When Leopoldine Weidinger found out that the Turkish Islamic centre across the street from her was planning on renovating its interior so as to receive five hundred people a week for prayers, she decided to act. Weidinger founded the “Citizen’s initiative – Rappgasse” in an effort to halt the expansion of the centre’s activities, which…
Following a heated debate in April in the municipal council between the mayor Siegfried Nagl and right-wing parties over the construction of a mosque for Turkish Muslims, the issue has quieted down. However in anticipation of provincial elections coming up in September, the far-right Austria Freedom Party (FPÖ) has decided to play on the issue…
Following a heated debate in April in the municipal council between the mayor Siegfried Nagl and right-wing parties over the construction of a mosque for Turkish Muslims, the issue has quieted down. However in anticipation of provincial elections coming up in September, the far-right Austria Freedom Party (FPÖ) has decided to play on the issue…
Heinz-Christian Strache, leader of the far-right Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ), has proclaimed his respect for the Turkish community and Islam during a meeting with the Turkish ambassador, Kadri Ecvet Tezcan. After having praised Turks in Austria as “hard-workers,” Strache called Turkey an “outstanding country which Austrians love to visit,” and stated that the many…
(Martina Salomon) According to a recent study by the research institute IMAS, 54 percent of Austrians believe that Islam is a “danger to the West.” Furthermore, those questioned for the study increasingly have the feeling that they cannot speak about such views in public. The study was commissioned by the International Institute for Liberal Politics,…
