Tribute to the Tyrolean patriot Anton Gostner of the South Tyrolean Liberation Committee, who was tortured to death in 1962

On January 9, the South Tyrolean nationalist movement convened a day of tribute to Tyrolean patriot Anton Gostner on the 60th anniversary of his death. Anton Gostner (born January 21, 1920 in St. Andrä near Brixen; died January 7, 1962 in Bolzano) was a member of the South Tyrolean Liberation Committee (Befreiungsausschuss Südtirol). Gostner was involved in bombings on electric pylons in South Tyrol and was arrested by police. Gostner suffered a heart attack on January 7, 1962 while in Bozen prison, possibly for torture. The incident caused a sensation both in South Tyrol and internationally. The executive denied all charges. The autopsy was performed on January 10, 1962 at Bolzano Hospital. Seven days after his death, South Tyrolean prisoners went on hunger strike in Bolzano and Trento and called for the creation of an international commission of inquiry. South Tyrolean deputies also made this request, but it was not granted. As a result, some prisoners were transferred to Verona and Vicenza.