Direct reason for this post is obviously Nick Griffin's appearance on BBC's Question Time last week. I was both shocked and surprised by this BNP outing on national television. Shocked because of his absurd views on race, his interpretation of history and his self indulging smirking when his own stupidity was repeatedly exposed. I was surprised because this was supposed to be the golden opportunity for the BNP to gather even more protest votes in next year's general elections by engaging in constructive political discussion with a very much loathed political elite (dare I say Jack Straw left a great overall impression by remaining calm and in control throughout the show). Let's hope Griffin dag his own grave with an apoaling peformance and this genius compilation will be in the minds of voters next year.
Please sign this petition: SigntoSTOPdiscrimination has been set up by Liz Lynne MEP. Liz is a British Member of the European Parliament, representing the West Midlands region of England for the ALDE (Liberal and Democrat) group.
The Rise and Fall of the Far Right in Europe
This is a paper I wrote about a year ago when I was studying European Politics. It's quite a long read but offers a good general overview on extreme right political activities in Europe.
Since the early 80’s the far right in Western Europe has been on the rise. There are different theories that try to explain this rise. These theories look to explain the rise of the far right as a reaction to a demand for more ‘radical’ solutions to problems from society. Not only has the far right been on the rise; its identity has changed as well. Nowadays these parties distance themselves from the traditional extremist (i.e. neo-fascist and neo-nazi) Right and as well its proclivity for violence[1]. Nowadays the main political ideology of parties that are considered to be far- or extreme right wing in Western Europe incorporate a strong anti-immigrant sentiment (in particular anti-Muslim), strong anti-European feelings and the emphasis on a strong national identity. Furthermore a tendency can be identified that the success of a liberal economy in one particular country should only be beneficial for the native population.
The rise of the far right can not be seen as a common wave in the whole of Western Europe; it is more like small waves that take place at different times in different countries. This makes is more difficult to identify reasons that explain the rise of the far right in the whole of Western Europe. Furthermore far right wing parties are not equally represented in all countries; France, Belgium (in particular Flanders) and Austria have (had) much larger far right wing parties in their political system compared to countries like Germany, Norway and for example Ireland. What we know for sure is that by the year 1994, for the first time since the end of WWII, a far right wing party joined a democratically elected coalition government in a Western European country. The country to have the premiere for this was Italy, where the National Alliance (AN) joined the right-wing Berlusconi government in 1994. This political party actually was formed by Gianfranco Fini from the Italian Social Movement (the MSI)[2]. The aim of this essay is to have a look at the development of the far right in Western Europe since the early 80’s, to identify what some of the main far right political parties in contemporary Western Europe have in common and how they actually perform in elections.
It is nowadays more difficult to define where to draw the line whether a party is indeed a far- or extreme right wing party. As stated in the introduction; these parties are no longer the traditional fascist or nazi parties. The extreme right wing or fascist parties existing in Western Europe have since the end of WWII been put in a position of being outcasts, dangerous and undesirable to take part in the various political systems. This does not mean that these parties seized to exist. Especially in the case of Italy, where the strongest communist party in Western Europe was present. The presence of this strong party lead to a dominant position for the Christian Democratic Party. This dominance, a series of corruption scandals and a complete lack of confidence in the political system lead to the success of a radical populist right wing party[3]. The ‘new’ far right has different faces and in each country a slightly different identity. It is therefore interesting to analyze some countries in particular.
In general there are two types of explanations for the rise of the far right in Western Europe since the 80’s. Both types of reasons see the rise of the extreme right as a reaction to a demand from society. The reasons can be divided in two groups. The first group are cleavage based reasons. This explains the rise of the far right as a result of the post-industrial ‘revolution’, which has changed society fundamentally, giving way to a new political spectrum in Western European politics. This revolution can also be seen as a new and more radical answer to the capitalist society. Either ways it gives way for a new political situation that makes it possible for extremist parties on both sides of the political centre to exist .
