Several street protests overshadowed the final day of Hu Jintao’s visit to Austria. Hundreds of people gathered along the roads of the province of Salzburg as the convoy of the Chinese leader and his 150-member delegation passed yesterday morning (Tues) to visit a farm. Hu and the other political and business officials also went on […]
A Styrian politician is in hot water after failing to declare over 100,000 Euros in cash visiting Venezuela. Weekly magazine profil revealed that Andreas Grauf, the mayor of Pirka near Graz, had 110,000 Euros in the inner pocket of his jacket when he arrived in the South American country in May. According to the European […]
Four in 10 Austrians oppose a recent suggestion to allow single women and lesbian couples to undergo in vitro fertilization (IVF). Social Democratic (SPÖ) Health Minister Alois Stöger said last month single women should get the green light to undergo such a procedure. Federal law keeps them from opting for the treatment. Stöger claimed the […]
Vienna has started another attempt to regulate prostitution as a new law on the tradition-rich street sex industry comes into force. The new bylaw – in effect as of today (Tues) – bans prostitution from anywhere in the city but five areas where it is permitted. Two of them are situated along the busy Gürtel […]
Hundreds of people took to the streets to protest against China’s stance on human rights and democracy as Heinz Fischer welcomed Hu Jintao at Hofburg Palace in Vienna this morning (Mon). The Austrian president discussed economic issues with his Chinese counterpart as they met for the first time since Fischer went on a state visit […]
A human rights activist has highlighted the consequences an expected agreement between the European Union (EU) and the USA will have on travellers’ personal rights. US campaigner Edward Hasbrouck said speaking to the Kurier that the so-called Passenger Name Record (PNR) regulation – on which the EU and the United States are set to agree […]
People’s Party (ÖVP) State Secretary Sebastian Kurz has called for a reform of Austria’s anti-forced marriage law. Forced marriages are not a criminal offence under the current regulations if carried out abroad. Austrians and people living in Austria are facing legal consequences for such actions only if this kind of marriage occurs within the country’s […]
German Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Environment Minister Norbert Röttgen has emphasised that his country would not be facing an energy supply crisis this winter despite its farewell to nuclear technology. The German government coalition of CDU, Free Democratic Party (FDP) and the Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU) decided around half a year ago to order […]
A right-wing member of the federal parliament (MP) has retired from politics after coming under fire for belittling a massacre. Fellow Freedom Party (FPÖ) members and left-wing competitors hit out at Werner Königshofer after he felt urged to emphasise that the “Islamic threat has struck Europe a thousand times more often” than self-styled Christian warriors […]
Erwin Pröll (ÖVP), governor of Lower Austria, suggested taxing the rich “to prevent London-like conditions in Austria”. Pröll said that he feared for the social peace the tighter the national and international financial situation was getting. He had started a lively tax discussion in the ÖVP by suggesting higher taxes for top earners. On Thursday, […]