150,000 March in Austria Against Right-Wing Coalition Government

Undaunted by driving rain or mounting resignation, opponents of Austria’s far-right Freedom Party thronged the scene of Adolf Hitler’s triumphant 1938 arrival here to vow Saturday that fascists will “never again” threaten democracy in this country at the heart of Europe.

The outpouring of fury and frustration at Heroes’ Square by at least 150,000 protesters was the largest demonstration yet by Austrians dismayed by a coalition government linking Freedom Party leader Joerg Haider and the conservative People’s Party led by Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel.

In the two weeks since the right-wing factions joined forces to take over after more than 30 years of centrist rule, Austrians have been shaken from the complacency that brought Haider’s controversial party into power by the cold shoulder being turned on this country by the Western democratic world.

Austria’s European Union partners have imposed diplomatic sanctions, calling on member states to freeze official contacts with the Viennese government. Tourism, a vital source of jobs and income in this Alpine nation, has suffered a rash of cancellations at the height of ski season. Even the glamorous Opera Ball is being snubbed by celebrities who do not want to be seen as patronizing the March 2 event now that a man who has praised Hitler’s economic policies and Nazi storm troopers is part of the leadership.

Pent-up anxiety over Austria’s shame and isolation had promised a massive turnout, but Haider and Schuessel further angered opponents on the eve of the protest. The far-right leader contended that demonstrators were being paid by organizers, and the chancellor claimed in an interview with the Swiss daily Neue Zuercher Zeitung that he hoped for restoration of peace and quiet once “the far left, the hippie generation, the youth and the Internet crowd have had their fling.”

“You have to resign, and then everyone will settle down. Only then will this all be behind us,” organizer Robert Misik advised Schuessel while addressing the crowd in Heroes’ Square, provoking a thunderous ovation.

Outrage Shifts to to New Chancellor

Austrian outrage has lately shifted from Haider to Schuessel, as the latter’s complicity with the far-right party made it possible for xenophobic Freedom Party figures to take over half the government ministries. The most popular protest badge sported by demonstrators was a red circle and slash over a black bow tie--the international symbol of negation superimposed on Schuessel’s trademark neckwear.

Freezing rain kept many of the protesters at home when the marches and speeches began midafternoon. But by nightfall, the skies had cleared, and torrents of water in the cobblestone streets were replaced by rivers of people shouting “No to racism!” and “Haider is Hitler!”

Mocking Haider’s claim in this week’s issue of News magazine here that protesters were paid as much as 1,800 schillings (about $130) a day, organizers from the SOS Mitmensch, an immigration advocacy group, printed and distributed thousands of phony 1,800-schilling bank notes bearing a Mad magazine-like caricature of the far-right leader.

“Take a look at this crowd,” cabaret artist Alfred Dorfer told the absent Haider, again to wild cheers from the assembled masses. “These are people who came here despite the weather, of their own free will.”

Police spokesman Franz Schnabl put the size of the crowd at 150,000, although SOS Mitmensch contended that 300,000 people took part in the six hours of public venting. It was easily the largest protest since the new government was sworn in Feb. 4, but it fell far short of organizers’ predictions that the turnout would be as high as 500,000.

Many demonstrators also seemed to have come more to put themselves on public record as opposing the leadership than with any real expectation of forcing it to step down.

“We want the world to know that not all Austrians think this way, that Haider and his party represent a minority of opinion in this country,” said Franz Gecse, a teacher of Hungarian descent born in Vienna during the Nazi era. “But we have to use the democratic means available to us, and they may not be enough to force new elections.”

“It’s good that people are protesting, but I don’t think it will make a difference. There are too many people who like what Haider is thinking, even if he doesn’t say it directly,” said Ami Liao, a Chinese-born student and waitress.

Citizens Urged to Exercise Restraint

Many of Austria’s social and political leaders have been urging citizens to tone down their protests so the country can have calm and order, and to give the new government a chance to prove that it is not the neo-fascist force opponents portray.

Two of the predominantly Roman Catholic country’s most influential religious leaders, Cardinals Franz Koenig and Christoph Schoenborn, called on Austrians in a statement Saturday to be careful about what they do and say because history has shown the dangers faced by a society that becomes “irreconcilable.”

For his part, President Thomas Klestil has been lobbying Western states to refrain from premature judgments. At Friday’s inauguration ceremony for Croatian President Stipe Mesic in Zagreb, the Croatian capital, Klestil used the occasion to secure assurances from Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and European leaders that they will maintain reasonable relations with Austria unless and until there is genuine reason for imposing a true diplomatic chill.

The harsh reactions to Austria’s new government have driven a wedge between longtime allies in Europe, with France, Belgium and Portugal (which currently has the EU presidency) taking a hawkish line against Vienna while Britain, Greece and Denmark warn that isolating Austria could backfire.

Saturday’s demonstration was called by the country’s Social Democrats, but in an effort to elevate the protest above partisan politics, no officials or party leaders were given the stage. Instead, representatives of the more than 30 human rights and youth organizations who backed the six-hour event urged citizens committed to social integration and tolerance to keep the pressure on their leaders.

“We have to make sure right-wing nationalism doesn’t creep into Austria again,” warned Hans Marschalek, representing survivors of Austria’s World War II-era Nazi concentration camp at Mauthausen.

Protests in sympathy with the one here were held Saturday throughout Europe, with the largest crowds turning out in France, where President Jacques Chirac has been particularly harsh in his assessment of the lurking dangers to the Continent posed by the rise of right-wing extremists to positions of power.

And artists from throughout Europe came to Vienna to show solidarity with the anti-Haider forces, many likening the public sentiments stirred up by the Freedom Party leader to the hate and resentment engendered by Hitler against his perceived enemies during the Third Reich.

Although he has recently apologized for such remarks, Haider once praised the Third Reich for its “orderly” economic programs and described Waffen SS henchmen as “decent men.”

Haider’s party won 27% of the vote in a badly split Oct. 3 general election, with Schuessel’s conservatives earning about the same share behind the now-opposition Social Democrats’ 33%.