Countries of the World/COUNTRYS.BIN/dp/0026/00266.txt

Text File | 1991-06-24 | 30KB | 557 lines

$Unique_ID{COW00266}
$Pretitle{376}
$Title{Austria
Organisations affiliated to the Federal Youth Union}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Federal Press Service}
$Affiliation{Embassy of Austria, Washington DC}
$Subject{youth
members
federal
organisation
groups
young
executive
provincial
committee
party}
$Date{1989}
$Log{}
Country:     Austria
Book:        Austria Culture and Society 1945-1955-2000
Author:      Federal Press Service
Affiliation: Embassy of Austria, Washington DC
Date:        1989

Organisations affiliated to the Federal Youth Union

Arbeitsgemeinschaft katholischer Jugend Osterreichs (AkJO - Working Group of
Catholic Youth in Austria)

     The AkJO is a Catholic Youth Organisation which is not linked with any
political party. It has approximately 80,000 members from the age of 15
upwards and comprises the following constituent organisations: urban and
rural-based Catholic youth associations, Catholic workers' youth association
and Catholic students' youth association in a total of nine diocesan working
groups; and also groups existing at parish, factory and school level.

     The supreme executive body is the Federal Conference, which has 66
members delegated on the basis of their positions in the Federal Executive
Committee or as representatives of the various constituent organisations. The
federal executive committee consists of three Presidents, an Ecclesiastical
Assistant, the Rector of the Catholic Youth Welfare Scheme, the Federal
Secretary and two representatives of each of the constituent organisations.
The Working Group is financed by funds from the Federal Youth Plan, from its
own resources and from contributions provided by the Bishops' Conference.

     The Working Group's declared purpose is "to give young people a plausible
interpretation of the Christian message and thus to help them to recognise
their vocations as Christians". It seeks to answer young people's needs for
recognition and personal encounter and to assist them in finding themselves.
The objectives conform to those of the Church. The Working Group is answerable
for its actions to itself but requires the approval of the bishop responsible.
The AkJO provides the young people in its groups and communities with help in
their personal development, and it plays an active role in the life of the
Church, in culture and sport and in the national community, collaborating
wherever possible with other youth organisations. It pledges allegiance to the
Republic of Austria and the principles of democracy but adopts a position of
neutrality in party political terms.

     The AkJO's offices have the address: A-1010 Vienna, Johannesgasse 16,
tel.: [phone].

Bund Europaischer Jugend (BEJ - European Youth Union)

     The BEJ is a youth association with no party political or denominational
allegiances. It has 4,000 members between the ages of 12 and 30 and is made up
of provincial and district associations and local groups. The supreme
executive body is the General Assembly, which comprises the delegates of the
provincial associations. The sessions, which take place every two years, elect
the nine members of the Federal Executive Committee.

     The BEJ'S aims and purposes are the promotion of a European awareness,
the identification of supranational problems and the need for solidarity
transcending national borders, and commitment to the unification of Europe on
a federal basis.

     The BEJ's publications are "Europastimmen", which appears at two-monthly
intervals, and "Wir Europaer", "Alles fur Europa" and "europaus", which are
occasional publications.

     The BEJ is affiliated to the Young European Federalists (JEF) in
Brussels. The BEJ offices have the address: A-8330 Feldbach, Jahnweg 5, tel.:
(0 31 52) 24 97.

Evangelisches Jugendwerk in Osterreich (EJW i. O. - Protestant Youth Welfare
Scheme in Austria)

     The EJW is a youth welfare scheme run jointly by the Augsburg and
Reformed Confessions of the Protestant Church in Austria and has no party
political allegiances. It comprises some 25,000 members in seven (Lutheran)
dioceses and one youth council of the Reformed Church. It runs working and
action groups in approximately 200 parishes.

     The supreme executive body is the Youth Council for Austria, a committee
of eleven members made up of elected delegates from the Lutheran dioceses and
from the youth council of the Reformed Church as well as the Youth Vicars for
Austria. The executive management is in the hands of the Youth Committee for
Austria, whose seven members are elected by the Youth Council.

     The Scheme's declared purpose is to provide young people with
opportunities for meaningful leisure-time activities and to help them to cope
with their problems within the framework of a life characterised by freedom of
belief. The Scheme sets out in this way to make its own contribution to a more
humane future centred around the figure of Christ. The EJW runs youth groups
for all ages, children's church services, emergency relief operations, drugs
counselling, civilian service counselling, youth camps and amateur drama
groups.

     The EJW publishes a members' magazine called "Junge Gemeinde" (which
appears quarterly) and information sheets produced by individual groups. The
Protestant Youth Scheme is affiliated to the Austrian and European Ecumenical
Youth Councils and to the Youth Sections of the World Council of Churches and
the Lutheran World Union, both of which are based in Geneva.

     The EJW's offices have the address: A-1090 Vienna, Liechtensteinstrasse
20, tel.: [phone].

Gemeinschaft christlichen Lebens (Marianische Kongregation) in Osterreich
Jugend und junge Erwachsene (J-GCL/MK) - Christian Life Community (Marian
Congregation) of Austria Youth and young adults

     This is a Catholic church organisation to which some 4,000 young people
belong. It is made up of diocesan associations which in their turn comprise
individual communities and groups constituted on the basis partly of age,
partly of common interests. The supreme body is the Annual General Assembly
whose members are delegated by individual groups. The executive body is the
management committee; its Chairman is elected, and he appoints the other
members.

     The J-GCL/MK is the longest-standing youth movement in the Catholic
Church and traces its history back to St. Ignatius Loyola. It represents the
Catholic world-view in an ecumenical context and has no party political
allegiances. It sets out to take the Loyolan spiritual precepts as a basis for
encouraging a sense of personal responsibility in young people living their
lives in accordance with religious precepts and making their decisions with
the help of Christian principles. A major part in the weekly group meetings is
played by dialogue, discussion and prayer. The individual groups also arrange
numerous other activities like social events for senior citizens, public
debates, young peoples' Masses, sports festivals, Third World bazaars and so
on.

     "Magis", a magazine compiled by members, is published monthly.

     The organisation is affiliated to the World Federation of Christian Life
Communities (CLC).

     The offices have the address: A-1010 Vienna, Backerstrasse 18, tel.:
(02 22) 52 33 09.

Junge Osterreichische Volkspartei (JVP - Young Austrian People's Party)

     The JVP is affiliated to the Osterreichische Volkspartei (OVP - The
Austrian People's Party, equivalent to Christian Democrats) but is independent
of the party in its finances and organisation. It has 115,000 members and is
made up of provincial organisations and districts and local groups. The
supreme body is the Federal Assembly, which consists of the following: the
members of the Federal Executive Committee; four representatives of each
provincial organisation; the Provincial Secretaries; one delegate from each
provincial organisation for every 20,000 votes cast for the OVP at the last
national election; and finally one delegate from each provincial organisation
for ev