Galina Toktalieva - Diary of Female Photographer©

After useless computer course, where I was send by district job office (AMS) together with other sad unemployed one month before national elections to improve unemployment rate statistics - I felt elated as if after six weeks of imprisonment.

We were forced to participate in this educational show under threat of losing allowance and had spent days in computer halls with archaic machines. Often what I did in the training group was observing how unemployed males flirted with big bosomed woman-trainer and for hours in the row listened to their small talks.
Yesterday after long walk  – now I don’t take tram or underground, because social center didn’t prolonged my reduced price transport card (Mobilpass),
I was gazing at closed doors of Sieben Stern café and recollected press-conference with communist leader Mirko Messner there, which I visited as one of only two interested photographers.
I made photo of homeless man, who was sitting at the bus stop drinking and inspecting his swollen foot (Look!)
When moving along Westbahnstrasse, I came across well known communist author and producer Kurt Palm. He looked as if he was just awaked.

And he preferred not to see me, as many other members of movement do. Being true to group solidarity they may suspect outsiders in anti-communist dirtiness, what in my case is not true. I find many communists are touching and cute.

I like, for example, Graz communist Ernest Kaltenegger with his round Buddha face, in spite of fact that he never gives me chance to say a word, because we both know how big IT is.

Political sympathies correlate only indirectly with personal moral and ethical values.
It seems, one can easier approach Joerg Haider or Heinz-Christian Strache, than their political opposites. Personal aura of Strache, as I could sense it, does not emanate secret arrogance, which often the case with Austrian benefactors of humankind.

Persons who officially claim to be protectors of poor and downtrodden,
in reality of personal contacts are often unreachable. Communists, according to my personal experience, have altitude to demonstrate their exaggerated humanity aspect and they want to be rewarded for this demonstrations. Like road with one side-movement, such people and organizations, expect to be supported for their virtual virtues, as, for example, many charity organizations do, when they talk about starving children in Africa intending to expand their budget.

Graz! I always dreamed to come back and embrace you. At last after year of absence I managed to make the trip with the train and visited traditional festivity VOLKSHAUSFEST on 6 of September, organized by members of communist party - with food, drinks and music. The atmosphere was rather friendly. The provisions were not free, and activists served visitors themselves, earning in this way for needs of the party

Party fans

Party fans

Elke Kahr and Ernest Kaltenegger

Elke Kahr and Ernest Kaltenegger

Leaders of the movement, photographed by me in poor lighted conference hall (Bildungszentrum)

Demonstration of equality

Equality and brotherhood

Group privileges

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Chef of styrian social-democrats is for coalition with ÖVP

Styrian SPÖ Governor Franz Voves has spoken up in support of governing coalition with the ÖVP.

Voves said: “I was and I am a supporter of this coalition. I think that it is the best solution for the next five-ten years.”

Franz Voves - former ice-hockey national team player refused to comment on whether the SPÖ should continue such cooperation in case it fails to receive the most votes in the 28 September election. Voves dismissed talk about possible election outcomes as mere speculation at the moment.

In contrast to some other SPÖ leaders, the 55-year-old Voves stressed the point that he would not exclude any party from talks about a possible coalition.

Voves expects that the SPÖ will be number one on 28 September due to new SPÖ leader Werner Faymann, which has beén “fantastic” in Styria.

Thomas Hochwarter, Austrian Times, 12.08.08.

Съёмка Вернера Файмана
(shooting with social-democrats leader Werner Faymann)

Вначале я ринулась на пресс-конференцию „зелёных“, где оказалась единственным фотографом. Все репортёры караулили у дверей штаб-квартиры социалистов, когда появится Файман.
Лидер „зелёных“ – симпатичный пожилой дяденька в красной кофточке. Рядом восседает его соратник и партийный активист, которого я видела на манифестации „голубых“. (more…)