Individual Cases and Repeat Offenders
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Austrian Mauthausen Committee THE FPÖ AND RIGHT-WING EXTREMISM Individual cases and repeat offenders Individual case 6 In the federal state parliament, the FPÖ Carinthia is the only party that rejects the erection of a memorial for the victims of - Individualthe Nazis at thecase former 41 Gestapo headquar ters in Klagenfurt. FPÖ treasurerIndividual from Zams, Patrick case Ober -91 prantacher, is attaching a quote to a The public became aware that Jürgen- picture of his federal party chairman Michael Kleppich, FPÖ district councilor Heinz-Christian Strache, which was used in Vienna-Leopoldstadt and Attaché at the by the Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels: “Now,Austrian people Embassy rise up,in Israel,and let had spread on the storm breakFacebook loose!” a picture of his grandfather in Nazi uniform with swastika and a picture of him- self wearing a T-shirt of the extreme right- wing “identitarians”. After massive protests, the Foreign Ministry ordered Kleppich back to Austria. 1. June 2018 1 www.mkoe.at Updated second edition Just before the Austrian parliamentary elections in October 2017, the Mauthausen Committee Austria presented a total of 68 extreme right-wing activities of FPÖ politicians covering a period of about four and a half years. The documentation “Nothing but individual cases?” received a strong media response and led to a wide debate. Since then, the term “individual cases” has become commonplace for describing the continuous anti-democratic activities of the FPÖ. (Starting on page 15 you can reread the 68 extreme right-wing activities.) The FPÖ leadership did not perhaps react concerned, it rather reacted in a strongly rejective way. However, their attempt to shatter the credibility of the Mauthausen committee failed embarrassingly. After the Upper Austrian FPÖ member of parliament Gerhard Deimek disparaged the documentary on Twitter as “fake and based on lies”, the Mauthausen Committee took legal action against him. Deimek was not able to even prove of a single point of the documentation to be incorrect. He had to give a cease-and-desist declaration, publish a revocation on Twitter and bear the entire legal fees of the Mauthausen Committee. Now, the Mauthausen Committee has followed up the individual cases that occurred since the parliamentary elections. After all, the FPÖ became a governing party in December 2017. Does the party fulfill its responsibilities in this regard? Is it more moderate now? Has the number of extreme right-wing activities in its ranks declined? Has at least the party leadership taken a step away from right-wing extremism? And does it really fight anti-Semitism? The new individual cases, presented in this documentation in a brief and concise manner, will provide a clear answer to these questions – although we could certainly not record all individual cases of the respective period. Nothing but individual cases? 2 November 2017 December 2017: Individual case 69 Individual case 72 The FPÖ Lower Austria wanted to dele- The newspaper “Standard” reported gate the Tulln district party chairman that the FPÖ federal party chairman Andreas Bors to the Federal Council. The Heinz-Christian Strache and the Styrian media pointed out that in November FPÖ provincial party chairman Mario 2014, a photo has been published Kunasek had been in personal contact showing Bors and two other men making with Thomas Kirschner, the chairman of the Hitler salute (see Individual case 14). the neo-Nazi splinter group “Party of the Bors therefore renounced the Federal People” in December 2015. Strache told Council mandate but spoke of an “intol- Kirschner to “keep up the good work.” erable media campaign”. In May 2016, Kirschner was arrested for defiling a Graz mosque with blood Individual case 70 from a pig and a pig‘s head. Two weeks The top candidate of the FPÖ Lower after the “Standard” report, Heinz-Chris- Austria for the provincial assembly elec- tian Strache became vice-chancellor tion, Udo Landbauer, mocked the ÖVP and Mario Kunasek became defense head of the provincial government minister. Johanna Mikl-Leitner with calling her “Muslim Mama”. Reason: According to the education plan, the state kindergar- tens should deal with different cultures. Individual case 73 Landbauer perceived this as “forced Alexander Höferl became head of Islamization”. communications in the cabinet of the former FPÖ secretary general and Individual case 71 new interior minister Herbert Kickl. The Linz FPÖ city council faction Before that, Höferl was chief editor organized an event in the Old City Hall and co-owner of the FPÖ-close web together with the magazine “Info-Di- site “unzensuriert.at”. The Federal- rekt”. This magazine disseminates racist, Office for the Protection of the Con- anti-Semitic and conspiracist content. stitution and the Fight against Terror- The Documentation Centre of Austrian ism had classified “unzensuriert.at” Resistance classifies it as “extreme right- as “partly extremely xenophobic” and wing with neo-Nazi backgrounds”. had attested “anti-Semitic tendencies” Before the event in the Old City Hall, to the website. the responsible SPÖ city councilor had reacted to wide protests and cancelled an Info-Direkt “readers meeting”, which was planned in a municipal people‘s house. 