Austria on Thursday officially recognized the Jehovah's Witnesses as the country's 14th official religion, ending a decades-long struggle over its status.
The decision gives the Jehovah's Witnesses the right to offer religion classes at schools, although the head of the Austrian branch of the sect said it no immediate plans to do so.
More than 20,000 Austrians are part of the global movement, which has been pushing for recognition in the Alpine republic since 1978. Its followers are known for distributing religious literature door-to-door.
Austria's Jehovah's Witnesses said the move sent a positive signal about religious freedom and the rights of minorities in the country. "We are very happy about this decision after our decades-long effort," said spokesman Johann Zimmermann.
Nikolaus Pelinka, a spokesman for the Ministry of Education, Art and Culture, said legal issues had caused delays and the group had taken years to meet requirements for recognition.
