Some ÖVP greats want to change the European Convention on Human Rights. But there are also strong dissenting voices in the party.
In fact, the debate about an update of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) seemed to be over. ÖVP constitutional minister Karoline Edtstadler gave her party colleague August Wöginger a clear rejection with his demand. In addition, there was also a violent rebuke from Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen. The criticism in a double package should silence the ÖVP.
The calculation was made by Edtstadler, but apparently without the provincial governors of the ÖVP. The first to stand up for Wöginger was the governor of Styria, Christopher Drexler. “I am less concerned about the text of the 1950 ECHR. But the ongoing further interpretation by the Strasbourg Court of Human Rights can be seen as a case law that is becoming corporatized,” Drexler said in the “Small Zeitung”.
ÖVP Secretary General Christian Stocker also sees this problem. In an interview with the “Krone” he adds: “I can take a lot from Drexler’s argument. At the moment Austria is not even allowed to transfer Dublin cases to Italy or Hungary, because a fair trial cannot be expected in these EU countries.” According to Stocker, this is no longer feasible.A large number of ÖVP grandes, from Thomas Stelzer to the governor of Lower Austria, Johanna Mikl-Leitner, made similar arguments.
Haslauer and Wallner make a distinction
But the party is divided: there are also voices within the party that support Edtstadler’s position. For example, the governor of Salzburg, Wilfried Haslauer. Although he emphasizes that a solution is needed for economic refugees, he rejects an amendment to asylum law or the ECHR. Governor Markus Wallner also sees the debate more differentiated. European Parliament Vice-President Othmar Karas vetoed: “The ECHR is a humanist achievement. Anyone who questions them is sawing off the cornerstone of our democracy.”
Can the ÖVP score points with this debate not to leave the asylum issue to Herbert Kickl? “This will not prevent the FPÖ from regaining its strength. That only makes the problem worse,” criticizes political expert Peter Plaikner.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
