DÖW Lawsuit Successful After FPÖ Press Release

The Documentation Archive of the Austrian Resistance (DÖW) had sued the Upper Austrian FPÖ state party secretary Michael Gruber due to statements in a press release from 2023.

FPÖ State Party Secretary Must Retract Claims About DÖW

In it, the state party secretary criticized that the DÖW had been commissioned by the Ministry of the Interior to create the right-wing extremism report and spread the claim "This organization has nothing to do with scientific work." He also claimed that the Vienna Higher Regional Court (OLG) had recognized in 1998 that the DÖW was "driven by relevant political agitation" and "by no means a neutral scientifically working entity." Gruber must now refrain from making both statements, publish a retraction, and reimburse the DÖW for court costs. The statement that the plaintiff has nothing to do with scientific work could lead to their research results being given no weight and thus deprive them of their livelihood, according to the Commercial Court's ruling. These are "untrue factual claims that exceed the limits of permissible criticism." The DÖW is a recognized scientific institution. Gruber's statements about the OLG's ruling are also incorrect.

Legal Dispute Between DÖW and FPÖ Continues

"The definition of right-wing extremism is not the responsibility of those being observed," emphasized the scientific director of the DÖW, Andreas Kranebitter, in a statement. "Just because some do not like our scientific expertise, we cannot and must not tolerate slander and false accusations." The right-wing extremism report published at the beginning of the year also highlighted several intersections between the Freedom Party and right-wing extremists. The ruling is not final, Gruber has four weeks to file an appeal. Another legal dispute with the FPÖ is not yet concluded - the Vienna Commercial Court had deemed it permissible at the beginning of the year to refer to the DÖW as a "pseudoscientific institution." The accusation also arose in the context of the awarding of the right-wing extremism report. An appeal has been filed, and the case is now with the next instance, according to the DÖW upon inquiry.

(APA/Red)

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