Posted on 05/15/2005 1:12:04 PM PDT by Cornpone
VIENNA, May 15, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) - Austrian Muslims have expressed concerns at a modified immigration law, fearing Muslims would take the brunt of the new restrictions as they make up the majority of immigrants in the south-central European country.
“Many Muslims still don’t hold Austrian citizenship, which makes them vulnerable to the new bill,” Omar Al-Rawi, the Islamic Religious Authority (IRA)’s official in charge of the integration file, told IslamOnline.net.
He said that the amendments, for example, regard humanitarian work and assistance for refugees as illegal and punishable by law.
“The amendments stipulate that illegal and unregistered residents could face deportation and subject those who provide them with shelter to prison terms,” added Rawi, who is also a Member of Parliament for the opposition Socialist party.
According to estimates, there are some 750,000 immigrants in Austria, representing 10 percent of the country’s eight-million population.
Muslims, estimated at nearly half a million, make up some 6 per cent of the population.
Austria's right-wing coalition government on Tuesday, May 10, tightened its immigration laws, which are already considered among the restrictive in Europe.
A new law approved by the cabinet of conservative chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel, extends from six to 10 months the limit on administrative detention before expulsion.
It also authorizes forced feeding for asylum seekers who go on hunger strikes and toughens the penalties for those who resort to fake marriages.
An initial assessment of cases within 72 hours after their submission and immediate rejection, if necessary, are also imposed by the new bill.
The legislation also sets a 20-day maximum for the assessment of an application for political asylum and restricts the movements of the applicants during this period.
It further obliges new immigrants to attend a minimum 300-hour German-language course.
Social Woes
Bagaghati said the restrictive measure creates a fertile ground for thefts and drug trafficking.
Rawi warned that the new bill would help increase crime rates in Austria.
“Jobless asylum seekers could resort to robbery to make a living,” he said.
Turfa Bagaghati, Deputy Chairman of the European Network Against Racism (ENAR), agreed that the restrictive measure creates a fertile ground for thefts and drug trafficking.
He said it will further open the door for tax evasions as many employers would skip government insurance programs.
Bagaghati also maintained that forced feeding contravenes human rights.
“Prisoners go on hunger strike to draw attention to their distress and the injustice done to them, and they shouldn’t be forced to do something against their will,” he stressed.
Under the new amendments, 1072 prisoners, who staged hunger strikes, have been released to be deported later.
The amendments have further raised the ire of Austrian rights activists, who accused the government of ignoring Constitution.
They said that the government failed to honor its pledges as the interior minister had promised to issue work permits for all foreigners living in Austria.
The clauses of the new bill come from previous legislation on asylum seekers which was declared invalid in October by the constitutional court after it was passed by the ruling coalition of conservative and extreme-right parties in December 2003.
The court ruled that it was unconstitutional to prohibit asylum seekers who had initially had their application dismissed, to present new legal arguments on appeal. However, this clause does not appear in the new bill approved.
According to interior ministry estimates, some 5,918 immigrants were granted political asylum over the past four months out of a total of 24,634 applicants.
Since 2002, some 24,000 people have been granted political asylum from 72,000 applications made in Austria, which is ranked fourth in Europe for its number of political refugees behind Britain, Germany and France.
There are currently 30,000 people awaiting a decision on their applications for political asylum.
In Arabic that translates to "killing Jews".
Yeah, at least they recoginize the problem and try to do something about it.
Is Austria tightening up specifically to curtail a Muslim invasion? If so, good for them.
Then deport them!
Why are they all leaving muslim countrys?
maybe the water,s bad!!!
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