Jewish community leaders in Austria say they will keep shunning the far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ), despite it joining the country’s new government.
The Jewish Community of Vienna (IKG), which is the country’s umbrella Jewish organisation and EJC affiliate, voted unanimously on Tuesday against establishing contacts with representatives of the Freedom Party. The decision continues a practice started in 2000.
The FPÖ is in coalition with the conservative Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) and holds key ministries including interior, defence and foreign affairs.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Jewish Community cited the Freedom Party’s links to a nationalist student fraternity steeped in antisemitic ideology, its calls for a ban on religious animal slaughter and its members’ efforts to abolish anti-Nazi legislation.
