The majority of the racially persecuted Austrian refugees had no intention of returning; the scars from the persecutions suffered were too deep. The political refugees, however, among them also many who had had to leave the country for being Jewish, urged for a return to be able to participate in the reconstruction. Yet, the leading political forces rejected the returnees. They feared competition from those returning home, anti-Semitism also played a role. According to estimates, up until 1959, approximately 8000 of the about 130,000 expelled and escaped individuals had returned. Only from the 1960s onward, the attitude toward the »emigrants« began to change and a renewed modest return movement was set in motion.