Gustaf Adolf Jakob Neumann (1924–18 February 2013;

Klosterneuburg Klosterneuburg () is a town in the Tulln District of the Austrian state of Lower Austria. Frequently abbreviated to Kloburg by locals, it has a population of about 27,500. The Stift Klosterneuburg ( Klosterneuburg Monastery), which was establish ...

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

) was an Austrian investigative journalist and newspaper editor known for his activism against

miscarriages of justice A miscarriage of justice occurs when an unfair outcome occurs in a criminal or civil proceeding, such as the conviction and punishment of a person for a crime they did not commit. Miscarriages are also known as wrongful convictions. Innocent p ...

during the 1950s."About the editor"
Klosterneuburger Zeitung.

Education

He finished his "junior grade" at the missionary school in

Dachsberg Dachsberg is a municipality in the district of Waldshut in Baden-Württemberg in Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north ...

, "meant to act as missionary for the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales in Namibia. However, these plans failed because of "nazi disputes about the counterreformation of Ferdinand II. and because of nazi opposition against the plea for tolerance by Joseph II." (?). The missionary school was closed then by the NS–Stillhaltekommissar (in English maybe "NS-'keep still'-commissioners). Neumann finished his senior grades at the school of Benedictine monks in Kremsmünster and

Schottenstift The (), formally called (), is a Catholic monastery founded in Vienna in 1155 when Henry II of Austria brought Irish monks to Vienna. The monks did not come directly from Ireland, but came instead from Scots Monastery in Regensburg, Germany ...

in Vienna, where he also got his "school-leaving certificate".

Poetry

His first poetry readings were given in 1943 and 1944. However, early lyrics were released by the

Edmund Huyke Edmund is a masculine given name in the English language. The name is derived from the Old English elements ''ēad'', meaning "prosperity" or "riches", and ''mund'', meaning "protector". Persons named Edmund include: People Kings and nobles *Ed ...

publisher in

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

, yet were destroyed during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. ("Critics of the press in Moravia, Bohemian Austria and upper Austria praised Neumann's work with headlines such as 'A new Star in the sky of poets'").

Work as publisher

In 1945, Neumann founded ''Hausruck publishing'' house in

Grieskirchen Grieskirchen is a town in Austria. It is capital of the Grieskirchen district of Upper Austria, in the Trattnachtal valley. Notable people * Karin Bonelli (born 1988), flutist with the Vienna State Opera The Vienna State Opera (, ) is a his ...

. Since 1945, with 21 years, he began to publish the weekly paper '' Echo der Heimat'' (in English maybe "echo of the homeland") for upper Austria and soon after for every federal state. That is when he began to report about

Nazi concentration camps From 1933 to 1945, Nazi Germany operated more than a thousand concentration camps (), including subcamp (SS), subcamps on its own territory and in parts of German-occupied Europe. The first camps were established in March 1933 immediately af ...

and

political crime In criminology, a political crime or political offence is an offence that prejudices the interests of the state or its government. States may criminalise any behaviour perceived as a threat, real or imagined, to the state's survival, including ...

s. Neumann has since then been owner and manager of book- and offsetprinters for over 30 years.

Political life

He joined the political party '' Verband der Unabhängigen'' ("formation of independents"). With 24 years he was at that time the youngest party leader of Austria, yet not electable because of his age. However, Neumann has been overthrown by radicalized groups. By his publishing activity, Neumann helped to rehabilitate 13 wrongly convicted men (among them Rudolf Rechberger, Huberth Ranneth und Josef Auer). He also saved innumerable farm workers and people affected by liabilities they couldn't afford from

injustice Injustice is a quality relating to unfairness or undeserved outcomes. The term may be applied in reference to a particular event or situation, or to a larger status quo. In Western philosophy and jurisprudence, injustice is very commonly—but ...

and

arbitrariness Arbitrariness is the quality of being "determined by chance, whim, or impulse, and not by necessity, reason, or principle". It is also used to refer to a choice made without any specific criterion or restraint. Arbitrary decisions are not necess ...

. Gerhard Mauz
"Schuldig, weil wir keinen anderen haben"

Der Spiegel (, , stylized in all caps) is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. With a weekly circulation of about 724,000 copies in 2022, it is one of the largest such publications in Europe. It was founded in 1947 by John Seymour Chaloner ...

, 18/1965, p.116.

Today

Today, he acts as the President of the supervisory board of the Casinos Austria International Holding plc. Since June 2007 he is honorary president of the organization. Neumann has been "decorated" with the title of "professor" and the "great golden sign of honor for accomplishments for the state of lower Austria" ("given" by Erwin Pröll ?). He is also author of many articles and reports. Neumann is also the founder of the ''Gustaf Adolf Neumann Stiftung Tiere-Rechte'' ("Gustaf Adolf Neumann foundation for animal rights"). He is also consultant in architectural and graphical matters. He is father of 7 children, two times widower.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Neumann, Gustaf Adolf Jakob 1924 births 2013 deaths People from Lower Austria Austrian Roman Catholics Austrian journalists Investigative journalists