Alois Ebster: A Salt Mine Worker Defies Nazi Propaganda

A Conviction under the "Treachery Act" in 1943 in Hall in Tirol

In the archives of the Nazi regime's judiciary, there are countless fates of people who showed their discontent with the regime and were brutally punished for it. One of these fates is that of Alois Ebster, a salt mine worker from Hall in Tirol.

The Man Behind the Name

Alois Ebster was born on June 22, 1898, was married, and lived at Kurzer Weg 14 in Solbad Hall (today Hall in Tirol). Like many workers of his time, he was a former member of the banned Social Democratic Workers' Party, which made him politically suspect.

The Incident in the Salt Mine 

In June 1942, Ebster was in the workers' common room of the Hall salt mine. Together with three colleagues (whose names have not been passed down in the records and are listed as N.N.), he heard a special bulletin from German radio announcing the destruction of an allied convoy in the Arctic Ocean – a propaganda success for the Wehrmacht.
When a colleague announced this news, Alois Ebster reacted with skepticism and anger. He asked his comrades if they had heard what the Swiss broadcaster – a source for uncensored news, listening to which was strictly forbidden – was reporting. He countered the Nazi propaganda with the words:
"The English and Americans have invaded Norway. But our [news] doesn't say anything about that. Here, it's only about killing people."
With this courageous statement, he not only doubted the credibility of Nazi news but directly denounced the brutal reality of the war.

Denunciation: The Everyday Terror in the Workplace

The incident did not go unreported. One or more of the present colleagues denounced Ebster. This denunciation was not an isolated case but a defining element of Nazi rule. The workplace, where one should have felt safe, often became a place of surveillance and mistrust. The regime actively encouraged neighbours, colleagues, and even friends to spy on each other. Fear and intimidation were meant to stifle any dissenting opinion at its root. The Ebster case is a typical example of how a supposedly private conversation among colleagues could become the basis for a serious indictment.

The Conviction

Due to the denunciation, Alois Ebster was put on trial. The law that turned his remark into a crime was the notorious "Heimtücke-Gesetz" (Treachery Act) of December 20, 1934. It punished any statement deemed "likely to undermine the well-being of the Reich or the reputation of the Reich Government or the NSDAP."
On March 1, 1943, the Regional Court (Landgericht) in Innsbruck sentenced him to five months in prisonfor this offence. The verdict illustrates the extreme repression of the Nazi state, which relentlessly pursued even the smallest expressions of doubt in private circles.

A Monument to Civil Courage