All against the ÖVP

Anti-terror package fails due to party dispute

The Greens and ÖVP are once again at loggerheads - Olga Voglauer and Christian Stocker cannot find a common denominator on the anti-terror law.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Rosjek-Wiedergut Stock.A. Krone.tv)

Instead of working on a solution for messenger surveillance, the parties are arguing over trivialities. As the governing party, the Greens in particular are clearly trying to sit the issue out until the election. The ÖVP is raging. 

The Greens openly admit that it will not be possible to amend the law before the election. They are insisting on a six-week review and a "broad discussion", as fundamental rights and freedoms are at stake. The Greens deny that they have deliberately blocked the possibility of surveillance of intelligence services, which has been demanded by the constitutional protectors for years. According to Olga Voglauer, Secretary General of the Greens, the ÖVP-led Ministry of the Interior has not addressed many of their concerns.

Greens are in no hurry with new law
The Greens reject a shortening of the review period in order to pass the law before the National Council elections. "Regardless of whether there is an election date, six weeks of review time is simply necessary" in order to evaluate the proposals in a broad discussion with experts from all areas such as data protection, constitutional law and technical issues, "so that there is viable legislation at the end", says Voglauer.

The Secretary General of the Greens, Olga Voglauer

(Bild: APA/MAX SLOVENCIK)

The ÖVP reacted angrily to the refusal of all other parties to go along with their plans in this regard. Secretary General Christian Stocker speaks of a "unified party of the dangerous" consisting of the Greens, FPÖ and SPÖ. Instead of equipping the Office for the Protection of the Constitution with the necessary new powers, the Greens and FPÖ want to review the work of the Directorate of State Security Intelligence Services (DSN) in the run-up to the foiled attack on the Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna.

ÖVP sees a diversionary tactic
The ÖVP rejects this request. It does not want to expose the DSN to "party political carnage" during the election campaign, says Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP). The Control Commission will also not take action on its own initiative, said Chairwoman Ingeborg Zerbes. ÖVP General Stocker sees this as a pure diversionary maneuver. "If you want to achieve something, you find a solution. If you want to prevent something, you find a reason".

Instead of watching terrorists, we are now watching the intelligence services.

Generalsekretär Christian Stocker

Bild: APA/HANS KLAUS TECHT

Mistrust of the DSN is "completely inappropriate", there is no basis for it. Moreover, the security service had already provided all information and answered all questions. The ÖVP Secretary General rejected the idea of "casting doubt" on the intelligence services: "Instead of monitoring terrorists, we are now monitoring the intelligence services." In any case, the responsible control commission would work "without instructions" and "does not need to be called out".

SPÖ and FPÖ together against the ÖVP
For their part, the SPÖ and FPÖ took aim at the ÖVP. The National Security Council, at which the parties rejected each other's proposals, did not function like an ÖVP party conference, "at which the ÖVP has its half-baked ideas nodded off without objection", said SPÖ Federal Managing Director Klaus Seltenheim. The ÖVP is not concerned with security, but only with party tactics.

Blue party fears mass surveillance
The FPÖ, on the other hand, saw a diversionary maneuver by the People's Party. The ÖVP government would "abuse its own failure as a ramp to create legal possibilities for mass surveillance and instruments to restrict unpopular opinions and organizations," said FPÖ security spokesman Hannes Amesbauer. People had "not forgotten the coronavirus era". The ÖVP had "targeted its own population rather than genuine counter-terrorism". The NEOS criticized the fact that the government's Messenger draft was not even available yet. General Secretary Douglas Hoyos also expressed "grave concerns" as to whether the regulation was constitutional.

(Bild: APA/MAX SLOVENCIK)

Chancellor Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) had his package of demands rejected by the National Security Council on Tuesday evening as a result of the prevented attack on a Taylor Swift concert. None of the other parliamentary groups agreed to demands such as messenger monitoring, a tightening of the law on political parties and associations and an extension of detention for non-deradicalized persons.