Publications may be removed from circulation if they violate legal provisions concerning morality or public security, but such cases are extremely rare. Television and national radio are government monopolies, but they present diverse points of view. A law passed in 1993 permits regional private radio stations, but implementation of the law was delayed due to legal challenges by unsuccessful applicants for licenses. After the Constitutional Court ordered the revision of radio frequencies and after complaints against the law were dropped in Styria and Salzburg, two stations opened. The text of the law, with rewritten radio frequency rules, is under revision.
Academic freedom is respected.
The law on the formation of associations states that permission to form an organization may be denied if it is apparent that the organization will pursue the illegal activities of a prohibited organization. The Constitution generally provides for freedom of religion of individuals, as laid down by the Treaty of St. Germain. Officially, 75.3 percent of the populace is Roman Catholic, and there are 12 other recognized religious organizations. For non-European Union missionaries or pastors, recognition is the key to residence and work. Some foreign Protestant churches have not qualified for religious recognition and have had to withdraw or scale back their services.