The chairman of the Tyrolean Freedom Party, Markus Abwerzger, was ordered to pay a fine in the inner city court of Vienna after calling a social media user a “cowardly idiot”.
The man had sued him. Abwerzger’s statement followed a message from the now prosecutor in which he described FPÖ leader Herbert Kickl as “Bonsai Hitler”. The liberal politician is appealing.
Cost reimbursement of 1300 euros
Specifically, the court ordered Abwerzger not to make any more statements in the future and to pay damages of approximately 1,300 euros. According to the plaintiff’s lawyer, Maria Windhager, the verdict was based, among other things, on the fact that the choice of the word ‘idiot’ was defamatory, did not serve in any way to address the case itself and could therefore be qualified as excessive. of judgement. This exceeded the limit of permitted freedom of expression and made the suspect’s statement unlawful.
Abwerzger told the APA that he had not yet seen the ruling in detail, but would certainly appeal it. Given the appeal procedure, the current decision is only “a phase”. Someone who hands it out, such as the claimant, must also be able to take it. “And someone who calls Herbert Kickl a ‘Bonsai Hitler’ should also be called a ‘cowardly idiot’,” explained the Tyrolean FPÖ leader, who was himself a lawyer in his civilian career.
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.
