Wölfnitz asylum seekers' home

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Sign to the 'Asylantenheim' in the market town of Griffen (2010)

The asylum home Wölfnitz was the country Carinthia after plans Haider ( BZÖ ) by Gerhard Doerfler (then BZÖ, then FPK now FPÖ Carinthia), Haider's successor as governor , appointed in November 2008 "special district" for asylum in St. Leonhard in the Saualpe ( Slovene Šentlenart , cadastral municipality Wölfnitz of the market town of Griffen ). After the location, the Saualm on the Saualpe , it became known nationally as well as internationally as the “Asylum Seekers' Home on the Saualm” and as the “Special Institution for Suspected Criminal Asylum Seekers”.

The Wölfnitz asylum seekers' home is a former children's or youth home at an altitude of 1200 meters. The accommodation of "allegedly delinquent" asylum seekers in the remote building, the living conditions and the allegedly poor treatment and care of those housed there repeatedly led to public discussions. In October 2012 the asylum seekers' home was closed.

Emergence

Jörg Haider August 28, 2008

In July 2008 there was a conflict between the then Carinthian Governor Jörg Haider ( BZÖ ) and the then Interior Minister Maria Fekter ( ÖVP ) about the accommodation of allegedly criminal asylum seekers. Haider tried to release them from the national supply and to accommodate them in the Traiskirchen refugee camp in Lower Austria . This was prevented by Fekter and at the height of the dispute a bus with asylum seekers stopped at the Carinthian-Styrian border.

As a result, Haider raised the idea of ​​accommodating asylum seekers in as remote a place as possible, whereby the accommodation should only be temporary. Haider described the expulsion from Austria as the “final goal”.

"We bring criminal foreigners to a place with the seven dwarfs behind the seven mountains, which is appropriately secured so that they cannot harm anyone."

- Stefan Petzner : Press spokesman for Jörg Haider

In October 2008 it became known that the Carinthia Refugee Department is planning to accommodate fifty traumatized and criminal asylum seekers in the former youth sanctuary on the Saualpe. The mayor of the municipality of Griffen, Josef Müller, turned to the public to prevent this project. This did not succeed; on November 24, 2008, the current governor Gerhard Dörfler opened the institution. According to Gernot Steiner, the Carinthian refugee officer at the time, five asylum seekers were already housed in the institution before it opened.

Further development

Gerhard Dörfler August 13, 2007

Shortly before Christmas 2008, 16 of the 17 asylum seekers went from the institution to the refugee department in Klagenfurt and stated that they had been treated badly in the institution. They stressed that they were not a criminal. A Chechen man told the APA that a 17-kilometer walk to the nearest doctor is too much . Governor Dörfler said that anyone who does not return to the Saualm has forfeited their right to care. He also spoke of a "staged pre-Christmas circus of the Greens." Rolf Holub , then member of the Landtag and later Land Councilor of the Greens , was accused of endangering public safety by the Carinthian BZÖ because of his work for the refugees . Governor Gerhard Dörfler filed a complaint against an action committee that took care of the accommodation of some of the refugees who had moved out of the institution and justified this step by stating that asylum seekers who had committed criminal offenses could now take refuge in anonymity.

In February 2009 it became known that the public prosecutor's office in Carinthia was investigating Gernot Steiner, a refugee officer, for abuse of office and violations of data protection, as he had given public information about criminal files. Furthermore, he had excluded the refugees who fled from the institution without notice from the refugee provision. The public prosecutor's office also confirmed that at least half of the refugees concerned are considered to be innocent and that no charges have been made.

November 2011 it became known that at this time not a single refugee was staying in the institution and that the operator Herta Lechner and the state of Carinthia could not agree on running costs. In January 2012, Governor Dörfler announced the reopening of the institution and stated that since the asylum home was opened, criminal incidents of asylum seekers in Carinthia had decreased.

