Monday July 7, 2008, 4:15 am
Quo Vadis Austria?

Monday July 7, 2008, 4:47 am
For all of you who understand german listen to Radio Austria News on the web
http://oe1.orf.at/service/international_en
Gusenbauer is history Faymann against Molterer will be the new elections and there will be no new coalition. Why a new election if after the election everyhting will be the same?

Monday July 7, 2008, 6:05 am
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/8/freedom-for-the-austrian-activists
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/8/freedom-for-the-austrian-activists
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/8/freedom-for-the-austrian-activists
STILL NO FREEDOM FOR THE 10 Austrian Activists they will be in prison for 8 more weeks...GRRRRRR!

Monday July 7, 2008, 9:53 am
This is real bad news.If I'm correct this the 44th day of hungerstrike.
Please,keep on signing and post the petition outside Care2 as well,and thank you Cristina,Naresh and many others having done that.
Signatures needed from all over the world!!!!
Thank you Hans

Monday July 7, 2008, 11:02 am
MP Peter Pilz Visits Martin Balluch in Prison Directly followed by a press conference outside the entrance to the prison Today MP Peter Pilz visited DDr Martin Balluch in the Josefstadt prison in Vienna. He described how he had to pass through three security checks before being able to speak to Martin over a telephone and see him through a glass screen. Their conversation was overheard and documented by a prison official. At a press conference directly after the visit Mr Pilz told the press that he now had an inkling as to what it’s like to be locked up on remand. The opportunity to put questions to the Green Party Minister was seized by members of the press. MP Pilz’s main contention is that, despite the Public Prosecution’s accusations collapsing like a house of cards, so much so that not much is left over apart from the ominous paragraph 278a (criminal organisation), the 10 animal protectionists are still imprisoned. According to paragraph 278a of the Austrian Criminal Code a criminal organisation is defined as one which has planned and carried out recurrent crimes of a severe nature. These offences must carry at least a penalty of 3 - 4 years. What is being executed here falls into the normal range of civil disobedience, typical of NGO work. As a result, Pilz insists that the legally appropriate approach to this situation be taken: the immediate release of all 10 detainees. The remand custody is being justified with risk of collusion and risk of repetition of offences. However, as the significant accusations, and as a result, also the accusation of paragraph 278a no longer apply, the risk of collusion can also no longer be upheld. The same goes for risk of repetition of offences which, without a criminal organisation can also not be justified. “In my 21 years of being an MP, I’ve never experienced anything like this!” MP Pilz called for the Minister of Justice, Frau Dr. Berger, to bring the Public Prosecution’s unlawful proceedings to an end and to prevent the continuation of these serious human rights violations. The imprisonment is illegal!

Monday July 7, 2008, 11:34 am
Hoi Trudi dat was van vorige week woensdag...geen nieuws vandaag van niemand!
VGT niet, ORF niet Krone niet Standard niet APA niet....wie weet mischien zijn ze wel vrij en niemand weet het....raar dat je op het nieuws dat ik sind een uur aan heb staan niets hoort over de activisten alsof ze niet eens bestaan zoals de camps van de amerikanen ook in EUROPA!

Monday July 7, 2008, 4:08 pm
I can't believe it will be 8 more weeks. This is horrible news.

Tuesday July 8, 2008, 1:03 am
BREAKING NEWS:


DETENTION OF ANIMAL DEFENDERS IN REMAND PRISON EXTENDED AGAIN ! - Europe's Banana Republic in helpless convulsions -

Vienna / Austria - 07.07.08 - While the governing-coalition of Austria's conservative and socialist party collapsed today and a new federal election is on the horizon for coming September, the short hearing of the case of the 10 Animal Rights Advocates at a court in Vienna this morning confirmed the procrastinating state of the Republic of Austria: The detention of all these political prisoners of conscience was again ordered to continue, because - so the court - if released they could hinder further investigations or commit further crimes.

But as expected the prosecution could not come up with any evidence concerning any offences by the detainees and only spoke of new "insights" of the investigations.

Without even going into details an extension of the custody in remand for two more month was ruled. That would bring the detainees to a stretch of 108 days in remand prison without specific proven charges, thereby creating a novum in Europe, which certainly will not be tolerated neither nationally nor internationally.

Since it became obvious during the hearing that one of the detainees actually knew that his mobile phone was tapped, legal charges against "unknown" were filed, because this information could have only leaked from and by the observing state police personnel.

A ruling concerning the official appeal against the detention of DDr. Balluch and further animal advocacy professionals and activists, which is pending at the Provincial High Court of Vienna, has not been made yet and it is hoped that the High Court during this week at last will set an end to this farce of justice by declaring the detention illegal. This is the last chance for Austria to save its face.

Speakers of the Green as well as the Socialist Party condemned the extension of the detention and a legal expert group shall now define clear boundaries concerning the use of § 278a ÖStGB, whose provisions had been hastily introduced recently to combat Mafia-like organizations. But that piece of legislation was obviously not well designed, since it could apply now to all organizations, even political parties and the government itself, if used like in the case of the 10 animal protectors. First voices comparing this law to the famous "Sippenhaft" (arbitrary detention due to actual or presumed family relation or affiliation with a suspected offender) last introduced in Austria during the occupation by Nazi-Germany, could be heard.

The European animal defence group 4Paws, whose campaign-director is one of these detainees, has now - like further 175 organizations from 32 countries, who protested already against the arrests and detention - called today on politicians, the media and the public in their open complaint against these injustices.

Thursday July 10, 2008, 3:21 pm
It has become clear that exMinister Platter is finally responsible for the exaggerated, inhumane, illegal and blotted police action against 28 private residences as well as offices and that Dr. Maria Berger as Minister of Justice is finally responsible for the continuous detention without having any evidence against the jailed 10 people. It is suggested that as good coalition-partners both ministers should resign due to these and other cases, which are pending against them and that § 278a ÖStGB (formation of a criminal organization) should be called in concerning all criminal state-corruption and corporate cartel-building cases, but not be misused for the legitimate work of registered and recognized NGOs and their members, donors, sponsors or supporters.