Friday, 10. February 2012

:: Home > Panorama > The bad reputation of Austrian police - no surprise

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

02. 12. 09. - 13:00

The bad reputation of Austrian police - no surprise

Comment by Thomas Hochwarter

The Austrian police�s reputation has recently drastically suffered from a series of headline-hitting incidences, but it is the way officers act in day-to-day situations with citizens which harms the institution the most.

A 14-year-old supermarket burglar is shot dead in the middle of the night by police officers arriving on the scene, reportedly after failing to turn on the lights and waiting for back-up. While his severely-injured 17-year-old accomplice is jailed for three years, the two cops on the scene are back on duty as investigations into their actions continue.

This is just one of many recent cases which put the Austrian police in a bad light. Public opinion on the body is split: left-wing media accuse police of breaching laws by negotiating "deals" with prosecutors to ensure accused colleagues escape charges, while the right-wing leaders hail officers� efforts tackling soaring crime numbers and cracking down on "criminal gangs from Eastern Europe".

What however matters most to people is how they are dealt with by police officers in everyday life, in such unfortunate events as burglaries, assaults � or being caught breaking traffic laws.

Police in Vienna are especially in need of some self-promotion to improve their image � a fact confirmed again by an experience of the Austrian Times� news editor yesterday (Tues).

It would be less surprising if a policeman took a rather harsh tone in dealing with a crook � or, in this case, a cyclist breaching traffic laws (on Mariahilfer Stra�e 20 at 6.12pm, according to the 36-Euro ticket) � if the offender failed to accept the facts. But an officer with "the experience of 13 years" apparently needing to show off in front of his overexcited younger colleague about how unlucky a person has just been to be caught since he was just about to call it a day is nothing but sad.

While pity for the policeman is the cyclist�s dominant feeling after the incident, it is sad that police struggle to rid themselves of old-fashioned habits instead of adopting newer, different, ones in their dealings with people.

- - -

Vienna police declined to comment.

Austrian Times

Your comment to this article :

(will be approved by an editor before going online)

your name
your location
your message
Not for publication:
your mail
How many vertical lines or which Text (from left to right) do you see in this image:
input for security check

Susan Andrews wrote on 23. 12. 2009 from Upper Austria about "The bad reputation of Aus..."

Hugely disappointed by just one aspect of life in Austria. Having waited many years to be able to retire to Austria, everything surpasses our expectations, with the exception of the Police. A few weeks ago, I had omitted to place the park permit on the car dashboard - I had been in the post office for just three minutes. On returning to the car, there was a policeman who had appeared from nowhere, just putting his pen to the page ..."oh dear, (he laughed at me) I have just started writing". Some days later I was in a shop in the same area when a police car appeared, the occupants got out, did nothing except watch people running from the shops to place their parking permits on view. Some moments later, the police drove away. You will understand the fustration at this hypocrisy. This morning we had a house fire. The Fire Brigade personnel were very professional, and caring; the Red Cross represenatives were thorough in ensuring our well-being. The policeman? Am I really a criminal owing to the misfortune of having a house fire? The man who took our details was rude - no need for sympathy on an occaasion such as this, but courtesy would have been appropriate. An offer was made to write my name - he snapped that he could do it (he could not). His entire demeanour was unbefitting to his status. Through various channels, respect for the police is requested - this is not how respect is earned. We were warned, but, being accustomed to the 'English Bobby', we were not willing to believe what we were told. Sadly, we do now.

Reply

Tag cloud:
policeman laws experience promotion unfortunate burglar cyclist jailed breaching events police crook assaults traffic Austrian scene colleagues dealing reputation Vienna

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.