10 AR Activist arrested in Vienna/Austria

[medusa]

Outrageous, this happens in a "civilized" West-European country (as they like to call it). Police troops broke into the offices of VGT (Society against Animal Factories - the biggest Animal Welfare Austrian organisation) and into several homes of AR activists on the 21st May between 6:00 and 7:00 a.m. 10 ppl were arrested and they are still behind bars, upon no ground. Police also took everything they found: computers, cellphones, papers. Now it is impossible for VGT to get to their information and donations or to contact their members and sponsors, because all files are gone.
Please take your time to read the following article:
www.indymedia.no/node/3387

[medusa]

Further news from May 27th 2008:

Summary: State Terror Against Animal Welfare/Animal Rights Activists

On Wednesday May the 21st the whole Austrian Animal Welfare Movement was brutally taken under control by the state police: 24 personal searchings and 10 arrests upon the suspicion of "formation of criminal coalescence", which hasn't been proved until this very day. It was, though, enough to remand the 10 arrested AR activists in custody.

Over 1000 Pages of irrelevant police surveillance files from the last years were placed at the solicitors' disposal, which couldn't not deliver any evidence for the claimed accusations. However, the files are incomplete, so they are kept warm with the promise that the rest of them will arrive.

On the morning of May 27th, Martin Balluch, chairman of VGT ("Association Against Animal Factories") was allowed to receive his first visit, after one week of unjustified imprisonment.

Apart from the known human-rights violations like the amiss justification for searching, arresting and incarcerating the AR activists, as well as the unnecessary violence police officers abused them with, further shocking details were noticed as follows:

- Martin Balluch is in a miserable state. Due to the hunger strike he started one week ago his body and spirits are very weak. He can walk but slowly and speaks slowlier than usual. Still he is handled very roughly by the guards.
- As a non-smoker, he has been put in a cell with a chain-smoker.
- He has constantly tears in his eyes.
- Because he received a visit, he was not allowed to go out in the yard for the daily walk.
- The only way the guards are communicating with him is by giving him orders without any explanations.
- He is being constantly humiliated by the guards, because his education level is higher than their's.
- He is not allowed to use electric light in his cell.
- He was neither allowed to wash himself, nor has he got fresh laundry since he got there.


Amnesty International has already been contacted, in order to give their support against these obvious human-rights violations.

There is no information about the state of the other AR activists which are in custody, because there were no further visits allowed. It is only known that four other AR activists are in hunger strike as well, one of them also refuses to drink.

Most affected by this police action are the most succesfull Austrian Animal Welfare/Animal Rights Associations and the Austrian Vegan Society. All office supplies and working aids (computers, video-cameras, cell phones, research data) have been confiscated, therefore their work has been made impossible.

The authorities are not making any comments about it. The media is ignoring it. Fighting for animal-rights has become dangerous, as the "soldiers of the State" have no fear to violate human-rights in order to "protect" enterprises and corporations.
The victims of this major police abuse need our support.
Please help us, make this injustice public and write to the people who let this happen:

Minister of the Interior, Dr. Günther Platter: guenther.platter@bmi.gv.at
Minister of Justice, Dr. Maria Berger: Minister.justiz@bmj.gv.at
Federal Chancellor, Dr. Alfred Gusenbauer: alfred.gusenbauer@bka.gv.at
Federal President, Dr. Heinz Fischer: heinz.fischer@hofburg.at

[Diana]

The authorities are not making any comments about it. The media is ignoring it.

Thank you for posting all the information, medusa.

Just wanted to say that a member of the Green Party in Germany has made some strong protests.

Am glad to hear that Amnesty International has been contacted.

[Satya]

Scary!

[Filson]

Scary!

Very!!

[Bof]

That's disgraceful. I just hope that Rex and Moser weren't involved. (I can't believe that they would be).

[Tuffenoughtoroc]

All of my thoughts are with those activists. I'll be sending some emails on their behalf.

[ViolinCyndee]

Wow!! :(

[Diana]

The support group now has updates in English as well:

http://www.antirep2008.tk/

[medusa]

The support group now has updates in English as well:

http://www.antirep2008.tk/

That's great. The branding news are to be read in German though, here:
http://www.vgt.at/index.php

@Diana, it would be helpful to post the name of the German Green Party member who made strong protests, or the link to the article? I haven't heard of it yet.

[Red]

Outrageous, this happens in a "civilized" West-European country (as they like to call it). Police troops broke into the offices of VGT (Society against Animal Factories - the biggest Animal Welfare Austrian organisation) and into several homes of AR activists on the 21st May between 6:00 and 7:00 a.m. 10 ppl were arrested and they are still behind bars, upon no ground.

Apparently the grounds are arson and sabotage.

