The NGO SOS Balkan Route and its founder Petar Rosandic are now accused of spreading messages and posts on social media since April 5 after SOS Balkanroute referred to ICMPD's facility as "the Austrian Guantanamo in Bosnia" and vividly described the fate of refugees who were mistreated during pushbacks from Croatia to Bosnia and Herzegovina, as reported by Vindobona.org. In addition, ICMPD was characterized as a "People's Party (ÖVP)-affiliated organization."
The International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) has now filed a lawsuit against the NGO SOS Balkanroute for damaging its reputation in the Vienna Commercial Court. According to ORF, an ICMPD spokesperson stated to APA that they do not want to restrict freedom of speech or apply financial pressure, but rather aim to stop the continuous spread of false claims.
The spokesperson stated according to ORF, "We have chosen the legal process of filing a lawsuit for injunction and revocation because we have been subjected to repeated damage to our reputation. To minimize the financial burden, we have not made any monetary demands, such as compensation." Furthermore, they stated that they have adhered to the lower legal framework for the assessment required to exhaust the full appeal process.
ICMPD Director General Michael Spindelegger had already dismissed the accusations as "complete nonsense" in mid-April, as reported by ORF. He stated, "There is an allegation that people are taken to a camp allegedly...
Images of the Whitegate fuel protests earlier this month were altered to make it appear gardaí were violent towards protesters. The AI-doctored images were shared widely online, including by inter...