Austrian party suspends member over Nazi salute claim

Magyar Lány Tue 10 Oct - 20:33

Austrian party suspends member over Nazi salute claim

Official in Styria region accused of having said ‘Heil Hitler’ in council meeting.

By JUDITH MISCHKE 10/10/17, 2:43 PM CET Updated 10/10/17, 3:39 PM CET

A member of Austria’s far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ) was kicked out over allegations that he gave a Nazi salute, less than a week before the country goes to the polls, local media reported.

An independent local councillor in the southern state of Styria, who is a member of the FPÖ, was alleged to have raised his right arm and said “Heil Hitler” during a local council meeting, Der Standard reported Tuesday. The man was not identified and neither was the town.

Josef Riemer, an FPÖ chairman from the region, said in a statement that the party was taking the accusations very seriously. Riemer added that the party had suspended the official’s membership until the case was resolved, Der Standard reported.

The official rejected the allegations and hired a lawyer, Reuters reported.

In Austria, the birthplace of Adolf Hitler, it is forbidden to make statements that glorify the Nazis.

The FPÖ, led by Heinz-Christian Strache, is expected to do well in the October 15 national election, and for the first time since 2000 it has a good chance of joining the government.

Authors:

Judith Mischke

http://www.politico.eu/article/austrian-party-suspends-member-over-nazi-salute-claim/?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication

Neon Knight Tue 10 Oct - 23:15

We don't know if it really happened or not. But these nationalist parties everywhere seem to have a few members who they cannot control, or who cannot control themselves. They eventually do something like this or say something 'racist' which embarrasses their party and can damage its election chances.

I'm sure politicians of all parties say controversial things in private, but they mostly keep it private and they are good and disciplined at controlling their public image. The nationalists should learn from them, and they should also be very careful who they give offical positions to in their parties.

Neon Knight Tue 10 Oct - 23:17

Good website by the way. I might use that for thread ideas in future Wink 1

Magyar Lány Tue 10 Oct - 23:47

Neon Knight wrote:We don't know if it really happened or not. But these nationalist parties everywhere seem to have a few members who they cannot control, or who cannot control themselves. They eventually do something like this or say something 'racist' which embarrasses their party and can damage its election chances.

I'm sure politicians of all parties say controversial things in private, but they mostly keep it private and they are good and disciplined at controlling their public image. The nationalists should learn from them, and they should also be very careful who they give offical positions to in their parties.

Of course we don't know it, but I can imagine it, it wouldn't be surprising if it's true. It was very long ago when the late FPÖ leader Jörg Haider praised Waffen-SS.

Maybe this embarrasing event don't cause damage, but the party will be extremely popular. LOL 1

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Austrian party suspends member over Nazi salute claim

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