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/05/24/europe/EU-GEN-Austria-Animal-Rights.php

[Quinoa]

I find it hard to believe (not saying I think it is totally impossible) that the police would do 23 house searches and arrest 10 people in one raid without anything to hold against them. Austria is not a totalitarian country.
According to this (http://www.wienerzeitung.at/DesktopDefault.aspx?TabID=3941&Alias=wzo&cob=352518) more recent article, they are
- suspected to have committed 31 offences (incl. claim of responsibility letters*)
- associated with the “Animal Liberation Front”
*examples (http://www.tierbefreier.de/alf/) here (in German, Wien = Vienna, acid attack on the publishing house of a hunting magazine, repeated acid attacks against several stores that sell fur coats, destroyed shop windows, etc.). As investigations of this case are not completed and it is not yet clear how close these Austrian activists' ties to terrorist groups are, I’d rather not comment any further on them or their supposed personal actions, just generally I can't help but wonder:
How exactly is the use of more violence supposed to put an end to violence?

[medusa]

I find it hard to believe (not saying I think it is totally impossible) that the police would do 23 house searches and arrest 10 people in one raid without anything to hold against them. Austria is not a totalitarian country.

Well believe it. I find it also very hard to believe that Austrian policemen beat the s*** out of illegal immigrants (who happen to be black) on a regular basis and not once some of them died as a result to sever injuries. But it does happen!

Austria IS a totalitarian country. And I'm sorry to say that, coz this is definitelly not politically correct, but it seems to be true and everyone who went to Austria and kept their eyes open will confirm my words.
As for the "reasons" these ppl were arrested, the whole story would be hillarious if it weren't tragic. First of all they are still searching for some proof, which is ridiculous, since when does ALF doccument their actions?

Maybe you should stop reading the wrong press.

You know, ppl get abused in this world, and we find it hard to believe, so we choose not to believe it. What can be easier than that?

[Quinoa]

since when does ALF doccument their actions?
The text of the letters is on tierbefreier.de, see link (over the word example) in my earlier post. Or are they only boasting and are these not authentic?

[medusa]

Or are they only boasting and are these not authentic?
How am I supposed to know that?
Anyway we seem to be getting around the point, really.

[Indian Summer]

If there is evidence against them, then the police only did their job.
If there isn't any decent evidence against them, then we may criticise the police.

An acquaintance of me and several of his house mates once got arrested for sabotage against a fur farm or some such offense. It turned out the police didn't have a shred of evidence, and so he was released. I think sometimes the police are working on hunches more than actual evidence, and by arresting a group of people they hope that they can find inconsistencies in their statements or that someone will crack and confess.

[medusa]

But that's exactly the point, there is no decent evidence against them, AND they are treating them very badly, so of course I criticise the police. They wait until someone cracks and confesses, meanwhile Balluch is on hunger strike for 2 weeks.

VGT is known for their rather "smooth" way of fighting against animal abuse, that's way German activists always criticise them.

[Diana]

So there are still some people who believe we are not living in totalitarian "democracies" and have faith in the "justice" system?

I find it harder to believe anyone could be so naive. I find it harder to believe than whether the police would go around arresting people in such a brutal way for breaking a few windows or etching slogans onto glass. The reports on how they broke into people's houses is more the kind of thing you'd do if you were suspecting to arrest someone from al-queda who was suspected of bombing people to death in a bus.

The methods used are completely out of proportion. And these people are in prison for suspected of ETCHING GLASS and BREAKING WINDOWS??????????

Stop the ****ing planet. I want to get off.

[Indian Summer]

I wouldn't say I necessarily have so much faith in the justice system, but at least during a trial I would think that the evidence - if any - will be presented so that people can judge for themselves.

And "democracies" - don't even get me started ...

[Red]

So there are still some people who believe we are not living in totalitarian "democracies" and have faith in the "justice" system?


Apparently Martin Balluch, the activist on the hunger strike, does.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/2003613/Animal-activists-launch-court-appeal-to-have-a-chimpanzee-declared-a-person.html

"We appeal to the European Court of Human Rights, because everybody is entitled to a fair trial, even chimps," said Martin Balluch, the group's president.

[Quinoa]

Those of you opposed to democracy suggest what system instead?

[Indian Summer]

Those of you opposed to democracy suggest what system instead?
I'm opposed to the so-called "democracy", but I think this is another thread entirely :)

[medusa]

Those of you opposed to democracy suggest what system instead?
Quinoa, one question:
Do you really not understand what we're talking about or you just think trolling is fun?

I appologize for being so direct, I learned that being direct is a bad bad thing.

[Diana]

@Diana, it would be helpful to post the name of the German Green Party member who made strong protests, or the link to the article? I haven't heard of it yet.

medusa: I'm sorry, but I have deleted the email where I read that information. I can't even remember which organisation sent me the email. :( I'll see what I can do to try and find out.

[Quinoa]

Quinoa, one question:
Do you really not understand what we're talking about or you just think trolling is fun?

I appologize for being so direct, I learned that being direct is a bad bad thing.
It most certainly wasn’t me who taught you that!

I really did understand that several people who posted in this thread seem to be opposed to, or not having any trust in democracy. These are opinions or stances you are entitled to of course (especially in a democracy).
So I was wondering which other political systems you do favour, instead of democracy?
(Not too eager to start an entire thread on it now, sorry though if this looked like an attempt to hijack this one)

No idea on what you base the trolling suspicion (nothing solid obviously).
I for one have learned that asking questions can be a good good thing!