Nehammer wants “no other social model in Austria than our free democracy with our constitutional state and our Judeo-Christian culture”.
What’s missing? That’s right, Islam. It has been a recognized religious community in Austria since 1912. The shared history goes back much further. Around 650,000 people in Austria are Muslims.
Nehammer goes even further: “Multiculturalism has failed, as the examples of large metropolitan areas like Vienna show this very clearly.” What would a conservative program be without a swipe at the big, dangerous city! In fact, it is precisely in Vienna that you can see how well coexistence works can.
Assimilation statt Integration
Nehammer wants people who immigrate to adapt to our culture and our values and give up theirs. “Integration means adaptation,” reads the Austria plan. The word that should actually be there is assimilation.
The ÖVP would like to have a “defined Austrian dominant culture” as a demarcation.
But who decides what belongs to us and what doesn’t? Maybe only the schnitzel and the beer are included? Or is it part of our dominant culture, for example, that we have one of the highest rates of femicide in Europe?