Since the start of the epidemic, Lisa-Marie Kellermayr has regularly appeared on Austrian television sets to call on the population to be vaccinated. A position that has earned him the target of threats on social networks.
Austria is in shock after the suicide of Lisa-Marie Kellermayr, a doctor found dead in her office in the Upper Austria region on Friday July 29. In a letter, found next to her remains, she justifies her act by psychological and physical exhaustion in the face of the surge of hatred of which she was the victim on social networks.
Known to the general public since the start of the Covid-19 crisis, Lisa-Marie Kellermayr regularly appeared on Austrian television sets to call on the population to be vaccinated. Her stance in favor of vaccination against Covid-19, which she considered necessary to avoid any serious form of the disease, led to her being the target of antivax and followers of conspiracy theories, according to Reuters.
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Harassment condemned by the authorities
An intense wave of harassment had thus forced her to close her consulting room.until further notice“, relates TF1 News . “The working conditions we have experienced in recent months cannot be expected of anyone, she wrote on her website., reports the French media. Frightened by death threats, Lisa-Marie Kellermayr had to pay between 8,000 and 10,000 euros to hire agents to ensure her safety.
After the announcement of the death of the doctor, the Austrian authorities reacted strongly. President Alexander Van der Bellan condemned the facts in a series of tweets and called on his compatriots to reason: “Let us put an end to these alarmist remarks and these attempts at intimidation. Hate and intolerance have no place in Austria “. He also pointed the finger at people who “scared her, threatened her, first on the internet, then in person, going straight to her office“.
A wave of emotions in the country
Health Minister Johannes Rauch also paid tribute to him on Twitter: “She has dedicated her life to the health and well-being of others. Death threats against her and her employee were a brutal reality. Hate against people is inexcusable. This hate must stop“. The death of Lisa-Marie Kellermayr has created a wave of emotions in the country, where several vigils will be organized in Vienna and Linz this Monday, August 1.
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The Austrian government announced on June 23 the total abandonment of its compulsory vaccination policy against Covid-19, after having already suspended it in March barely a month after its entry into force. Tens of thousands of people demonstrated in the streets of the country against this measure.
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