The police had not yet been informed of the action when the group informed the media about the occupation at noon. A spokeswoman said it was a “loose alliance of anarchist activists”. They demand expropriation of the Russian owner. The squatters left the house in the evening.
“We’re pretty relaxed”
“We have not entrenched ourselves but are quite relaxed for the time being,” said a young woman who wished to remain anonymous as a spokeswoman in the afternoon. The occupation will be given up “not completely without resistance”. Each individual member of the alliance would decide for themselves how to oppose the police instructions. At first there was talk of 30 to 40 squatters, but according to the police there should only have been ten. Pictures on social media showed masked activists in black clothing taking a boat trip on Lake Attersee.
Banners with inscriptions such as “Solidarity with all refugees and deserters” and “Free access to the lake” were installed on scaffolding that is currently being erected around the villa for renovation purposes. But also “Patriachat kills”, “Eat Rhe Rich” and “Anarchos instead of Oligarchos” could be read on the fabrics, which were probably hung up in a night and fog action early on Saturday morning.
In a press release, the activists, who may have only recently created their Twitter account, criticize the war in Ukraine and call for the use of privatized vacancies for refugees, deserters and the homeless. The fact that many lake accesses are in private hands is also a thorn in the side of the group. A “stop to the privatization of the Attersee” was demanded.
Several strips on site
In the late afternoon, the situation on site remained calm. The police were in position with several patrols, as the press office announced on request. Contact has already been made with the squatters and discussions have been held. The homeowner has not yet been contacted to request eviction.
According to the police, the affected house is currently under construction. The squatters had gotten into and onto the property via the scaffolding.
At the request of the construction workers, the people left the house. Five of the ten people were stopped by officials to verify their identity, and five people were able to escape. However, the interrogation turned out to be “unprofitable” due to the lack of a legal basis. The administrative authority ordered the activists to go. There was no property damage to the house.
The OÖN already reported on the “rich Russians at the Attersee” in February. You can read the OÖNplus article here:
Localization: Burgau is located on the southern shore of Lake Attersee in the municipality of St. Gilgen
As the spokeswoman for the activist alliance said, these are not the same demonstrators who occupied a property owned by the Annaberg ski idol and multiple World Cup winner Marcel Hirscher in Salzburg’s Andräviertel a week ago. “We are not connected to it,” said the spokeswoman, who wished to remain anonymous.
Source: Nachrichten
