NEUMEISTER v. AUSTRIA JUDGMENT 3 Mr. W.P. PAHR, Ministerialsekretär at the Federal Chancellery, and Mr. R. LINKE, Sektionsrat at the Federal Ministry of Justice, Counsel. The Court heard the statements and submissions of each of these representatives. On 13 February 1968, the Court asked the Agent of the Government and the representatives of the Commission a number of questions, to which they replied on 13 and 14 February 1968. On 14 February 1968, the President of the Chamber declared the hearing closed. 8. On 14 and 15 February 1968, the Court invited the Government and the Commission to present a further series of documents, which were subsequently added to the file. 9. After having deliberated in private the Court gave the present judgment. THE FACTS 1. The object of the request of the Commission and the Application of the Government is that the Neumeister case should be referred to the Court, so that the latter may decide whether or not the facts indicate, on the part of the Republic of Austria, a violation of the obligations incumbent upon it under Articles 5 (3) and (4) and 6 (1) (art. 5-3, art. 5-4, art. 6-1) of the Convention. 2. The facts of the case, as they appear from the Report of the Commission, the memorials, documents and evidence supplied, and the oral statements of the respective representatives of the Commission and the Government may be summarised as follows: 3. Mr. Fritz Neumeister, an Austrian citizen born on 19 May 1922, is resident at Vienna where he was formerly the owner and director of a large transport firm, the "Internationales Transportkontor" or "ITEKA", which employed some two hundred persons. 4. On 11 August 1959, the Vienna Public Prosecution (Staatsanwaltschaft) requested the Regional Criminal Court (Landesgericht für Strafsachen) of that city to open a preliminary investigation (Voruntersuchung), together with their immediate arrest, against five persons including Lothar Rafael, Herbert Huber and Franz Schmuckerschlag, and an enquiry (Vorerhebungen) concerning Fritz Neumeister and three other persons. On the previous day, the Revenue Office of the First District of Vienna had denounced (Anzeige) the parties in question before the Public