Nickelsdorf is one of the refugee “strongholds” in Burgenland. Two newspaper deliverers can also sing a song about it.
Karoline Patatsek-Weiss and her mother Theresia Weiss have been on the road in Nickelsdorf for years to provide the readership with Kronen Zeitung & Co. The newspapers are delivered at night to the abandoned police station and the two women have to pick them up there. Your tour starts at 2:30 am.
“Often the refugees just sit on the newspapers and don’t go down. So we call the police,” the newspaper deliverers say. Are you afraid of men? Yes. Women no longer go on tour without pepper spray.
Men sometimes aggressive too
Because it also happens that the men become aggressive. “They ask for cigarettes or money, and if you don’t give it to them, they may want to intimidate you,” said the Nickelsdorf woman. “Recently someone hit my car with their fist,” she says. They also helped when people were caught by smugglers and therefore often went to court for testimonies.
“We see people smugglers almost every day and call the police. My daughter once also followed a tractor. The police then caught him in Gattendorf – he had already brought many refugees to Austria, it turned out.”
The two are always wary. But it often happens that they get out, and when they come back there are suddenly strange men in the car – who refuse to get out. “Let’s put it this way. The 911 police know who’s calling when we say Nickelsdorf, even if the people on duty keep changing.”
“The mood in the village is divided”
The two have been monitoring the number of refugees since 2015. “It’s very bad at the moment,” she agrees. The mood in the village is divided. Some are afraid, Theresia Weiss has to give them the newspaper by the window because they don’t dare to go outside. Others, on the other hand, find the refugees pathetic.
“You never know if they didn’t have a knife in their pocket all at once”
The newspaper deliverers are confronted with the case on a daily basis. It is especially tiring for them. Because it often slows down their work, but they also never know how the men will react. “We always have the pepper spray on hand. But you never know if they might have had a knife or something in their pocket.” The women will start their next tour on Tuesday. Like every day there will be fear this time too.
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.
