In Memory of Fritz Edlinger: A Giant of Austria's Peace Movement.

Originally published on Jan 17, 2025.
Support Fritz' legacy by helping the Magazine International. You can donate to it here:

ARGE internationale Publizistik
unter „Edlinger Lebenswerk INTERNATIONAL“
IBAN: AT02 2011 1850 2959 6400
BIC: GIBAATWW

https://international.or.at

This is a video that I was dreading to make for weeks because it’s about the passing away of my Austrian friend and colleague, Fritz Edlinger, whose being laid to rest today, on January 17, 2025, in his native Vienna.

Fritz appeared on this channel before as he was one of Austria’s most energetic and forceful voices for peace and reconciliation. He was in many ways one of the greatest inspirations for this channel as Fritz had been operating his own Youtube channel “International” for many years, something that I found deeply admirable and then started this one here.

Fritz Edlinger passed away at the age of 76. He died in December, during a medical procedure in Vienna. Just the day before, he was still working in the editorial office of the magazine International, which he led. The manner of his passing reflects his life: literally up until his last breath, he dedicated himself to peace in the world, particularly in the Middle East.

In recent months, Fritz was frequently seen at Middle East conferences or rallies against Israel’s genocidal policies. In early September 2024, he shared his decades of foreign policy experience as a panelist at an impressive Palestine solidarity congress in Vienna’s Favoriten district. He regularly spoke at rallies against what he called “the brutal butchers” in Israel—the Netanyahu regime—and called for peace for Palestine and the Middle East.

The following are memories of this close friend, Heinz Gärtner who I also had on this show before.

From his early involvement with the Association of Socialist High School Students, Fritz saw himself as a committed but also critical social democrat. He took on various roles within the Social Democratic Party of Austria. For instance, in the early 1980s, he served as the Federal Chairman of the Young Generation. As such, his perspectives were significantly shaped by Chancellor Bruno Kreisky, whose legacy he took very seriously. This was particularly evident in his engagement in the Middle East and his advocacy for Palestinian rights. He undertook numerous trips to the Arab world and the Gulf region. To support these efforts, he became the Secretary-General of the Society for Austro-Arab Relations.

However, his great passion was the magazine International. He and a small group of like-minded individuals founded it in 1979. Since then, the magazine has been published regularly several times a year. It positioned itself as a critical voice to the left of center. For those interested in foreign policy, it offered alternative information, commentary, and analysis beyond the mainstream media landscape. Fritz Edlinger managed to sustain a printed, colourful magazine, which was later complemented by an online edition and a successful YouTube channel.

If you want to support Fritz’s work, please consider donating to International as it will be carried forward by the team Fritz built.