Thursday, March 28, 2019

Is the Austrian Government Serious about Cracking Down on the Far-right? l Inside Story


The Austrian government says it will not tolerate what it considers 'extremist ideology'. And it's now considering disbanding the far-right Identitarian movement and investigating whether it is a 'terrorist' organisation.

That decision has been made after it was confirmed the movement's leader, Martin Sellner, received nearly $1,700 from the man accused of perpetrating the Christchurch mosque attacks in New Zealand. But he has denied any ties to white supremacist Brenton Tarrant.

Austria is the only country in Western Europe with a far-right presence in government. The leader of the right-wing Freedom Party has distanced himself from the Identitarians; and the country's Chancellor Sebastian Kurz says radical ideologies are not welcome in Austria. But is anyone convinced?

Presenter: Hazem Sika | Guests: Michael Bonvalot, author and expert on the far-right in Austria; Emily Gorcenski, Researcher and Advisory Board member to the Prosecution Project, a research lab studying political violence; Cynthia Miller-Idriss, Professor of Sociology at the American University and author of "The Extreme Gone Mainstream: Commercialization and Far Right Youth Culture in Germany"