God and fatherland
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | God and Fatherland - Muslims in the Federal Army |
| Country of production | Austria |
| original language | German |
| Publishing year | 2012 |
| length | 35 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Georg Misch |
| script | Georg Misch |
| production | Mischief Films , Ralph Wieser , David Bohun (production management) |
| camera | Joerg Burger , Wolfram Wuinovic |
| cut | Marek Kralovsky |
God and Fatherland - Muslims in the Armed Forces is a production for the ORF series criss-cross by director Georg Misch . He tells extraordinary stories of Muslims in the armed forces : those of an emancipated Muslim woman and a convert . Two completely different interpretations of a belief, two different views of being an Austrian citizen , two different reasons to serve the “fatherland” as a soldier.
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Michael Cserkits from Burgenland came into contact with the Islamic faith for the first time when he was looking for a topic for his diploma thesis while studying at the Theresian Military Academy . Before that, he lived without a denomination for 10 years . Only the teachings and laws of Islam convince him to rejoin a belief system. Initially embarrassed about critical reactions from his fellow human beings, today he proudly describes himself as a “practicing Muslim”. On the one hand, he meets with skepticism and incomprehension, on the other hand, with admiration. Even during the 40-day fasting period in Ramadan , he performs the service as an officer in tank battalion 33 and adapts his faith to the profession.
The 23-year-old Melek Yapakci is the first and only Muslim in the Austrian Armed Forces . There she trains hunters and pioneers as a non-commissioned officer. Melek sees no contradiction in serving her fatherland and at the same time being strictly religious. Neither their beliefs nor their gender prevented them from completing their training and from gaining respect from their recruits. She now serves as a role model for her cousin - she has decided to join the armed forces herself in a few years.
The film accompanies Melek and Michael in their job, during activities with the army troops, some of which are Muslims themselves. To swear in the young recruits at Yppenplatz in Vienna's 16th district, Muslim youth invites you to break the fast on the occasion of Ramadan , during which the multicultural character of the army becomes clearly visible.
These personal stories are related to the 100-year history of Muslims in the Austrian army, beginning with the annexation of Bosnia-Herzegovina and the Islamic Law of 1912 . To what extent there is a connection between faith and the fatherland, the recruits learn on a visit to the Army History Museum in Vienna. During a guided tour by the director of the HGM, you will be brought closer to the history of these so-called Bosniak regiments , which only achieved their zeal and heroism through the recognition of their religion in the multi-ethnic state and were thus safe from threats from their neighbors for the first time.
The film creates a context between the past and the present, which is characterized by integration efforts, fundamentalism and Islamophobia . The armed forces serve here as a portrait of Austrian society and as a mirror of the integration of Muslims in Austria.
Web links
- God and country in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Criss-cross statements about the film
Individual evidence
- ↑ God and Fatherland - Muslims in the Armed Forces at religion.orf.at, accessed on November 15, 2015.