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Former minister now a prison librarian

Austria’s former interior minister Ernst Strasser, who recently started a three year prison sentence for accepting money in exchange for lobbying in Brussels, is now busy helping to run the prison library.

Published: 18 November 2014 16:49 CET
Former minister now a prison librarian
Strasser during his trial. Photo: APA/Neubauer

Along with five other inmates and prison guards Strasser is responsible for lending out books, Vienna-Simmering prison warden Josef Schmoll told the Austrian Press Agency.

The prison has between 16,000 and 20,000 books which can be borrowed by 460 inmates. Schmoll said the books, which are a mix of novels, non-fiction titles and text books, have to be ordered with a written note.

Strasser is responsible for processing the orders and handing out the books to inmates. When books are returned he must also check them for any damage. Books which have been badly damaged are removed from the library and replaced with new ones as soon as possible.

Strasser lost a final appeal against his prison sentence in October, although he did manage to get six months knocked off his sentence.

He was secretly filmed in 2010 by undercover reporters from Britain's Sunday Times newspaper saying that he charged €100,000 ($126,800) a year to influence the drawing up of EU laws.

He said that he believed the reporters, who posed as lobbyists wanting to change EU directives on waste management and financial services, were spies and that he is innocent.

After six months behind bars he will be able to apply for house arrest and wear an electronic tag.

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POLITICS

Why 1.5 million people can’t vote in Austria’s crucial federal election

Almost one in five people in Austria won’t have a say in the upcoming election, mainly due to the country’s restrictive citizenship laws.

Published: 11 September 2024 10:15 CEST
Updated: 15 September 2024 08:19 CEST
Why 1.5 million people can't vote in Austria's crucial federal election

As Austria prepares for its upcoming National Council elections on September 29th, nearly 1.5 million people living in the country will be unable to participate despite being of voting age, Austrian media has reported.

This group, which represents around 19 percent of the population aged 16 and over, is largely composed of residents who do not hold Austrian citizenship.

While Austria has some of the most restrictive citizenship laws in the world, the election will still see some new eligible voters—particularly descendants of Nazi regime victims—casting their ballots for the first time, thanks to a 2019 amendment to the citizenship law that made the naturalisation process less restrictive for these cases. Among them is British actor Stephen Fry, whose grandmother fled Austria to escape Nazi persecution.

READ ALSO: Austria improves nationality law for descendants of Nazi victims

Over the past two decades, the number of residents not eligible to vote has more than doubled, from around 9 percent in 2002 to 19 percent today. Of the 1.5 million residents unable to vote, about half are citizens of other EU countries. While they are allowed to vote in EU elections, they are excluded from Austria’s national elections.

This growing number of non-voters contrasts with the shrinking pool of eligible voters. Despite having around 6.3 million eligible voters, Austria’s stringent naturalisation process means that only a small fraction of its long-term foreign residents can (or want to) attain citizenship and the right to vote.

READ ALSO: What makes Austrian citizenship so hard to get?

Who is eligible for citizenship in Austria?

Currently in Austria, if someone wants to take up citizenship via naturalisation they have to undergo an extensive and expensive process and fulfil specific criteria.

Generally, there needs to be at least 10 years of lawful and uninterrupted residence in Austria. But there are exceptions for those with citizenship of an EU or EEA country, those born in Austria, or married to an Austrian, for example.

The main hurdles, however, include having to give up any other citizenships, as Austria doesn’t allow dual citizenship in naturalisation cases with few exceptions, and paying a high fee, which depends on the municipality.

What’s at stake?

The elections will determine the composition of the National Council, Austria’s parliament. The far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ) is currently leading in the polls, followed by the centre-right Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP). The results could significantly change the country’s political landscape.

While many are still unable to vote, Austria’s decision to grant citizenship to descendants of Nazi regime victims has (slightly) expanded the voter base. 

Under this provision, around 27,800 people, mostly living abroad, have regained Austrian citizenship. The Foreign Ministry has encouraged these new citizens to participate in the elections.

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