AUSTRIAN MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS: October 19, 2007

UNCLAS VIENNA 002656 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR EUR/AGS, INR/EU, AND EUR/PPD FOR YVETTE SAINT-ANDRE OSD FOR COMMANDER CHAFFEE WHITEHOUSE FOR NSC/WEUROPE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPRC KPAO AU SUBJECT: AUSTRIAN MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS: October 19, 2007 Online Searches May Be Illegal ¶1. Only a day after the SPOe-OeVP coalition reached swift agreement on giving police greater powers to search personal computers online, critics are suggesting the new bill may violate constitutional rights. According to semi-official daily Wiener Zeitung, one specialist in constitutional law, Bernd-Christian Funk, said the government seemed not to be aware of the fact that they were opening a "Pandora's Box," as he put it. The government is to appoint an expert group to examine the technical and legal aspects of allowing police to use the spy-ware in cases of suspected serious crime and terrorism. Molterer: Open Labor Markets More Competitive ¶2. Finance Minister and Vice-Chancellor Wilhelm Molterer from the People's Party has emphasized Austria has to open up its labor market faster if it wants to stay competitive. Austria and Germany put restrictions on access to labor markets ahead of the last EU enlargement round in 2004. Now, Austria is facing an acute shortage of skilled workers, according to semi-official daily Wiener Zeitung. Molterer said the new European Union member states in Eastern Europe could not be expected to permanently endorse what he called a "one way street philosophy." Instead, Austria would have to be "open to two way traffic," as he put it. A few weeks ago the head of AMS, the Austrian Employment Agency, warned that the country would need more foreign skilled workers next year. He said the government's 800 work permits for workers in 2007 would not be sufficient to meet labor market demands in 2008. The work permits provide exceptions to Austria's ban on migrant workers from the newest EU member states. Currently, the Austrian labor market will not be completely opened to workers from new EU member countries before 2011. The Social Democrats (SPV) have meanwhile emphasized the need to train local workers for vacant jobs, the newspaper reports. EU Agrees on Reform Treaty ¶3. European Union leaders meeting in Lisbon have approved the new Reform Treaty, which replaces the deadlocked EU constitution rejected by voters in France and the Netherlands tow years ago. The Treaty aims to speed up decision making in the expanded Union, says ORF radio early morning news Morgenjournal. It will be officially signed in December, and then national parliaments will have to ratify it. In a front-page report, mass-circulation daily Kurier outlines the key aspects of the Reform Treaty: The EU Commission will be scaled down; decision in the European Union will be made faster; and the EU Parliament will be given more power. Meanwhile, in an interview with centrist daily Die Presse, Austrian Chancellor Alfred Gusenbauer stressed that the Reform Treaty does not require a nationwide referendum: "All EU treaties and accords were ratified by the Austrian Parliament. Therefore, there is no reason for [a popular referendum] now. I believe, the call for a referendum is rooted in a widespread skepticism towards the EU, which we won't be able to remedy through a vote. It is far more important for us to wrap up the Treaty, because then we can address the EU citizens' most burning problems - such as a more social Europe or climate protection." Power to the Women in the Muslim World ¶4. ... headlines liberal daily Der Standard, publishing a PAS-facilitated interview with Ambassador Shirin Tahir-Kheli, Senior Adviser to the Secretary of State for Women's Empowerment, who attended the Oct. 18 conference "Living together - but how?" co-hosted by the US Embassy Vienna. Hers is a tough job, considering the reputation of the Bush administration, particularly in the Muslim World, the Standard suggests. Tahir-Kheli, who was born in India, raised in Pakistan, and can look back on a long career at US universities and in government service, is convinced nonetheless: "The US image as the land of opportunities, where all religions and groups live together and get their opportunities, is intact." Ambassador Tahir-Kheli is well aware that she is working against a stream of growing Islamism, but: "Most Muslim governments know that [a loss of] security and stability are the price for excluding 50 percent of their population from public life. We support numerous initiatives. We had a program in Saudi Arabia, where female students from Jeddah University went to Jordan to do humanitarian aid work. It was the first time that they traveled outside their country without their fathers or brothers. Pakistan will hold elections soon, and we're helping the civilian society with the election campaigns." The US has remained true to itself, Tahir-Kheli argues, despite Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib. Besides, "I have worked for three Republican administrations, Reagan, and the first and second President Bush, and people always said Americans are naove, and don't know what they are doing. Reagan is an actor, who falls asleep during negotiations, etc. Today, people recognize that Communism collapsed and that Germany was re-united during Reagan and the first President Bush's terms of office." Attack on Bhutto Kills over 100 ¶5. More than 120 people have been killed and hundreds more injured in bomb attacks on a motorcade carrying former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in Karachi. According to ORF radio's early morning news Morgenjournal, Bhutto had just returned from eight years of self-imposed exile. She was not hurt in the blast, but windows in the armored vehicle she was traveling in were shattered and a door was blown off. While some eyewitnesses said they saw a small car explode near Bhutto's truck, others spoke of a man running towards the motorcade and blowing himself up. Prior to her return, there had been threats from pro-Taliban militants, the radio continues, adding that Pakistani officials said they had warned Mrs. Bhutto of possible attacks and advised her to postpone her return. Meanwhile, a member of Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party, who was also on the truck, placed the blame for the attacks on the government. ORF quotes him as saying:"This is an act of terrorism and the government. [From the moment] Benazir Bhutto had announced she was coming they have given the impression that there will be some attack [on her.] I think this is the total collapse of the government of Pakistan. This is an act of terrorism not done by any terrorist but done by the government." Kilner