Issue-based reasons look at the consequences of xenophobia and a feeling of resentment of the native Western European population. Xenophobia in this argues that the rise of the far right can be explained as a reaction to the influx of large numbers of non-Western immigrants and the development of a multicultural society. Furthermore the claim that the enlargement of the European Union will bring in large amounts of migrant workers from mainly Eastern European countries and that this will coincide with a downfall of standards of living and job losses feeds the fear of some Western Europeans and makes way for support for those parties that strongly oppose this form of migration. Important to add to this is that most studies done actually point out that the Western European countries actually need these migrant workers to revitalise their labour markets and to fill jobs that natives don’t want to do.[4] Resentment in this sees the growing popularity of the extreme right as a reaction to a supposedly growing gap between the people and the elites[5].
Especially after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Muslims immigrants and the Islam in general have become a very hot topic in Western European Politics. The terrorist attacks and the emerge (which does not mean these groups did not exist already) of radical Islam groups feed the feelings of uneasy of also the West European population and tends to feed the idea that Europe currently faces a ‘Muslim-problem’. A report on Islamophobia in the EU after 11 September 2001 furthermore shows that ‘‘Islamic communities and other vulnerable groups have become targets of increased hostility since 11 September. A greater sense of fear among the general population has exacerbated already exiting prejudices and fuelled acts of aggression and harassment in many European Member States’’[6]. Far right wing parties offer a political platform for those who want to express these feelings in a political way.
This idea of ‘Islamisation’ far-right wing politicians tend to express quite often is something that comes back over and over again in the statements of Dutch politician Geert Wilders. For example in September 2007 in Dutch parliament, he introduced a ten-step plan to reduce the ‘Islamisation of society‘[7]. Cold figures contradict him and others; in Western European countries Muslims account for a maximum of roughly 10% (France) of the population. In countries like Belgium, Denmark and the Netherlands this percentage is between 4 and 6%. The Muslim population in the United Kingdom is even smaller with an estimate of only 2.8% of the population.[8]
A classic example for the rise of the Far Right in Western Europe is perhaps the Austrian Freedom Party (FPO) of Jorg Haider. Originally the parties intention, when it was founded in 1955 was to provide a new platform between the socialist Left and the Catholic Right[9]. This platform later on turned out to be the key to the success of the modern FPO. In Austria, the SPO, the Social Democratic Party of Austria, had been in government for over thirty years. At the end of this period people became increasingly dissatisfied with their government and Haiders’ party mainly built its support on these feelings. The SPO had been in a coalition government with the conservative party for most of this time. Together they account for the two main and biggest political parties in Austria. In this way the rise and the support for the FPO can be seen as a reaction to the establishment; a protest vote as an outcome of feelings of resentment. Considering only 14% of the FPO voters based their vote on issues based on ‘foreigners’, xenophobia obviously didn’t play a vital role in people’s voting behaviour. There are other difference between the FPO and other Western European far right wing parties; firstly this party is a party that has its roots in Austrian politics and is therefore not a newcomer, and secondly it is the most successful party of it kind[10].
When the FPO joined the Austrian government in 2000, it was under the political leadership of Jorg Haider. Europe’s reaction to the election outcome was quite heavy. Belgium for example questioned Austria’s membership of the EU, France and Denmark postponed official visits and the President of the European Parliament once again emphasised Haiders’ xenophobic and racist statements[11]
Joining the government turned out to be the beginning of the end of Haiders success; by joining the establishment himself he lost the protest vote.[12] His new party only managed to score just above the 4% barrier to get seats in government in last elections. His new party, the Alliance for the Future of Austria currently holds 7 seats in parliament[13].
