Austria (Muhammad Amir Siddique)At the official opening of the European Forum Alpbach, Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen called for refugees from Afghanistan to be accepted. He believed there was a legal, moral and political obligation for the EU and its member states to provide protection for those who are forced to leave their country. At the top should be women and girls who have worked for the EU or their countries and are “our friends and allies”. Afghanistan is in a crisis the extent of which was not expected and which could result in an unpredictable humanitarian catastrophe. As Federal Chancellor Sebastian Kurz (ÖVP) argues, Austria has actually achieved a lot in accepting Afghan refugees, said Van der Bellen in a discussion after his speech. But that is “irrelevant” in the matter. The inclusion of 100, 500 or 1,000 families would be technically possible and should be discussed. President considers admission still possible. In view of the alleged integration problems brought forward by Kurz, Van der Bellen said that a great many Afghans in the country would behave properly, some not. The same thing could be said about Austrians, according to the President. He was also not convinced that, in the end, Austria would really not accept any refugees. Van der Bellen found support from his Greek counterpart Katerina Sakellaropoulou. The desperate voices from Afghanistan must be heard on the part of the EU, the values of women must be defended. The Greek President believes it is “very likely” that the crisis in Afghanistan will lead to people fleeing to Europe. ÖVP insists on the hard line. Since the radical Islamic Taliban came to power in Austria, there have been new debates about the possible admission of threatened people from Afghanistan. The ÖVP insists on the position not to bring any more Afghans to Austria, they have already done enough. There will be no new recordings under his chancellorship, said Kurz. Instead, he advocated convincing countries in the region to accept more people. A prompt rejection of the Federal President’s request came from Chancellery Minister Karoline Edtstadler (ÖVP) in a written statement to the APA. By taking in 44,000 Afghans, Austria achieved a lot more than most other countries. “It is also a fact that we face major problems and challenges, especially when it comes to integrating Afghans. That is another reason why we are against additional, voluntary admission or distribution in quotas. “Previously, Interior Minister Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) had repeatedly insisted on a tough line and called for “deportation centers” in the neighboring countries of Afghanistan. ÖVP education minister Heinz Faßmann also affirmed the party line. “I am not sure that the announcement to accept all people is the solution.” Instead, everything should be done to turn the “failed state” Afghanistan into a functioning state again. Greens stay under cover.
The Greens have recently remained cautious. Federal party spokesman and Vice Chancellor Werner Kogler had not answered the question of accepting people from Afghanistan directly in the ORF “Summer Talk”. You have to offer support, for example when it comes to protecting women. When asked, Kogler did not want to commit himself to whether and how Austria could become active here; one does not rule alone. Asylum applications from Afghan citizens would also continue to be accepted. He emphasized several times that help was needed on the spot – for example with funds from the foreign disaster fund. Ewa Ernst-Dziedzic, spokeswoman for the Greens for foreign policy and human rights, expressed a completely different opinion. “We not only have a moral obligation, we also have the opportunity to give these people a perspective.” Most recently, the former Green Deputy Mayor and coalition negotiator Brigitte Hebein announced that she had also left the Greens in connection with current developments. A plea for a resettlement program came from the Mayor of Vienna Michael Ludwig (SPÖ). He spoke out in favor of bringing those people to safety “who have campaigned for democratic values and the Western world,” he said in an interview with the APA. Ludwig named the 300 female judges in the state as an example. NGOs with a united appeal
On Tuesday, several NGOs also called for people from Afghanistan to be accepted. There was an amalgamation for this and a demand paper was sent to the government. Austria must comply with the European Convention on Human Rights and enable safe escape routes. Requests are made to take in family members of Afghans living here and people who are particularly at risk, as well as to end deportations. The alliance includes the NGOs Amnesty International, Diakonie and Caritas. Klaus Schwertner from Caritas and Heinz Patzelt from Amnesty International Austria sharply criticized the federal government at a press conference on Tuesday. Instead of thinking about how to circumvent the human rights convention and deport people to Afghanistan, the government should get the most vulnerable people out of there. Everything else is “shameful”, according to Patzelt. Schwertner described the speeches from the government on Afghanistan as “sobering and shocking”. Just because you cannot save everyone, it is not an alternative not to save anyone. When asked how many people from Afghanistan should be brought to Austria in the alliance’s opinion, Schwertner spoke of “a few hundred people”. “We have to do our part,” says Lukas Gahleitner-Gertz from the asylum coordination. Reference to women at risk
Diakonie director Maria Katharina Moser referred to the particular danger posed by the Taliban to women who have appeared in public in Afghanistan. It’s about journalists, judges and politicians. There are reports from Afghanistan that these women are hiding in basements and burning their education certificates to avoid being killed by the Taliban. There are even reports of women who commit suicide to avoid forced marriage. “It’s about these women,” says Moser. They would not get sufficient protection in the neighboring countries.”Limits of decency and human rights”Christian Konrad and Ferry Maier from the “Menschen.Würde.Österreich” alliance expressed their concern about the latest developments in Afghanistan and expressed their support for the initiative. And they sharply criticize the government: “The way in which the political discourse is created here makes it clear that the limits of decency and human rights are increasingly being exceeded here.”Internationally, the positioning of the government “with its election campaign-oriented domestic political agenda is a dangerous fire accelerator for national egoisms,” said Maier. “The sweeping defamation of people from Afghanistan is irresponsible and does not take into account the countless positive experiences of those involved in civil society,” said Konrad.
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