From the point of view of the FPÖ, given the attacks on the Austrian borders and the number of asylum applications, the year 2015 is not repeating itself, but has “got worse”. For this reason, the Blues are calling for a “reverse thrust” in asylum policy.
At a press conference in Traiskirchen on Wednesday, Lower Austria’s FPÖ leader Udo Landbauer once again called for an “uncompromising fight against illegal immigration”, which must also be “ruthless”. It is important to pursue the goal of zero immigration, said the top candidate in next year’s state election. He described Traiskirchen as a “symbol of the utter failure of the ÖVP’s asylum policy”. The reception center should become a “departure center” again.
Like his fellow party members from Salzburg and Styria, Marlene Svazek and Mario Kunasek, Landbauer already sees the “welcome year 2015” as “overshadowed”. The Lower Austrian FPÖ leader: “There is no more room. We have an asylum problem and a huge political failure.” The ÖVP is acting “helpless, haphazard and irresponsible”.
Boer calls for pushbacks
The solutions, according to Landbauer, are clear: it is about stopping asylum, the federal government should issue an emergency regulation for an upper limit on asylum, pushbacks should be made possible, especially since Austria is “surrounded by safe third countries”. In addition, the punishment of people who are dragged along as participants must also come. Asylum fraud should be introduced as a crime, the right to asylum should be forfeited.
Talking like the FPÖ and acting like the Greens is not an option, Svazek told the ÖVP, which “cannot implement a restrictive asylum policy”. To experience conditions like in Traiskirchen, you no longer have to go to Traiskirchen, the Salzburg FPÖ state chairman added.
Kunasek: “Border protection needs political will”
Kunasek stressed that the willingness to secure the border and “make it as tight as possible” is in the past. Border control needs the “political will” that existed with the FPÖ in government. This requires personnel and technical infrastructure, said the head of the Styrian Freedom Party.
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.