'Incest' town to hold rally

2008-05-06 16:46

Vienna - Residents of the Austrian town of Amstetten, now notorious around the world because of the Josef Fritzl incest case, will hold a rally on Wednesday in support of the victims and to press for a return to normality, a town spokesperson said on Tuesday.

The rally was to remind residents that they "as a community, did not fail" and that the crimes with which they were now associated were the work of a single person, said spokesperson Hermann Gruber.

"We want to show that life goes on now," Gruber said.

Amstetten has been in a worldwide spotlight since Fritzl was detained and it was revealed that he kept his daughter locked up for 24 years and bore seven of his children.

Residents have been encouraged to voice their feelings with words, drawings or simple signatures, on large banners that have been placed around the town since Saturday.

The aim of the rally is also to show support to Fritzl's victims, including his daughter, now 42, and the six surviving children, said the spokesperson.

- AFP