3 Individual case 74 neo-Nazi song with his password. Party The deputy FPÖ federal party chairman secretary Christian Hafenecker empha- Johann Gudenus demanded that refu- sized that the FPÖ does not constantly gees should no longer be accommodated want to get bad press. individually, but in mass accommoda- tions on the outskirts of Vienna. Thus, the refugees will have to see, “that it is not Individual case 77 as cozy in Austria, as everyone believes,” The FPÖ mayor from Wels, Andreas said Gudenus, who shortly after became Rabl, was in need to explain, after it executive FPÖ leader of the parliamen- became public knowledge that the tary group in the National Council. former municipal authorities’ em- ployee Peter See has been the third Individual case 75 on the FPÖ list for the 2014 staff FPÖ municipal councilor Bernhard representation election, and that he Blochberger from Krumbach sent the title had been an FPÖ member from 2013 page of a Nazi women‘s magazine from to July 2017. See was dismissed in - 1943 as his Facebook Christmas greeting. December 2017 after a photo had ap Since decades, Blochberger engages peared showing him with a swastika himself in extreme right-wing activities. banner. Rabl had stated that See was Among others, he was a member of the never an FPÖ member and had con- Lower Austrian state leadership of the cealed See‘s candidacy and years of “National Democratic Party”. This party membership. was officially dissolved in 1988 because of National Socialist reactivation. Individual case 78 FPÖ defense minister Mario Kunasek claimed in an interview January 2018: with the “Kronenzeitung” that he Individual case 76 did not publish an article in the mag- azine “Aula”, and that only one of his FPÖ municipal councilor Markus Ripfl press releases had been printed. The from Orth an der Donau, who is also human rights organization “SOS a member of the extreme right-wing Mitmensch” proved that this claim fraternity “Olympia”, “liked” a song of was not true. The “Aula” dissemi- the neo-Nazi band “Division Germania” nates extreme right-wing, racist and on Youtube on New Year‘s Eve. In the anti-Semitic content. It also shows past, Ripfl gained attention several sympathy for the neo-Nazi NPD times by his extreme right-wing activi- party in Germany (see individual ties (see individual cases 27 and 42). He case 65). was expelled from the FPÖ because of “imminent danger”, although he claims that an unknown person has “liked” the 4 Individual case 79 tax money. “Info-Direkt” disseminates FPÖ interior minister Herbert Kickl racist, anti-Semitic and conspiracist declared his wish to keep refugees content. The Documentation Centre of “concentrated” in mass quarters. This the Austrian Resistance classifies it as statement was perceived as a reference to “extreme right-wing with neo-Nazi back- the Nazi concentration camps and lead to grounds”. broad criticism. Individual case 82 Individual case 80 Martin Glier, press spokesman of FPÖ The public became aware that Udo Land- vice-chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache, bauer, the top candidate of the FPÖ Lower used the Nazi term “Blutzeuge” (blood Austria for the provincial assembly elec- witness) on Twitter. He countered the tion, had collected donations for the criticism that followed with referring extreme right-wing association “Junge to the neo-Nazi online-encyclopedia Patrioten” (Young Patriots) in 2010. “Metapedia”. Furthermore, the Viennese weekly news- paper “Falter” reported that the song book Individual case 83 of the fraternity “Germania zu Wiener Despite massive protests, Heinrich Sickl Neustadt” contains anti-Semitic texts, was delegated fort the FPÖ into the Graz also ridiculing the Holocaust. Landbauer municipal council. Sickl is co-editor is chairman of this fraternity. The Federal of the magazine “Aula”, which dissem- Government initiated proceedings to inates extreme right-wing, racist and dissolve the fraternity. After the provin - anti-Semitic content. He also took part cial assembly election Landbauer resigned in demonstrations of the extreme right- from his political functions and suspended wing “identitarians” and offered them his membership in the FPÖ. But he does rooms for rent. not exclude his return to the party. Individual case 84 February 2018: Miriam Rydl, board member of the FPÖ Individual case 81 Tulln, insulted refugees who had left their The newspaper “Standard” reported families behind with calling them “Unter- that the Upper Austrian FPÖ provincial menschen” (subhuman beings) on Face- councilor Elmar Podgorschek belongs book. Rydl told the Media that she did not to the fraternity “Germania zu Ried”. In know that this was a Nazi term. On top of a commemorative publication in 2000, it, the FPÖ politician is also a member of this fraternity had honored the fraternity a Facebook group, that is mocking Holo- brother and SS mass murderer Friedrich caust survivors.