Saturday 22 August 2015

Schweigeminute

"It seems like I have found the right words for this situation, which is no words at all."
Raoul Haspel

Austrian visual artist Raoul Haspel very recently released "Schweigeminute", one minute of silence to call for a peaceful protest against the Austrian refugee policy and to support the people who are currently staying in the "massively overcrowded Traiskirchen refugee centre south of Vienna" (it was built to house 1.800 people and is now home to more than 4.500) (via and via).
The track comprising 60 seconds of total silence costs 99 cents and can be downloaded via Google Play Store or Amazon. It has been played by several radio stations in Austria and Germany and, according to iTunes Austria, has become number one. All proceeds will help the people in Traiskirchen who were forced to leave their homes (via).


"My personal short-term goal is that tonight in Traiskirchen... people don't have to sleep in wet beds without shelter with their kids having not enough food, water, warm jackets or toilet paper.(...) This is unworthy of our European idea and our self-understanding as human beings."
Raoul Haspel
The refugee camp in Traiskirchen has been highly criticised by its mayor, by the Austrian Human Rights League, by the United Nations Refugee Agency, by Amnesty International, ... (via). According to the latter, Austria is violating a range of conventions on human rights in Traiskirchen (via).

4 comments:

  1. It's a tragedy for all of us.

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    Replies
    1. It really is. Only populism benefits from these situations. Thank you, Karen.

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