Inquiry as an aftermath

Kickl’s “inbred slogan”: FPÖ visit to the festival

Salzburg's FPÖ state leader Marlene Svazek and Lower Austria's state councillor Susanne Rosenkranz were among the festival guests.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/GEORG HOCHMUTH, zVg)

FPÖ leader Herbert Kickl's "inbred comment" about the Salzburg Festival continues to spread and has now even resulted in a political inquiry. The SPÖ Lower Austria wants to submit such a request because Provincial Councillor Susanne Rosenkranz was still a guest there in 2023 together with the head of the Salzburg Province, Marlene Svazek.

"I don't want to be part of these hypocrites, this inbred party," Herbert Kickl famously railed towards the Salzburg Festival during his election campaign tour in Hallein. A statement that caused nationwide outrage, was promptly put into perspective by the Freedom Party and has now resulted in a political inquiry. This was submitted to the Lower Austrian provincial parliament - and by Red MP René Pfister.

Pfister and Hergovich criticize
Pfister and his SPÖ regional party leader Sven Hergovich are particularly surprised that Kickl is also insulting his own FPÖ functionaries in this way. "The head of the FPÖ party in Salzburg, Deputy Governor Marlene Svazek, will be attending the festival, as will Susanne Rosenkranz, FPÖ Provincial Councillor in Lower Austria, in 2023. According to Kickl, they are now all part of an inbred party."

"What Kickl means by an inbred party, why he considers his provincial councillor to be part of 'this party', whether Kickl considers the thousands of international guests who visit the Salzburg Festival every year to be part of 'this party' and why he insults his provincial councillor in this way", the SPÖ is now asking provincial councillor Susanne Rosenkranz to clarify. She attended the festival last year, but "deliberately did not" this year, as she let the "Krone" know. "The picture showing Marlene Svazek and me is a photo from last year. This year, I deliberately didn't take part in the opening of the Salzburg Festival. Precisely because the opening is the way it is," she explains.

Herbert Kickl had not spoken out against cultural events or the Salzburg Festival. "The criticism only applies to those people who instrumentalize the opening as a political stage," Rosenkranz continues. Nevertheless, the SPÖ's request is said to have already been prepared and will be submitted soon.

Hafenecker: "Not criticizing the visitors"
Shortly after Kickl's statement, Christian Hafenecker, Secretary General of the Blue Party, sought clarification. It was as clear as day that our Herbert Kickl was not criticizing the Salzburg Festival or its visitors. "Rather, his statements were aimed at the Federal President, who in his opening speeches always talks about building bridges and filling in ditches. This is applauded by the representatives of the unity party, who then do exactly the opposite in their politics: they divide society, as with corona, they marginalize people and even entire parties - as is now being attempted with the FPÖ," said Hafenecker.

The word inbreeding should not be taken literally in this context ...