Austria's Former Minister Erwin Lanc Has Died

The former minister Erwin Lanc (SPÖ) passed away on Saturday at the age of 94. The SPÖ announced this on Monday. Lanc was part of federal governments under Bruno Kreisky and Fred Sinowatz, serving first as Minister of Transport, then Minister of the Interior, and finally Minister of Foreign Affairs. SPÖ leader and Vice Chancellor Andreas Babler praised Lanc in a statement as a "great social democrat" who continued Kreisky's active neutrality policy, thereby making a "significant contribution to Austria's reputation."

Various Ministerial Roles for Lanc

Lanc was born on May 17, 1930, in Vienna and was initially active in the Socialist Youth. From 1960 to 1966, he was a member of the Vienna State Parliament, and from 1966 to 1983, with a brief interruption, a member of the National Council. From 1973 to 1977, he served as Minister of Transport under Chancellor Kreisky, and from 1977 to 1983 as Minister of the Interior. In the Sinowatz government, he served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1983 to 1984. He was succeeded by the long-time Mayor of Vienna, Leopold Gratz - in the internal party struggle for his succession, Lanc was then defeated by Helmut Zilk.

Lanc Active in the Sports World

Lanc also worked as a sports official, serving as Vice President of ASKÖ, President of the Austrian Handball and Fistball Federation, and President of the International Handball Federation. After leaving politics, he also advocated for international peace and dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians, for example, from 1989 to 2008 as President of the International Institute for Peace.

"Erwin Lanc was Minister of the Interior of the Republic of Austria during years of great security policy challenges and led the Ministry of the Interior with great prudence and foresight, but above all with a steady hand," praised the current Minister of the Interior, Gerhard Karner (ÖVP), the deceased. Lanc's tenure as Minister of the Interior was marked not only by the further development of police training but also by the terrorist attack on the Vienna City Temple in 1979 and the murder of City Councillor Heinz Nittel (SPÖ) by Palestinian terrorists in 1981.

(APA/Red)

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