|
AUSTRIA SIGNS: Brussels, March 2, 2005 - Dr. Karl Irresberger
of the Austrian Chancellor's office signs the Framework
Arrangement with the Forum of Federations in Brussels on March 2, 2005.
The Austrian Republic is a central European state (83,858 km²) with 8.1 million inhabitants (1998). It is the successor state of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire (1867-1918), which was a multinational empire, but had no federal structure. In 1918 Emperor Charles I , who ruled Austria from 1916-18, promised that he would introduce federalism in order to accommodate the diverse aspirations of the nationalities living in the Austrian-Hungarian Empire. His manifesto to the peoples of Austria (Völkermanifest) came, however, too late to have any practical consequences. It was not proclaimed until the last few weeks of the First World War and four days before the break-up of the Empire.
The first republic (1918-1933/34) which succeeded the Empire adopted a federal constitution. This constitution of 1920, which is still in force today, was a compromise between the political intentions of the conservative Christian Social Party and those of the Social Democrats. Whereas the latter wanted a strong central power, the Christian Social Party favoured a high degree of state (Land) autonomy. Early Austrian federalism provided some disruptive effects on the unity of the country because it set the stage for bitter political conflict between the parties. It became a forum for the battle of conservative state governments against the Land of Vienna, the national capital, which was social democratic.
The constitution itself was revised several times and every revision contributed to a strengthening of the federal level of Austrian politics. An agreement on the division of competencies in financial affairs was reached in 1922 and came into effect in 1925. (It must be noted, however, that today's division of financial jurisdiction is based on the Financial Constitutional Act of 1925.) In 1925 a decision was made on the internal administration of the Länder and on their competency in the field of public education (revised in a 1962 act). In 1929 the role of the political centre in Austrian politics was strengthened even more by the introduction of a directly elected head of state, a federal President. It was even decided to reform the Bundesrat, the Second Chamber, and to add to the representatives of the states the representatives of the major social groups of society (Stände).
The latter reform was not implemented, but it indicated the growing influence of anti-democratic thought which cumulated in the new Austro-fascist constitution of 1934. The government became the legislator and several appointed institutions, among them a Council of the States (Länderrat), were entitled to agree or disagree but not to change legislation. Even this limited control of the government was, however, irrelevant, because Austria was ruled simply by orders of government. In 1938 German troops occupied Austria, and the country was incorporated into Nazi Germany as the 'Ostmark' of the Third Reich.
In 1945, after the defeat of Nazi Germany, the constitution (Bundesverfassungsgesetz) of 1920 with all its revisions and also the pre-1934 legislation were reinstated. Austria became once again a federal state. In the 1960s and 1970s the Austrian Länder tried to stop the trend towards ever greater centralization of power in Austrian politics. Although they succeeded in bringing about some constitutional change which strengthened their position vis-à -vis the federal government, Austria remains a country of 'unitary' federalism'i.e., a country in which regional power is clearly subordinated to federal power.
In 1955 Austria regained its sovereignty in exchange for a constitutional guarantee of its permanent neutrality. In the same year the country became a member of the United Nations. Austria joined the Council of Europe in 1956, was co-founder of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) in 1960, and became a member of the European Union (EU) in 1995.
|
|
