Following the suicide of a doctor who had received death threats from anti-vaccination campaigners and coronavirus pandemic conspiracy theorists, Austrian leaders made an appeal for national harmony.
Hatred and intolerance have no place in our Austria, said President Alexander Van der Bellen, praising Lisa-Maria Kellermayr as a physician who stood for curing patients, shielding them from illness, and being cautious about the pandemic. ‘Let’s put an end to this intimidation and fear mongering,’ he added.
‘But this has angered a few people. And these individuals frightened and threatened her both online and in person, right there in her office.’
The doctor’s body was discovered in her office in Upper Austria on Friday. She had frequently given media interviews about combating the coronavirus pandemic and promoting vaccinations.
Prosecutors were quoted in the media as saying they had discovered a suicide note and had no plans to do an autopsy.
Austria this month abandoned plans to make adult COVID-19 vaccinations mandatory, stating that it was unlikely that this would improve one of the lowest immunisation rates in western Europe.
The annual lockdowns and mandatory vaccination campaigns were met with tens of thousands of protestors, highlighting the social rift over public health policies that many nations have faced.
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