Nikolaus Kunrath

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Nikolaus Kunrath (born June 2, 1960 in Vienna ), mostly called Niki Kunrath , is an Austrian human rights activist and politician of the Greens . He acts as the spokesman for the non-partisan initiative Set an example now! and has organized commemorative rallies for years. Since June 2019 he has been a member of the Vienna State Parliament and a member of the Vienna City Council .

life and work

Kunrath's voluntary commitment began at the age of 14 at the Evangelical Youth Office and eventually led him to the board of the Federal Youth Council and the Ecumenical Youth Council Europe after various functions at national and international level .

In the 1980s he was involved in the occupation of the Hainburger Au and against the purchase of interceptors , was political spokesman for the Schmelzpark citizens' initiative and chairman of the Ottakring district center .

His professional career began as a supervisor in a Protestant youth hostel in Vienna. Afterwards employee at Konsum Austria in the training and further education of middle management, then 1991 and 1992 in Iran and Iraq as government coordinator of the Austrian Kurdish Aid and Caritas Austria . At the end of 1992 he founded SOS Mitmensch together with other people and was involved in the organization of the Sea of Lights in 1993 , for which the initiators received the Bruno Kreisky Human Rights Prize . From 1992 to 1998 he was General Secretary of SOS Mitmensch. From 1993 to 1996 he acted as the Austria coordinator of starting line , a Europe-wide campaign for anti-discrimination provisions in the so-called “Amsterdam” EU ​​Treaty Art. 13. In 1995 he was appointed managing director of the Evangelical Refugee Service . In 1996 he took part in the Council of Europe campaign all equal - all different , and in 1997 he was given the chairmanship of Austria in the European Year against Racism . In 1998 , the year of human rights , he was actively involved in the drafting of an anti-discrimination law by NGOs from various disadvantaged and discriminated groups. From 1998 to 2000 Kunrath was a member of the Integration Advisory Board at the Federal Ministry of the Interior , and in 1999 he was a founding member of the European Network Against Racism .

Kunrath has been with the Greens Austria since 1999, and with the Green Alternative Vienna since 2005 . Since 2003 he has been a Green Member of the Parliamentary Armed Forces Commission and since 2005 of the Vienna Housing Commission I. His main focus was on supporting the Tenth Federal State project and the campaigns for Terezija Stoisits and Ulrike Lunacek . From 2000 to 2004 he worked in the Green Club in Parliament as a speaker for peace , security and national defense and an employee of Peter Pilz . In 2005 he moved to the Green Club in Vienna City Hall . Since 2006 he has been a board member of the Hemayat association , which takes care of torture and war survivors. Since 2012, he has also acted as the spokesman for the non-partisan initiative Now set an example! that occurs against every form of right-wing radicalism . He also regularly writes political articles, for example for Marco Schreuder's blog. In 2013 he was at the green vigil Never again fascism! involved.

Due to the change of Birgit Hebein as Vice Mayor in the state government and city senate Ludwig in June 2019 and the resignation of Ewa Dziedzic and Daniel Landau, he became a member of the Vienna State Parliament and a member of the Vienna City Council .

Anti-discrimination , equality and equal treatment are central themes in his work.

About Niki Kunrath

“Niki Kunrath is a do-gooder. And that's just as well."

- Klaus Werner-Lobo

“When it comes to protesting against agitation and discrimination, against racism and right-wing extremism, when human rights and democracy have to be defended, Niki Kunrath is never absent. I've known him for years. He's there. He shows courage against fearmongering and gives courage against despondency. "

- Doron Rabinovici

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ WINA- The Jewish City Magazine: Nikolaus Kunrath: “The ball may no longer take place in the Hofburg” ; Retrieved Oct. 23, 2014
  2. ↑ a b Green Vienna: Niki Kunrath new Member of the Green Vienna. Retrieved June 26, 2019 .
  3. ↑ Nikolaus Kunrath: Don't ask, don't tell - how is it actually in the Austrian armed forces? , accessed October 23, 2014
  4. ↑ Greens: Dziedzic does not want to follow Hebein, but in the National Council. Retrieved June 26, 2019 .
personal data
SURNAME Kunrath, Nikolaus
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kunrath, Niki
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian human rights activist and politician of the Greens
DATE OF BIRTH June 2, 1960
PLACE OF BIRTH Vienna