

Wiesenthal will be buried on Friday in Israel, where his daughter, Paulina Kreisberg, lives. His wife, Cyla, died in 2003.

His associates left the ceremony determined the work must go on, particularly in fighting anti-Semitism. Wiesenthal was troubled recently by deteriorating relations between Muslims and Jews in Europe and by a rise in anti-Semitism on the continent, said Shimon Samuels, the Wiesenthal centre’s director for international affairs

But even in death, he continues to offer reminders of his presence. Hours after the ceremony, Samuels’ office in Paris called to tell him he had just received a card from Wiesenthal.

He signed it only two days before he died.