The Austrian runners head for the border to meet up with the European Journey team arriving from Italy.
n December 1997, the Austrian Parliament passed unconstitutional legislation that established a category of “second-class religions” under the heading of “confessional communities.” The new legislation, which is expected to be challenged in the Constitutional Court, was immediately criticised by constitutional scholars and religion experts as a violation of Austria’s commitments under international human rights law. It makes achievement of official recognition as a religion a long and arduous process for Baptists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Hindus, Scientologists and other minority religions. The undemocratic inequity of the new law is illustrated by this fact: If officially recognised religions in Austria such as Buddhism and Judaism had to newly apply for recognition, they would fail to qualify.
The new law was the offspring of growing religious intolerance in Austria. Heavily influenced by its big sister party in Bavaria, the Christian Socialist Union, the Austrian People’s Party had passed a resolution in the summer of 1997 excluding members of alleged “sects” from the party. In addition to restricting freedom of religion, the government, constituted by the People’s Party, in the person of the Family Minister, has taken steps to curtail freedom of speech, urging major media not to accept advertising from a minority religion.
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