In Belgium it’s mainly due to the still existing ‘Cordon Sanitaire’ that the far-right wing Flemish Interest (previously named Flemish Block/Vlaams Blok) is not represented in a coalition government. A Cordon Sanitaire can be seen as a pact between different political parties in order to exclude one other party in particular from taking part in a coalition government, even if that means that big coalitions have to be formed between ideological rivals. Because the Flemish Block was regarded upon as a racist group, the other Belgian political parties committed to exclude the party from any coalition government[14]. In the last couple of years the Flemish Block has obtained quite a lot of votes in general elections, 11,6 % in 2003, 9,9 % in 1999 and 7,8 % in 1995. These figures show that the support for the Flemish Block (or now Flemish Interest) is actually on the rise. In the 2007 general elections Flemish Interest won 12% of the votes[15].
The Belgian case in particular is very interesting because there is a far more underlying explanation for the success of the far-right. Belgium is in many ways a very divided country. The Flemish block plays on the sentiment of the ethnic divisions in the country. Central issues in this ideology are liberating the Flemish people from the economically stagnant Wallonia, and the dissolution of the Belgian nation as it stands today.[16] The Flemish Interest has the most radical and perhaps for some most desirable solution to this problem; a split up of the country or at least a much higher level of independence for Flanders from the Belgian State. The ‘’Brussels-case’’ makes things however more complicated. Brussels, the capital city is a bilingual city with the vast majority of the population speaking French. Geographically speaking the city however lies in Flanders.
In addition to this the Flemish Interest party has most of the more classical features of a contemporary far right wing party in Western Europe. It opposes immigration, in particular from Muslim countries and does not see the advantages of a multicultural society.[17]
Another variety in far right wing politics can be identified in France. France is a country that has always known a very strong nationalistic tradition. The National Front (FN) is perhaps the most well known far right wing political party in Europe. Its political leader, Jean-Marie le Pen has caused not only a lot of controversy in France over the years, but in his political career he had also made it to the second round of the French presidential elections once. Le Pen is the face (and since the party’s foundation only president) of the FN and his party unites different streams in far-right wing ideology in France (the Monarchists, the Catholic Fundamentalists, the New Right and The Nationalists)[18].
In the last years the Front National has established itself as being the third largest political party in France right after the right-wing UMP (Union for a Popular Movement) and the Socialist Party. In the 2002 French general elections the Front National won 11.3 % of the votes[19]. The French political system, that does not know a system of proportional representation, explains why the Front National has never really been able to profit from the outcome in general elections on national level.
On local level the Front National has had more political influence. In a couple of Southern French cities(Orange, Toulon and Vitrolles) Front National members have been elected as mayors, causing quite some controversy. In the city of Orange for example it is assumed that efforts have been made by the FN mayor to ban literature on topics like racism, rap, globalisation or of those authors opposed to the extreme right.[20]
The political ideology of also the Front National reflects in may ways the political ideology of most Western European far right parties. The ideology of the Front National includes going back to traditional family values. This includes stimulating women to stay at home and take care of the family instead of going to work. The FN want more independence or complete independence from the European Union and other international institution. It furthermore wants to protect the French market by setting up protectionist measures against the import of goods from cheap labour countries and the import of cheap labour itself. One of its motto’s therefore it ‘France for the French (La France pour les Français)’. When is comes to crime the FN wants harder punishments and it is in favour of the re-instalment of the death penalty.[21]
Perhaps the most unifying aspect of a wide variety of far right parties in Western Europe is the issue that the Front National raises about Muslims and the Islam. The Front National opposes immigration, particularly Muslim immigration from North Africa, West Africa and countries in the middle east. Jean-Marie le Pen once proposed the sending back of 3 millions non-Europeans out of France at a rate of 1200 per day if he would get a seven year term as president of the Republic[22].
Le Pen finds many followers of his ideology, in particular in populist (far) right wing parties in Western Europe.
In the Netherlands, Geert Wilders created his own political party in the aftermath of the so-called Fortuyn-revolution. Pim Fortuyn was the politician that put the immigration debate back on the Dutch political agenda and questioned the success of the multicultural society. He furthermore questioned the success of the ‘purple’ Dutch coalition government that came into power in 1994 and emphasises problems in social healthcare and education[23]. Wilders’ Party PVV (Party for Freedom) can mainly be seen as a one issue party. If we look at the party programm, this programm mainly focuses on keeping a Dutch identity, tighter rules on immigration and it seeks ways to exclude Islam-influence from society[24].
