"Strengthened in the heart"
Villach united in pain: Together against terror
A cowardly attack has struck the Carinthian carnival stronghold in the heart. The victims were remembered at the large funeral march on Tuesday evening. Parish priest Richard Pirker offered consolation: "May this celebration help to strengthen our hearts together." Bishop Josef Marketz added: "Hate poisons hope." We reported live.
Kronen Zeitung als bevorzugte Google-Quelle hinzufügen A gloomy mood, cloudy skies, an icy wind - the carnival town of Villach was very different to normal in February on Tuesday. Thousands of people had come to commemorate the victims of the attack at the weekend.
The funeral march, which was also attended by high-ranking politicians, made its way across the town bridge to the scene of the horror. Wreaths, flowers and letters were laid there; candles were lit before the march made its way across the main square up to the town church, where the ecumenical service was held with Bishop Josef Marketz, Superintendent Manfred Sauer and town priest Richard Pirker. The words of the representatives of the Catholic and Protestant churches were also broadcast to the forecourt.
The entire funeral march was held under the strictest security precautions. Road traffic was cordoned off and the funeral march, church and surrounding area were monitored and secured. "We deployed a very, very large number of personnel and technical components," said city police commander Erich Londer. A drone and a helicopter were also used - as well as dog handlers, the Cobra special unit and the Carinthia unit, which is also present at demonstrations.
Read the entries in the live ticker:
A team of experts also addressed the topic of security on Tuesday. Governor Peter Kaiser (SPÖ) and his deputy Martin Gruber (ÖVP) named concrete measures: Increasing the number of law enforcement officers, strengthening the intelligence services and taking stricter action against inflammatory platforms; there is also talk of a TikTok ban.
Kaiser announced a "Carinthian integration contract" in which asylum seekers are obliged to complete a year of integration - including German courses and community service. Progress is to be linked to social benefits. There are also calls for the possibility of checking messenger services and monitoring the private accommodation of asylum seekers. "Hate messages from political Islam must be banned," says Gruber, who welcomes the "mass checks without cause" announced by Interior Minister Gerhard Karner.
"Hope is a central concept"
On Tuesday evening, however, political platitudes were not important to the mourners. Only one thing mattered at the end of the day, the words of Bishop Marketz and the solidarity: "I would like to address young people. Hope has become the central concept. Should we let hatred poison our hearts? Hate also poisons hope. But without hope, no one can survive, not even society."
This article has been automatically translated,
read the original article here.
Da dieser Artikel älter als 18 Monate ist, ist zum jetzigen Zeitpunkt kein Kommentieren mehr möglich.
Wir laden Sie ein, bei einer aktuelleren themenrelevanten Story mitzudiskutieren: Themenübersicht.
Bei Fragen können Sie sich gern an das Community-Team per Mail an forum@krone.at wenden.