June 2012, the local water cooperative limited the water allocation to an occupancy for 30 people. In addition, home operator Herta Lechner:

“I myself never shower for more than two minutes. This thrift is in me - and I don't ask more of any asylum seeker than of myself. "

- Herta Lechner : home operator

In August 2012, Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner asked Governor Gerhard Dörfler to give a written statement on the accusations that were being made about the institution. According to Dörfler, this was also transmitted, he saw no reason for complaints at the refugee home. Furthermore, he denied the right of the Ombudsman to check the home with regard to compliance with human rights standards, as there were no detention of refugees there, but the Ombudsman only had the right to examine in those institutions where there were detentions.

At the FPK party conference in early September 2012, Governor Gerhard Dörfler also discussed the asylum seekers' home:

"I will rename the Saualm Heidialm, then everything will be fine."

- Gerhard Dörfler : Governor of Carinthia at the party conference of the FPK, September 2, 2012

On September 6, 2012, the immediate closure of the institution was announced. According to Dörfler, this condition should only be temporary: the institution was not fit for winter and needs to be renovated. However, the green member of the state parliament, Rolf Holub, doubted that the institution would ever be reopened.

closure

On October 5, 2012, the new Carinthian refugee officer Barbara Gutsche announced that the contract with the operator Herta Lechner had been terminated. The previous refugee officer, Gernot Steiner, surprisingly retired on October 1st.

According to Governor Dörfler, the closure took place because of illegal slaughtering there.

After the closure

The residents were distributed to other asylum homes, twelve of them being housed in a Carinthian accommodation, which was arson attacked in 2008 and killed one person. According to media reports, they are guarded there by the same security guards against whom there were already allegations on the Saualm, and should continue to be exposed to unworthy treatment.

The journalist Elisabeth Steiner was awarded the Prelate Leopold-Ungar-Journalist- Award 2012 on November 8, 2012 for her reporting on the asylum seekers' home on the Saualm .

In November 2012, a home for asylum seekers was opened elsewhere on the Saualm. Up to 50 people can be accommodated there. The property is located in the village of Lamm on the Saualm, around one kilometer as the crow flies from the closed special facility.

In June 2013 it became known that the cook who had made alleged abuses in the home public (see section Criticism ) was requested by the operator at the time, Herta Lechner, to withdraw her statements in writing or to be sued. The cook then told the media that she would not retract her statements. In August 2013, the cook Maria H. was finally sued by the former operator Herta Lechner for credit damage. Angelika Hödl from the Action Committee for More Humanity said: "Here you try to silence a witness". Furthermore, it became known that in connection with the asylum seekers' home, the former governor Dörfler is being investigated by the corruption prosecutor for breach of trust.

operator

According to press reports from November 2008, Monika Steiner and the company "Steiner Beherbergungs-GmbH" were the operator of the establishment: she had leased the building and land from the "Arbeitsvereinigung der Sozialhilfeverbände" (AVS). In February 2009 it became known that the "Steiner Beherbergungs-GmbH" had not been the operator since December 2008, that AVS had terminated the lease in January and that the property had to be handed over to AVS by April 2009.

It was not possible to determine who was the operator of the facility from December 2008 to June 2009.

June 2009 the establishment changed hands: the seller was the “Arbeitsvereinigung der Sozialhilfeverbände”, the buyer was “HP Beherbergungs GmbH”, whose managing director Herta Lechner became the new operator of the establishment. The purchase price for the 15,628 square meter property, with agricultural and forestry area, building land, youth home, commercial and garage building was 75,000 euros.

criticism

On October 8, 2008, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees ( UNHCR) visited the institution and complained, among other things, of the lack of transport from the home to the village 13 kilometers away. Social contacts as well as sports or German courses are only made more difficult as a result, and care in the event of medical emergencies is proving to be precarious. Concern was also expressed about the consequences of the criminalization of individual innocent asylum seekers for the integration of recognized refugees. Refugee officer Gernot Steiner said that an asylum seeker couldn't choose a place to stay.

