Lisa-Maria Kellermer has frequently given media interviews to fight the coronavirus pandemic and promote vaccinations
Austrian leaders issued a call for national unity after the suicide of a doctor who had received death threats from anti-vaccination campaigners and conspiracy theorists over the coronavirus pandemic.
“Let’s put an end to this intimidation and fear-mongering. Hate and intolerance have no place in our Austria,” said President Alexander Van der Bellen, hailing Lisa-Maria Kellermer as a doctor who supported treating people, protecting them from disease by taking a careful approach to the pandemic.
“But some people were outraged by it. And these people scared her, threatened her, first on the internet and then in person…”
The body of the doctor — who frequently gave media interviews about fighting the coronavirus pandemic and promoting vaccinations — was found in her office in Upper Austria on Friday.
Media reported that prosecutors said they found a suicide note and did not plan to perform an autopsy.
Austria last month scrapped plans to introduce compulsory Covid-19 vaccination for adults, saying the measure was unlikely to increase one of the lowest vaccination rates in Western Europe.
Tens of thousands of people have marched in frequent protests against lockdown measures last year and against plans to make vaccinations compulsory, highlighting a social divide over public health measures that many countries have experienced.
But the doctor’s suicide — which the Austrian medical association said reflected a wider trend of threats against medical staff — shocked the country.
“Hatred against people is unforgivable. This hatred must finally stop,” said Health Minister Johannes Rauch.
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