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Odehnal, Bernhard
Osteuropa-Korrespondent des Tages-Anzeiger
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4 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.
May 1 brings socialist Vienna to life
The Viennese Social Democrats of the SPÖ party celebrate Labour Day on May 1 with traditional marches outside the town hall. This outdated ceremony gives the Socialists the feeling that their world is back on track, the liberal Tages-Anzeiger writes mockingly: "Everyone is where they belong; the only snag is that each year there are fewer seniors in the VIP stands. Everyone sings the Internationale at the top of their voices, and the Workers of Vienna join in: the social democratic mayor, who has sold off the city's most beautiful squares to big banks and investors; the social democratic chancellor, who has shady deals with xenophobic tabloids; the former social democratic chancellor, who takes money from building companies and Central Asian dictators. Here they are socialists, here they call their comrades to join in 'the final battle'. After the SPÖ, the leftover communists and alternative groups and Kurdish organisations are allowed to march down Ringstrasse. Then come the cleaners to sweep the remains of the revolution into the gutter."
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More from the press review on the subject » Weltanschauung, » Society, » Austria
Bernhard Odehnal on the renaissance of East European communists
The Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia has emerged from Saturday's regional elections as the strongest party in two Czech regions and is now poised to take office for the first time since the Velvet Revolution of 1989. The communists are once again a force to be reckoned with also in other Eastern European countries, journalist Bernhard Odehnal writes in the daily Tages-Anzeiger: "Communist parties are not the most dangerous when they appear in the old grey suits, but when they're in disguise. In Romania, networks of former Securitate officers and supporters of the dictator Ceauşescu hide behind the label 'social democrats'. ... True, the 'social democratic' leader Victor Ponta was still a child in the dark days of Ceauşescu, but today he's trying to gain control of the media and liquidate the opposition very much in the style of former times. In Hungary, by contrast, communism appears in a refined guise. Of course Viktor Orbán's government would indignantly reject any accusation of communist tendencies. ... But its policies are neither liberal nor conservative. They seek to send Hungary back to the days of the Cold War. ... The philosophers of the new Frankfurt school have summed up this phenomenon as follows: 'The sharpest critics of the elks used to be elks themselves'."
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Elections, » Czech Republic, » Eastern Europe
EU shares blame for Romanian disaster
Commenting on the power struggle between the government and the president in Bucharest the liberal daily Tages-Anzeiger argues that the EU shares some of the responsibility for Romania's democratic deficit: "Investments in the rule of law, education and civil society in the new member states are not a priority for the EU Commission. Money from Brussels goes primarily towards expanding infrastructure. But that is where corruption is most rampant. Billions disappear into the pockets of mayors and construction firms. Western managers are also responsible for this pitiful situation. Anyone who believes that when Austrian or German companies bought up Romanian energy companies and banks no bribes were paid is extremely naïve. As long as profits were right this was not a problem. Not for the EU, either. In this way the West created a 'classe politique' in the new member states that in its boundless arrogance now believes it is above the rules. It will be difficult to get rid of now."
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » EU neighbourhood policy, » Elections, » Romania
Citizens pay for Orbán's self-aggrandisement
Flooded with pro-government demonstrators, Budapest's Kossuth Square symbolises the Orbán government's backwards policies, writes the liberal daily Tages-Anzeiger: "Unwanted monuments to leftist politicians and writers have been removed; the prestigious square is to look as it did before 1944. Several million forints have been set aside for the project. There can be no better image for Orbán's policies. The country is being refashioned to look as it did between the wars, with an authoritarian leadership and an abundance of historic pathos. Meanwhile funding for universities and schools is being cut, the infrastructure is falling apart and social services for the poorest are being closed down. 'We've never been this close to freedom', Orban told his supporters yesterday. In truth many Hungarians have never been this close to poverty. Eight percent inflation and the highest VAT in the EU are devouring their meagre wages. ... If the EU really does freeze 500 million euros in subsidies it will hit everyone. The country is being made to pay for Orbán's reckless self-aggrandisement."
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » EU neighbourhood policy, » Hungary
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