VZCZCXRO3522
RR RUEHIK
DE RUEHVI #0027/01 0081345
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 081345Z JAN 10
FM AMEMBASSY VIENNA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3975
INFO RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 VIENNA 000027 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM AU
SUBJECT: SPO-OVP CLASH OVER PLANNED ASYLUM CENTER 
 
REF:  A) 09 VIENNA 1593 
    B) 09 VIENNA 1419 
 
VIENNA 00000027  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: Interior Minister Fekter (conservative People's 
Party - OVP) has come under heavy criticism since her late December 
announcement of a plan to build an asylum center in Burgenland 
Province.  Burgenland Governor Hans Niessl (Social Democrat Party - 
SPO), who faces provincial elections in May, complained that he had 
not been informed of the plan, and has vowed to block the center. 
Chancellor Faymann (SPO) has proposed that a referendum be held in 
any community where an asylum center is planned.  Vice Chancellor 
Proell (OVP) has rejected referenda as a solution and called for a 
compromise between the two coalition parties.  This is not the first 
time that Fekter has announced a major initiative without first 
laying the groundwork, and she is also under criticism from within 
her own party.  End Summary. 
 
A Surprise Announcement 
----------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) On December 19, Fekter announced plans for a third asylum 
center in Austria to handle initial processing of applicants.  The 
new facility, Fekter said, would be built in Eberau in southern 
Burgenland Province.  Fekter had negotiated the location with the 
OVP Mayor of Eberau, who viewed the project as an opportunity to 
create employment and improve the infrastructure of the town, a 
village with fewer than 1,000 residents on the Hungarian border. 
The SPO and OVP had agreed in their governing coalition pact to 
establish a third center "in the south of Austria," to relieve the 
burden on the existing facilities in Traiskirchen, Lower Austria, 
and Thalham, Upper Austria. 
 
Opposition Mounts 
----------------- 
 
¶3. (U) However, provincial and national political leaders were taken 
by surprise by Fekter's announcement, and a number of them quickly 
opposed it.  Burgenland Governor Hans Niessl, facing elections in 
May, complained that he had not been informed about the plan, and 
vowed to block the project.  Niessl called for a referendum in 
Eberau on the center, which has now been scheduled for March 21. 
Chancellor Faymann (SPO) averred that a "binding" referendum should 
be held in any community where an asylum center is planned.  Faymann 
has also claimed that when the coalition parties agreed to build a 
facility in the "south," it was understood that this would mean 
Carinthia Province.  Predictably, political figures in Carinthia - 
where anti-immigrant sentiment is particularly strong -- angrily 
rejected the idea. 
 
¶4. (U) OVP leaders in Burgenland now say they oppose the plan, 
fearing that public opposition will harm their chances at the polls. 
 Burgenland OVP Chairman Franz Steindl has harshly criticized 
Fekter's handling of the issue in press interviews, and even the 
Eberau Mayor has changed his position and come out against the 
facility. 
 
Proell Seeks Compromise 
----------------------- 
 
¶5. (U) Vice Chancellor Proell (OVP) has attempted to seek a 
compromise over the issue.  Proell has dismissed Faymann's idea of 
resolving the matter through public referenda, arguing that the 
government needs to make a decision and take responsibility for it. 
He has directed Fekter to work with Defense Minister Darabos (SPO), 
who also serves as his party's integration spokesman, to examine 
alternative locations.  Fekter reportedly has a list of several 
communities where local officials have expressed an interest in 
accommodating an asylum center. 
 
¶6. (U) Darabos has argued that a third asylum center would not be 
necessary if all nine provinces accepted their share of asylum 
applicants in accordance with the existing non-binding agreement 
between the Federal Government and the provinces, a standard which 
only two provinces - Vienna and Upper Austria - now meet.  President 
Fischer - widely respected as rational and above politics - appeared 
to reject that argument when he urged the government to make a 
second effort to find a location for the facility. 
 
Comment: Fekter, Faymann Add to Farce 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) Several factors have given this debate a  bizarre and 
somewhat farcical quality: Interior Minister Fekter has a habit of 
announcing political initiatives without laying the proper 
groundwork.  Her December announcement of a national integration 
plan (reftel A) drew similar blowback from SPO leaders and others 
who maintained that the plan was not fully developed and had not 
been agreed upon by the relevant parties.  Faymann also did his part 
to complicate the asylum center debate with his implausible proposal 
to hold referenda, an idea that would likely impede the construction 
of an asylum center anywhere in Austria.  Lastly, the provincial 
 
VIENNA 00000027  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
election calendar has added to the political static.  Fekter's 
surprise announcement was a gift to Burgenland Governor Niessl, who 
now has a ready-made issue to launch his campaign with.  It is 
likely that the Government will find a suitable location for a new 
asylum center, but not until the debate cools down. 
 
Hoh