Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and Counter-Terrorism

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AustriaAustria  Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and Counter-Terrorism
Austrian Authority
BVT.png
State level Federation
Position of the authority Supreme Police Office for the Protection of the Constitution
At sight federal Ministry of Internal Affairs
founding 2002
Headquarters Vienna 3 , Landstrasse
Rennweg 89–93
Authority management Director Peter Gridling
Website www.bvt.gv.at

The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and Fight against Terrorism ( BVT ) is an Austrian security agency with an intelligence service character. The main area of ​​responsibility of the BVT is the protection of constitutional institutions of the Republic of Austria as well as ensuring their ability to act.

The authority was founded in 2002 from the state police and some special units ( EDOK and EBT - Task Force for Combating Terrorism ), which, like today's Federal Office, were directly subordinate to the General Directorate for Public Security at the Federal Ministry of the Interior . The BVT prepares the constitution protection report annually.

organization

The legal basis for the Federal Office is the “Federal Act on the Organization of Security Administration and the Exercise of the Security Police” ( Security Police Act ) and the “Federal Act on the Organization, Tasks and Powers of Police State Protection” ( Police State Protection Act ). The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and the Fight against Terrorism is part of the General Directorate for Public Security in the Federal Ministry of the Interior . In addition to the BVT, there are nine state offices for the protection of the constitution and the fight against terrorism (LVT) in the federal states, each of which is part of the state police directorate .

history

The Federal Office was founded in 2002 through the amalgamation of various special units of the Ministry of the Interior and primarily the former state police. This was done in response to the increasing threat to public security posed by international terrorism. In view of the events after and around the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 , Interior Minister Ernst Strasser commissioned the restructuring of Austria's counter-terrorism.

Rennweg barracks

Gert-René Polli , an officer in the Army Intelligence Office, was initially appointed director of the authority . After Polli's resignation in October 2007, he was succeeded by Peter Gridling , who had previously headed EBT and was responsible for analyzes in the terror area at Europol . In September 2011, the BVT moved from its office in the building of the Ministry of the Interior in Herrengasse to its new location in the Rennweg barracks . In May 2020 Johannes Freiseisen was appointed interim managing director of the BVT, Peter Gridling is to retire in autumn 2020.

BAT affair

On February 28, 2018, the premises of the BVT and various private apartments of employees were searched by officers from the Task Force to Combat Street Crime (EGS). The reason for the house searches was an investigation by the Economic and Corruption Public Prosecutor's Office (WKStA) into alleged abuse of office. Due to these searches, the opposition SPÖ announced a special session of the National Council on March 9 ; there is a suspicion of party-politically motivated transgression of competencies. On April 16, 2018, representatives of the three opposition parties represented in the National Council ( Kai Jan Krainer / SPÖ , Stephanie Krisper / NEOS , Alma Zadić / List Pilz ) announced that they would submit a joint motion for a parliamentary committee of inquiry on the subject of BAT. This request was submitted on April 18, 2018.

Others

The Austrian National Council sets up a subcommittee for internal affairs to monitor the BVT .

Web links

Commons : Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and the Fight against Terrorism  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Constitutional Protection Report 2010 bmi.gv.at, PDF, 116S., Accessed on November 28, 2010.
  2. ^ Searching for clues at the protection of the constitution diepresse.com, November 27, 2010, accessed on November 28, 2010.
  3. ↑ Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and Fight against Terrorism: New office opened
  4. ↑ Freiseisen interim BVT director. In: ORF.at . May 27, 2020, accessed May 28, 2020 .
  5. ↑ ORF: Many questions unanswered
  6. ↑ Joint proposal for the BVT-U Committee . In: news.ORF.at . April 16, 2018 ( orf.at [accessed April 24, 2018]).
  7. ^ Opposition submitted a motion for the BVT-U committee . In: news.ORF.at . April 18, 2018 ( orf.at [accessed April 24, 2018]).
  8. ↑ Standing sub-committees for monitoring the intelligence services parlament.gv.at, accessed on June 19, 2013.