Even before the opening, in July 2008, the association “Asylkoordination Österreich” criticized Governor Jörg Haider for the language that, according to the association, was defamatory and said that Haider was playing with associations with the National Socialist extermination policy.

The organization SOS Mitmensch asked Governor Gerhard Dörfler to resign in connection with the institution in November 2008. She referred to a quote according to which Dörfler said that the protection of the local population from crime was more important to him than the human rights convention. The organization “Action Committee for More Humanity and Tolerance”, which took care of the 16 people who had fled from the institution at the end of 2008, demanded the resignation of state refugee officer Gernot Steiner in December 2008.

In 2010, the Carinthian Court of Auditors objected to the accommodation costs, as the minimum capacity of 25 people contractually agreed with the operator would not be reached and the per capita costs would therefore be far above the usual rates.

In June 2012, the local pastor of Wölfnitz and Lamm , Johann Wornik, raised serious allegations against the institution's operators: four local cooks reported to him that there was not enough food, rotten fruit, moldy, expired food and poor kitchen hygiene. In the course of these allegations, an anonymous complaint dated August 18, 2011 was also made known, which was also about spoiled food in the institution. In August 2012, the operator Herta Lechner responded with an ORF interview, in which she dismissed the allegations as revenge on a former cook.

Also in June 2012, the Carinthian SPÖ and the Greens called for the institution to be closed, Green MP Holub said that Carinthia needed a rescue package for human rights, he described the expensive refugee home as an inhumane facility and an eyesore for Carinthia. In July 2012, a security employee who was on duty at the institution also made serious allegations. A hunger strike by Russians was not reported and he was instructed to turn off the heating at night in winter. In August 2012, the organization SOS Mitmensch demanded clarification regarding the cash flows in connection with the institution and again demanded that the institution be closed.

On September 1, 2012, Pastor Johann Wornik and Parish Councilor Heinrich Tritthart invited to an interdenominational prayer followed by a joint meal for a meeting of neighbors and residents of the home at St. Leonhard's Church, but Herta Lechner, the asylum seekers' home operator, refused to take part. When two dozen to 50 people came to the home, the private security staff there called the police. The home manager expelled the group from the property because it was their private property and had violent exchanges with the visitors. A number of allegations were made by asylum seekers during brief discussions. Accordingly, the home manager refused to visit the doctor, denied them the necessary medication and served bad food, the security guards carried out random room checks, taking a Rottweiler with them, disrupting prayers and beating the residents.

At the beginning of September 2012 a local resident accused the home manager in a radio interview of the ORF broadcaster Ö1 of wanting to place the residents as temporary workers in order to increase profit. According to a newspaper report from September 2012, the residents had to install new windows themselves at the instigation of the home manager in order to save the operator the money for a professional installation. The permanently glazed panes shattered as a result of strong building tensions. There are also reports of little and sometimes spoiled food, withheld medication, desolate toilets, and turned off internet and television - at the same time, there was a balance sheet profit of around 195,000 euros for the home operator in 2010 . The special rate of 40 euros per person per day for at least 25 people means that the state has to transfer 1.77 million euros to the operator by June 2014, excluding the costs for the security service.

Saualm reflux

Saualm Reflux is an exhibition project at the Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt (idea and realization: Barbara Maier), with images of the controversial asylum home by photographer Gerhard Maurer with spontaneous texts by Austrian writers such as Josef Winkler , Peter Handke , Peter Turrini , Silke Hassler , Antonio Fian and others. In November 2012, the exhibition was defaced by alleged neo-Nazis , stickers of the Volkstod movement and the Ring of Freedom Youth were attached to the flags.

