The Federal President of Austria, Dr. Thomas Klestil, is dead. He passed away only two days before the official term of his presidency should end after twelve years in office. Two days missing…
Thomas Klestil was born in 1932 in Vienna, district of Erdberg. He was the fifth child of a tramdriver and a throughout catholic mother. Though the neighbourhood was deeply socialist, young Thomas was educated by catholic Salesian priests. His faith in God should be one of the most remarkable items in his life and presidency. Especially the basilica of Mariazell, the Magna Mater Austriae, was the place where he found comfort in bad times.
In his childhood-years, Klestil made friends with Joe Zawinul, the later worldwide known jazz-pianist and singer. Both characterized themselves as lifelong “Erdberger Lausbuam”.
In 1959, Thomas Klestil started his diplomatic career. He was very busy in installing several UN-offices in the new United Nations-premises in Vienna in the 1970´s and was declared Ambassador of the Republic of Austria. Practising this function he was accredited at the United Nations (1978-1982) and the United States of America (1982-1987). In these times he organized a private performance of the world-famous Lipizzan horses in the garden of the White House, as a birthday present for President Ronald Reagan. This rather sympathetic event became very popular in Austria. In the late 80´s Thomas Klestil came back to Vienna as the General Secretary in Austria´s Department of State.
Thomas Klestil was nominated candidate for Austrian Federal Presidency, which is the head of state, in 1991 by the People’s Party (ÖVP). This was a big surprise, because candidates for this office traditionally have been rather popular and high-experienced politicians, whereas Klestil was the first diplomat running for this office. He succeeded and July 8th, 1992 he became the seventh Federal President of Austria in the so-called “Second Republic” (after World War II and the reigning of the Nazis over Austria, which had been annected by the Germans in 1938 and had regained sovereignty in April, 1945). So Klestil succeeded to President Dr. Kurt Waldheim. They knew each other since they had been working for the UN in New York in the 1970’s.
As Federal President of Austria he started to organize meetings of the Central European Presidents. This was a sign for his efforts to lead Austria into membership of the European Union (1995). In 1998 he was reelected president.
At this time Thomas Klestil had private problems. After recovering from a serious pneumonia in 1996 and the divorce of his wife Edith, Klestil married Dr. Margot Löffler. Therefore, among other things, he lost sympathy in some political and social circles in Austria.
In the last months Thomas Klestil was suffering from a serious heart disease, what hardly anybody knew in Austria. Monday 5th, 2004 he collapsed and died one day later in the General Hospital of Vienna of multi-organic failure. Only two days before…
Requiescat in pace.

Walter Dujmovits, jun.