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Austria ex-vice-chancellor’s corruption trial adjourned

A corruption trial against Austria's former vice-chancellor and ex-leader of the far-right Freedom Party (FPOe) was adjourned Friday until late August, after prosecutors presented new details relating to the charges.

Published: 9 July 2021 14:15 CEST
Austria ex-vice-chancellor's corruption trial adjourned
Austria's former Vice-Chancellor, former chairman of the far-right Freedom Party Heinz-Christian Strache. Photo: ALEX HALADA / AFP

The trial of Heinz-Christian Strache, 52, opened on Tuesday and has its roots in the so-called “Ibiza-gate” scandal which forced his resignation in May 2019 and brought down the coalition government between the FPOe and the centre-right People’s Party (OeVP) of Chancellor Sebastian Kurz.

The scandal broke when video footage emerged of Strache promising public contracts to a woman posing as the niece of a Russian oligarch in exchange for election campaign support for the FPOe.

‘Ibizagate’: What you need to know about the Austrian political corruption scandal

The video prompted a sprawling investigation by anti-corruption prosecutors which uncovered several other allegations of wrongdoing against Strache and other prominent politicians.

The current trial focuses on charges that Strache helped change the law to benefit an FPOe party donor.

The final hearings in the trial, and the verdict, were initially expected on Friday but the trial was adjourned and “the next hearings will be on August 23 and 27,” Christina Salzborn, vice-president of the relevant court, confirmed to AFP in an email.

Strache stands accused of helping to change the law for the benefit of his co-accused Walter Grubmueller, a long-standing friend who owned a private health clinic and donated 10,000 euros ($11,860) to the FPOe.

According to an SMS exchange uncovered by prosecutors and leaked to Austrian media, Strache asked Grubmueller which amendments to legislation would be needed in order for the clinic “to finally be treated in a fair manner”.

During Strache’s time in government, the law was amended to enable Grubmueller’s clinic to receive money from the public health insurance fund.

On Friday judge Claudia Moravec-Loidolt accepted a request from prosecutors to present fresh evidence relating to a separate donation from Grubmueller to the FPOe of 2,000 euros. Witnesses relating to the new allegation — including former FPOe MPs — will be questioned at the hearings in August, Salzborn said.

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MIGRANT CRISIS

How a change in the profile of asylum seekers is impacting Austria

The number of asylum applications has dropped in Austria, but changes in the profile of those arriving are creating new demands and new policies.

Published: 22 April 2024 16:05 CEST
How a change in the profile of asylum seekers is impacting Austria

Asylum policy is a controversial topic in Austria, especially in an election year. The far-right has been pushing its anti-immigration agenda to gather support ahead of federal elections later this year.

While the sheer number of refugees can shape an election, differences in who those refugees are and where they come from also create challenges and demands for government action.

The profile of those seeking asylum in Austria has changed compared to recent years.

In the first quarter of 2024, almost a third of asylum applications came from children between the ages of zero and seven, as Austrian media has reported.

Around 53 percent of applicants are minors, and the proportion of women seeking asylum has also risen significantly. However, the overall number of asylum applications during the period fell by 32 percent compared to the same period the year before. 

Whereas 2023 most asylum applications in Austria were from males (only around 24 percent of applications were submitted by women), the country is now experiencing the “family reunification” phenomenon. In other words the wifes and children are following to seek protection.

Asylum applicants are still mostly from Syria and Afghanistan – two nationalities with a high chance of obtaining protection in Austria. Only 30 percent of applications from Syrians were rejected, whereas for Afghans 39 percent were refused.

READ ALSO: Border centres and ‘safe’ states: The EU’s major asylum changes explained

What does the change in profile mean for Austria?

One immediate consequence of the influx of children has already been seen in Vienna, the destination of most refugees: the school system is overwhelmed with the new arrivals, as several Austrian newspapers have reported in the last few weeks.

“This is putting such a strain on the system that high-quality teaching is hardly possible any more,” Thomas Krebs, a union representative, told Kurier. According to the report, around 300 children will arrive in Vienna every month, resulting in a need for 140 classes by the end of the school year. 

The Austrian capital was already overwhelmed by a shortage of teachers and an overflow of schoolchildren—particularly since the war in Ukraine, when 4,000 children were integrated into Vienna’s schools from February 2022.

The kids coming from Syria also need more support than merely German classes: “The Syrian children who come to us from refugee camps are a particular challenge for the system. Many are traumatised and often not even literate in their own language,” Krebs said.

He added that children need to spend more time in kindergarten—to learn “the basics, not just the language.” The education expert also believes it’s necessary to invest more in extracurricular activities, where young people can learn German, acquire behavioural skills that are important for school, and learn how to spend their free time meaningfully.

READ ALSO: What’s the reason behind the drop in Austrian asylum seeker claims?

What is Vienna doing?

Vienna’s Department of Education points out that new teachers are being recruited. In the current academic year, 2,400 teachers have been hired, Kurier reported.

Director of Education Heinrich Himmer said: “We support pupils and face the challenges together so that learning and living together work well. I would like to thank everyone who works so hard in Vienna’s schools. However, the responsibility for integration is an all-Austrian one, where solutions exist at the federal level.”

How does family reunification work?

There is a special process for granting family reunification rights for family members of refugees in Austria. 

According to information from the Federal Office for Immigration and Asylum, if a foreigner has been granted asylum status in Austria, family members can apply for an entry permit at an Austrian representation authority abroad within three months of this status being granted.

If this is granted, they can travel to Austria to apply for asylum in the family procedure and receive the same protection status as the reference person. If the application is only submitted after three months, they must also provide proof of adequate accommodation, health insurance, and income.

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