Remarks

  1. ↑ Jörg Haider had a fatal accident in October 2008, see Jörg Haider # Tod
  2. ↑ There are different information about the exact number in various media, the majority speaks of 15 or 16 refugees
  3. ↑ Different figures in various newspaper reports

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Björn Hengst: Asylum seekers' home in Austria - Carinthia's eyesore. In: spiegel.de . August 17, 2012, accessed on October 17, 2012 (German).
  2. ↑ Sibylle Hamann: We are Saualm. (No longer available online.) In: Falter . February 24, 2009, archived from the original on December 3, 2014 ; Retrieved August 17, 2012 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.falter.at
  3. ↑ a b Haider is now pushing asylum seekers to the Saualm. (No longer available online.) In: Kronen Zeitung . November 19, 2008, archived from the original on April 24, 2016 ; accessed on August 17, 2012 (German).
  4. ^ "Carinthia:" Sonderanstalt "established for asylum seekers. In: derstandard.at , October 5, 2008, accessed on August 17, 2012 (German).
  5. ↑ a b 50 asylum seekers should be in mountain solitude. In: ktnv1.orf.at. October 3, 2008, accessed on August 17, 2012 (German).
  6. ↑ a b Controversial "special facility" opened on the Saualm. In: derstandard.at. November 26, 2008, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  7. ^ A b Haider defends "special institution" for asylum seekers in Carinthia. In: derstandard.at. October 6, 2008, accessed on August 17, 2012 (German).
  8. ↑ Kerstin Kellermann: Saualm: When refugees flee. In: m-media.or.at. December 29, 2008, accessed on August 17, 2012 (German).
  9. ^ Uprising on the Saualm. In: derstandard.at. December 22, 2008, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  10. ^ Klagenfurt: Saualm inmates protested. In: derstandard.at. December 22, 2008, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  11. ↑ Looking for shelter for Saualm refugees. In: derstandard.at. December 23, 2008, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  12. ↑ Saualm refugees spend Christmas in Krumpendorf. In: derstandard.at. December 24, 2008, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  13. ^ A b Saualm: ÖVP speaks of "asylum seekers chaos". In: derstandard.at. December 30, 2008, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  14. ^ Saualm: Dörfler reports refugee helpers. In: derstandard.at. January 2, 2009, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  15. ↑ Public prosecutor investigates Carinthian refugee officers. In: derstandard.at. February 12, 2009, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  16. ^ A b Elisabeth Steiner: Asylum home on the Saualm closed. In: derstandard.at. November 15, 2011, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  17. ↑ Asylum home on Saualm open again. In: derstandard.at. January 13, 2012, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  18. ^ David Pesendorfer: "Saualm Penal Colony". In: news-magazin.at. June 22, 2012, accessed on September 3, 2012 (German).
  19. ^ Ombudsman Board: Proceedings because of the asylum home on Saualm. In: derstandard.at. August 6, 2012, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  20. ↑ Dörfler: "No complaints about Saualm". In: kaernten.orf.at. August 8, 2012, accessed on August 17, 2012 (German).
  21. ↑ Jutta Kalian, Elisabeth Steiner: Dispute over Saualm controls up to the highest court. In: derstandard.at. August 9, 2012, accessed on September 7, 2012 (German).
  22. ↑ Danilo Reimüller: eyesore. In: kleinezeitung.at. September 2, 2012, archived from the original on October 31, 2014 (German).;
  23. ↑ Irene Brickner, Elisabeth Steiner: "Sonderanstalt" on the Saualm locks up. In: derstandard.at. September 6, 2012, accessed on September 6, 2012 (German).
  24. ^ Elisabeth Steiner: State of Carinthia cancels Saualm contract. In: derstandard.at . October 5, 2012, accessed on October 6, 2012 (German).
  25. ↑ For villagers, possible animal suffering is crucial. In: derstandard.at . October 5, 2012, accessed on October 6, 2012 (German).
