Quick Facts
Biography
Peter Pilz (born 22 January 1954) is an Austrian politician and was a leading member of the Austrian Green Party until 17 July 2017.
Political career
Born in Kapfenberg, Styria, Pilz has been a member of the Austrian Parliament (Nationalrat) between 1986 and 1991 and since 1999. From 1992 to 1994 he also was federal spokesperson of the Greens.
He is mainly concerned with legal matters and investigating political corruption. Commonly known wearing a black jacket and a red, grey or green T-shirt, he was the first Austrian politician to keep a blog on the Internet.
In January 2005, Pilz made international news when he called for Arnold Schwarzenegger to be stripped of his Austrian citizenship. As Governor of California, Schwarzenegger had refused to intercede in the execution of a convicted murderer, Donald Beardslee. Pilz pointed to an Austrian law which prohibits any Austrian from taking part in, or ordering, an execution.
A few months later, Pilz claimed that a person whom he called "Zeuge D" (German: "witness D") has information that Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had participated in the murder of 3 Kurds in Vienna in 1989. According to him the Austrian police had already contacted the witness, who supposedly lived in France, but this was denied by the Austrian Ministry of Justice.
On 25 July 2017 he announced his independent campaign for the elections to the Austrian parliament in the autumn. He heads the Peter Pilz's List, a group of intellectuals, artists and entrepreneurs, critical toward the establishment.
Other activities
- SK Rapid Wien, Member of the Board of Trustees