Thursday, 09. February 2012

:: Home > General News > Minister makes U-turn on asylum seekers

M	T	W	T	F	S	S
30	31	1	2	3	4	5
6	7	8	9	10	11	12
13	14	15	16	17	18	19
20	21	22	23	24	25	26
27	28	29	1	2	3	4

Add your event FREE

Today

Polls

16. 03. 10. - 15:00

Minister makes U-turn on asylum seekers

People�s Party (�VP) Interior Minister Maria Fekter has said for the first time that Austria might not need a third asylum seekers� centre - a move seen by many as being a policy U-turn.

Fekter said today (Tues) asylum seekers figures needed to be monitored "at least until summer" to make a decision.

The minister came under fire in December when she announced plans to set up such a centre in the remote Burgenland town of Eberau. Residents and Burgenland politicians of all parties were furious with Fekter for failing to inform them about her secret talks with the town�s �VP Mayor Walter Strobl.

Burgenland Social Democratic (SP�) councillor Verena Dunst branded the negotiations a "cloak-and-dagger operation".

Strobl in the meantime made a U-turn on the issue and admitted he realised it would be a bad idea to trying to realise the construction of such a centre against the will of the people. The mayor also said he realised the area did not have the infrastructure essential for running such a centre.

More than 90 per cent of Eberau residents voted against the construction of a centre for asylum seekers at their town last month.

Fekter said ahead of the referendum she would respect its outcome � but also warned she might call on the Federal High Court to decide on the matter.

Michael Chalupka, head of charity Diakonie, commented the result as saying: "This is a proof that people don�t accept decisions being made above their heads."

Chalupka said he supported the idea of setting up an integration issues state secretary

Burgenland SP� Governor Hans Niessl, one of the most outspoken critics of Fekter on the issue, said he was "surprised" about the landslide result. "I had expected 75 to 80 per cent of residents to vote no," he said.

Residents in the southern Burgenland districts of Jennersdorf, Oberwart and G�ssing � where Eberau is located � will be asked for their opinion on the issue on 21 March.

Niessl said the clear Eberau referendum result was "no reason" to call off the referendum at the three districts.

The current debate is expected to boost the Social Democrats and the right-wing Freedom Party (FP�) in the province where people head to the polling booths at a provincial election on 30 May.

Fekter announced today around 1,600 people applied for asylum in Austria in January and February of this year, while around 2,500 had done so in the same time span last year.

SP� Defence Minister Norbert Darabos � who deals with integration and immigration issues for his party � said earlier this year it had to be seen whether the construction of a third asylum seekers� centre was really needed.

Now Fekter seemed to agree with him over the issue. The interior minister, who has been criticised by some SP� officials and the Green party for her "hardliner policies", however claimed the downward trend was an effect of her initiatives.

Fekter mentioned the possibility of estimating asylum seekers� age by X-ray checks � a decision which was met with harsh criticism by NGOs and the Greens when the government agreed on it last year.

Minors applying for asylum in Austria have better chances of being granted asylum in Austria, and Fekter said officials found out that 72 of 100 examined people lied about their age and claimed to be younger than they were.

The minister concluded Austria had become a "less attractive country" for human trafficking gangs.

But she insisted it was essential to check asylum seekers� statistics "at least until summer" to make a decision over the construction of another asylum seekers� centre.

There are currently two such centres in Austria. The institution in Thalham, Upper Austria, has a capacity of 200, while up to 480 people can fit in the Traiskirchen centre in Lower Austria.

Fekter only recently agreed with Lower Austrian �VP Governor Erwin Pr�ll to reduce the Traiskirchen centre�s capacity after up to 1,100 people stayed at the venue last year. The town�s asylum seekers� centre has hit the headlines several times over the past few years with brawls of rivalling groups among the asylum seekers.

The SP�-�VP coalition introduced quotas � based on population figures � for the number of asylum seekers each of the country�s nine provinces had to look after while officials decided on their cases two years ago. With Vienna and Upper Austria, just two provinces currently meet their quotas.

Fekter also said today she would not back down on her decision to issue a "mandatory attendance" rule for people at asylum seekers� centres. The minister claimed experience has shown too many asylum seekers make use of lax restrictions and illegally leave the centres.

Her call for a one-month mandatory presence infuriated political rivals and human rights organisations earlier this year, and Fekter reacted by calling for a mandatory attendance time of one week. She argued residents would back her over the issue as they feared soaring crime figures.

Austrian Times

Write your comment to this article here

Tag cloud:
Austria human construction capacity Fekter Traiskirchen minister Residents quotas Governor mandatory Niessl asylum critics Minister integration Burgenland Eberau seekers referendum

Latest News

Set up tax on financial transactions soon, says Katzian
The head of the Association of Private Employees (GPA-djp) has called for a quick introduction of a tax on financial transactions.

P�hringer rejects U-turn on rightist ball
Young Social Democrats (SP�) have appealed to Upper Austrian Governor Josef P�hringer not to attend the Burschenbundball in Linz this Saturday.

FP� under fire after trip to Grozny
The Freedom Party (FP�) has been harshly criticised for meeting with Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov.

WKO boss wants pension age hike incentives
Federal Economy Chamber (WKO) President Christoph Leitl has identified attempts to raise the average retirement age as the key issue regarding Austria�s budget.

Woman and child run over in Vienna
A woman and child have died in a road accident in Vienna, Austria. The lorry driver was making a right turn when he drove into a group of pedestrians leaving a 59-year-old and a 12-year-old dead. The mother of the school girl was left with serious injuries.

Schlecker says Austrian jobs are safe
The son of Schlecker founder Anton Schlecker has claimed that the company has no plans to sell its Austrian affiliate.

SP� sees smaller parliament as key signal
The general secretary of the Social Democrats (SP�) has argued his support for a reduction of the size of the parliament.

Austrian food to feature in organic trade fair
Austria is expected to be well represented at next week�s BioFach 2012 international organic trade fair in Nuremberg, Germany. Some 90 companies and organisations from the Austrian organic good sector will feature at the fair from 15 to 18 February.

Brothel for the homeless in Vienna
Homeless people are queueing up for free rooms in an Austrian brothel after owner Peter Laskaris said it would be unfair not to do everything he could during the current cold spell.

Deep-freeze snacks for orangutans in Sch�nbrunn
The lucky orangutans who take up residence in Europe�s oldest zoo have been indulging in a twice weekly take-away. Despite the trees in Sch�nbrunn Zoo in Vienna, Austria now being completely bare the fury friends have fresh branches and leaves delivered twice a week.