  26. ^ Elisabeth Steiner: Saualm refugees: New accommodation, old harassment. In: derstandard.at . November 15, 2012, accessed on November 15, 2012 (German).
  27. ^ Leopold-Ungar-Prize to Elisabeth Steiner: Words of acceptance speech. In: derstandard.at . November 9, 2012, accessed on November 16, 2012 (German).
  28. ↑ Prelate Leopold Ungar 2012 Journalist Prize awarded by Caritas and Raiffeisen ( Memento from October 21, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  29. ↑ Carinthia has a new home for asylum seekers on the Saualm. In: DiePresse.com . November 16, 2012, accessed on November 16, 2012 (German).
  30. ^ Elisabeth Steiner: Lawsuit against the cook who made Saualm a scandal. In: derstandard.at. August 9, 2013, accessed on August 9, 2013 (German).
  31. ↑ Elisabeth Steiner: Pressure on cook who made Saualm a scandal. In: derstandard.at. June 9, 2013, accessed June 10, 2013 (German).
  32. ↑ The Carinthian "Guantanamo" on the Saualm. In: diepresse.com. October 7, 2008, accessed on August 17, 2012 (German).
  33. ↑ a b Saualm will probably close. In: derstandard.at. February 18, 2009, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  34. ^ "Sonderanstalt" for asylum seekers has new management. In: derstandard.at. June 17, 2009, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  35. ↑ Saualm: Carinthia insists on an overpriced asylum home. In: derstandard.at. November 17, 2011, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  36. ^ A b Saualm: The asylum seekers' home has a preventive effect. In: diepresse.com. July 7, 2012, accessed on July 10, 2012 (German).
  37. ↑ a b Elisabeth Steiner: Good business with refugees on the Saualm. In: derstandard.at. September 7, 2012, accessed on September 8, 2012 (German).
  38. ↑ "Asylum seekers in reality no problem in Carinthia". In: derstandard.at. October 15, 2008, accessed on August 17, 2012 (German).
  39. ↑ Occupancy of Saualpe-Heim continues. In: ktnv1.orf.at. October 21, 2008, accessed on July 10, 2012 (German).
  40. ↑ Anny Knapp: Press release - Saualpe experimental station. In: asylkoordination Österreich. October 6, 2008, accessed on August 20, 2012 (German).
  41. ↑ SOS Mitmensch calls on the Carinthian governor to resign. In: derstandard.at. November 24, 2008, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  42. ^ Dörfler: "The Saualm remains". In: derstandard.at. May 7, 2010, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  43. ^ Another dispute about the Saualm special facility. In: kurier.at. August 8, 2012, accessed on August 22, 2012 (German).
  44. ↑ Saualm: Again allegations of grievances. In: derstandard.at. June 8, 2012, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  45. ^ Saualm-Heim: authorities continue to investigate. In: kaernten.orf.at. June 20, 2012, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  46. ↑ Saualm-Heim: Operator opens doors. In: kaernten.orf.at. June 20, 2012, accessed on August 16, 2012 (German).
  47. ^ Elisabeth Steiner: "Kärntner Schandfleck" on the Saualm. In: derstandard.at. June 19, 2012, accessed on July 10, 2012 (German).
  48. ^ "Exclusion and punishment" on the Saualm. In: derstandard.at. July 10, 2012, accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).
  49. ↑ SOS Mitmensch: Sauteure Saualm raises questions about cash flows. (No longer available online.) In: derstandard.at. August 13, 2012, formerly in the original ; accessed on August 18, 2012 (German).  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / derstandard.at  
  50. ↑ Elisabeth Steiner: Vortex when visiting the Saualm. In: derstandard.at. September 2, 2012, accessed on September 3, 2012 (German).
  51. ↑ Esther Farys: Short peace on the Saualm. In: kleinezeitung.at. September 3, 2012, accessed on April 19, 2020 (German).
  52. ↑ Cornelia Krebs: New excitement about conditions on the Saualm. In: orf.at. September 6, 2012, accessed on September 6, 2012 (German).
  53. ^ Elisabeth Steiner: Relevant vandalism in Saualm art project. In: derstandard.at . November 4, 2012, accessed on November 8, 2012 (German).

Coordinates: 46 ° 47 ′ 19.7 "  N , 14 ° 41 ′ 18.4"  E