To conclude I want to emphasise what I think are the binding factors in the contemporary far right in Western Europe. First of all in relationship to xenophobia we can see that racism and fear for the consequences of the influx of large numbers of non Western-European immigrants
and the fear of the Islam, provide a solid base for these parties to gain support in society. What we can identify is that especially after the 9/11 attacks, anti Muslim and Islam feeling also contribute to feeling insecurity and misunderstanding. In addition to this there is the more contemporary fear for Eastern European immigrants.
Playing on feelings of dissatisfaction and resentment under the population, and by expressing populist opinions feed the support for far-right wing parties. But even though support for the far-right wing parties often is the outcome of feelings of xenophobia and resentment, there are particular cases in particular countries that can account for a rise as well. A perfect example for this is the success of the Flemish Interest in Belgium. Historically speaking there are countries that traditionally know a strong far right wing party (Italy) or at least a strong far right wing movement (France).
Most important is the reaction of mainstream parties to the recent success of the far right wing parties. It is to soon to claim that in general we see that West European politics is moving to the right; the growing intolerance between native Europeans and migrants, in particular Muslims is something much more worrying.
[1] Betz, Hans-George, Radical Right Wing Populism in Western Europe p.3, (The MacMillan Press ltd. 1994)
[2] Declair, E. Politics on the Fringe p. 199-201, Duke University Press (1999)
[3] Betz, Hans-George, Radical Right Wing Populism in Western Europe p. 47-49, (The MacMillan Press ltd. 1994)
[4] Puhl, J. Going West for the good life, der Spiegel (28/3/2007)
[5] Heywood, P. Jones, E., Rhodes, M. Developments in West European Politics (Palgrave 2002), 138-140
[6] Allen, C. and Nielsen J. (European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights) Summary Report on Islamophobia in the EU after 11 September 2001
[7] Wilders, G. Inbreng Geert Wilders bij debat Algemene Politieke Beschouwingen, http://www.geertwilders.nl/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1188&Itemid=74
[8] Muslims in Europe; country guide BBC News at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4385768.stm
[9] Betz, Hans-George, Radical Right Wing Populism in Western Europe p. 11-13, (The MacMillan Press ltd. 1994)
[10] Pelinka, A. Die FPÖ im internationalen Vergleich Zwischen Rechtspopulismus, Deutschnationalismus und Österreich-Patriotismus (2002) http://www.cco.regener-online.de/2002_1/pdf_2002_1/pelinka.pdf
[11] Black, I. Europe rallies against Haider coalition, The Guardian (4/2/2000)
[12] Traynor, I. End of an era looms for far right populist Haider, The Guardian (29/9/2006)
[13] For overviews of election results, Bunderministerium fuer Inneres: http://www.bmi.gv.at/wahlen/
[14] Roxburgh, A. BBC News Blow to Belgium’s Far Right
[15] For results of Belgian elections: http://verkiezingen2007.belgium.be/nl/cha/results/results_start.html
[16] Declair, E. Politics on the Fringe, p. 197-198, Duke University Press (1999)
[17] The Party Programm of the Flemish Block can be found on their website http://www.vlaamsbelang.be/21/
[18] Declair, E. Politics on the Fringe, p. 197-198, Duke University Press (1999)
[19] For results of Belgian elections: http://www.interieur.gouv.fr/sections/a_votre_service/elections/resultats
[20] Le Monde, Le Front national impose ses choix à la bibliothèque municipale d'Orange, (12/7/1996)
[21] The FN Party Programm can be found on their website http://www.frontnational.com/doc_programme.php
[22] Feteke L. (Institute of race Relations) Issues in the French Presidential Elections (1/6/1995)
[23] Fortuyn, P. De puinhopen van acht jaar Paars, Karakter (2002)
[24] The PVV Party Programm can be found on their website http://www.pvv.nl/ (verkiezingspamflet)
