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01. 09. 10. - 12:00

FPÖ behind muezzin-shooter game

The Styrian Greens have reported the Freedom Party (FPÖ) for agitation over a computer game in which the player must shoot at mosques and kill muezzins.

The FPÖ’s Styrian branch is identified as creator of the online game called "Moschee ba ba" (Bye, bye mosque). After the gamer has demolished a sufficient number of mosques a statement appears saying: "Styria is full of minarets and mosques. So that this doesn’t happen (in reality): Vote Gerhard Kurzmann and the FPÖ!"

Provincial Greens chief Werner Kogler is outraged by the PC game which was launched on www.moschee-baba.at before it was taken offline following the criticism.

"The FPÖ chases minarets which don’t exist but doesn’t care about the 40,000 Styrians who currently have no job," he said, adding that his party reported the FPÖ for agitation to local prosecutors.

The online game urges the player to stop green and red muezzins – a possible hint to the Greens and the Social Democrats (SPÖ) which comes just days after federal FPÖ leader Heinz-Christian Strache called the SPÖ an "Islamist party".

FPÖ Styria boss Gerhard Kurzmann defended the controversial PC competition by claiming it was making people aware of a situation "existing in Europe for a long time."

Kurzmann is considered to be a representative of the FPÖ’s far-right branch. He has been campaigning against the introduction of English words into everyday German and infuriated political opponents by calling members of the infamous Third Reich Waffen-SS "decent people".

The FPÖ Styria boss has spoken out against "gypsy beggars" on the streets of Graz and a multicultural society since it "can only be a "criminal society", while Graz FPÖ boss Susanne Winter claimed in 2008 Mohammed would be considered a "child molester" nowadays. She also asserted that the prophet who founded Islam had written the Koran during epileptic fits.

The right-wing party narrowly missed entering the provincial parliament five years ago in elections being held around half a year after late FPÖ boss Jörg Haider founded the Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZÖ). All FPÖ minister followed the ex-FPÖ chief, leaving behind a quarrelling party. But while the FPÖ won 4.6 per cent in the 2005 Styria vote, the BZÖ came only sixth with just 1.7 per cent.

Both right-wing parties are tipped to increase their share in the 26 September election which is expected to have a massive impact on the 10 October Vienna vote.

Hermann Schützenhofer’s People’s Party (ÖVP) and the SPÖ of Provincial Governor Franz Voves are seen neck-and-neck. Voves made clear he will retire if the SPÖ failed to remain on top. The former ice-hockey national team ace became the province’s first ever Social Democratic governor five years ago.

Meanwhile, Strache revealed plans to hold referendums over the construction of further minarets if he wins the Vienna election. The FPÖ got 14.8 per cent of the overall vote in the 2005 Vienna election and has the potential to improve by five to eight per cent in the upcoming ballot, according to polls.

There are hundreds of houses of prayers and Muslim community centres in Austria, but just three mosques with minarets (Vienna, Bad Vöslau in Lower Austria and Telfs in Tyrol) feature minarets.

Anas Schakfeh, president of the Austrian Islamic Denomination (IGGiÖ), angered right-wingers but also many Muslims by suggesting all nine provincial capitals should get "visible" mosques and minarets.

Some IGGiÖ members and political analysts said Schakfeh’s recent announcement will only boost the FPÖ’s campaigns in Styria and Vienna.

Around half a million Muslims live in Austria which has an overall population of 8.5 millions. Results of the Islamic community’s current census will be presented in autumn.

Austrian Times

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