Controversial Austrian politician to remain in politics

Austrian far right politician Joerg Haider today said he would remain in politics, less then a day after taking responsibility for the disastrous showing of his party in general elections and announcing he was stepping down as governor of Carinthia province.

Mr Haider’s decision, announced at the end of a six-hour meeting of senior party leaders, was the latest example of a “withdrawal from a withdrawal” that critics cite as an example of how he cannot be taken seriously.

The politician, whose praise of Hitler and anti-foreigner rhetoric helped fuel the meteoric rise of his party into government two years ago, represented his move as made under pressure of senior officials at the meeting of his Freedom Party.

“I accept personally much of the responsibility for the bad (election) results, he was quoted by the Austria Press Agency as saying. “Thus a resignation would have been the logical consequence.

But my party friends did not accept this because they believe my ‘Carinthian way’ is good and I should continue.”

Mr Haider’s flashes of pro-Nazi sentiment and flamboyant exposes of corruption in other parties brought his Freedom Party from obscurity in the mid 1980s to unprecedented strength – it joined the present government coalition after becoming second in 1999 elections.

But the same confrontational streak that attracted voters to Haider proved his party’s undoing in Sunday’s general election.

Weakened by months of infighting provoked by Haider, the party lost nearly two-thirds of its previous voter support to capture only 10% of the vote.

Only hardcore Haider fans remained loyal.

Disaffected swing voters powered the conservative People’s Party – the Freedom Party’s government coalition partners – to more than 42%, its best showing since the mid-1960s.

The Social Democrats also gained, receiving just under 37% of the vote

Announcing plans to resign yesterday as governor of Carinthia province – the main political post he now holds – Mr Haider said his party’s disastrous showing reflected “mistrust in me and my policies”.

While previous threats to quit were made to pressure rivals in his party to accept his points of view, the announcement appeared to be recognition by Mr Haider that his time was over following widespread rejection of his attacks on rivals, three much-criticised trips to Iraq in little over a year and other antics that provoked public opinion.

Party leader Herbert Haupt later said that Mr Haider would remain governor of Carinthia and retain internal party posts after getting full support of party leaders at a meeting yesterday.