Is Trump Everywhere?
Does every country have a would-be Trump? Is there one ‘Down Under’ in Australia, the land of the ‘fair go’, where everyone is your mate? Yes, xenophobia can be found anywhere in the world; expressed through racism, it is like a cancer, deeply entrenched in the body of every society, destroying communities by eating away at consideration for others. Today, it seems Trump-like figures are on the increase, the appeal to populism encouraging more and more voters to elect right-wingers keen to preserve some kind of ‘purity’. However, it seems merely serendipitous as to those who end up forming a government, and those who do not.
In government or not, the extreme right appears to be growing. If this conclusion is rather dispiriting, please stop reading if you want to avoid a feeling of depression. While my brief overview excludes Africa, Asia, and South America, (on the grounds these continents are rather different from those in the West), I may look at these other parts of the world on another occasion. My notes begin with a brief examination of several European countries already well known as the home of right wing parties, including Austria, France, Germany, Italy and The Netherlands. The survey will end with a quick look at Australia,
We can start with Austria, where the Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ) was established in 1955. Its more recent prominence began with the election of a new chairman, Nazi sympathiser Jörg Haider who led them from 1986 until 2000 The FPÖ came second in the 1999 general elections on an anti-immigration and anti-EU ticket, winning 27% of the vote and 52 seats in parliament under the Austrian proportional representation system. Success in the elections led to negotiations with the right-wing People’s Party, which eventually agreed to form a coalition government with the FPÖ. With that success, Austria became the poster boy for the extreme right. Haider was killed in a car accident in 2008: after a dip the FPÖ quickly regained much of its support. Its candidate, Norbert Hofer, narrowly lost the 2016 Presidential Election, and after the 2017 parliamentary elections, the FPÖ formed a coalition government, once again with the Peoples’ Party. Extremism continues to dominate Austria.
Although less successful, the National Front in France has also been a persistent force in politics since 1972. For many years Jean-Marie Le Pen was leader, growing support against a weak and divided left, helped by increasing European anti-immigration sentiments. After Marine Le Pen moved her father aside, the National Front’s profile continued to grow. Some commentators believe it is not only one of the main political parties in France but also the strongest and most successful populist party of Europe. Le Pen finished second in the 2017 Presidential Election, losing to Emmanuel Macron. Telegenic, she remains the most well-known figure for the extreme right in Europe, pushing an anti-immigration platform. The National Front has yet to form government alone or in a coalition, but the possibility remains.
The far right in post-war Germany has mainly been associated with the neo-Nazi youth protest movement, with years of violent rallies held by disaffected and racist youths in both the east and west of the country. However, none of Germany’s three minor far right parties had much impact until the Alternative for Germany political party was founded in 2013. Led by Jörg Meuthen and Alexander Gauland, it is Germany’s leading right-wing populist party. It managed to finish third in the 2017 federal election, and became the first such party to enter the national parliament. Equally important has been the success of various right-wing and populist parties in State parliaments, with several winning seats from 1992 onwards, as well as six seats in the European Parliament. Today, as Angela Merkel’s dominance continues to slip away, so the AfG appears to be gaining ground.
The next country on this brief summary of the extreme right in Europe has to be Italy, with the xenophobic Northern League and the post-fascist National Alliance forming a right-wing coalition with Silvio Berlusconi’s governing party following general elections in 2001. Berlusconi gave three cabinet posts to the Northern League, despite the fact that it only polled 4% of the vote, and one key post to Gianfranco Fini of the National Alliance. With policies such as authorising coastguards to shoot human traffickers and the belief that the EU is run by paedophiles, the Northern League’s inclusion in government prompted widespread concern across Europe. It is bitterly opposed to the south of the country, accusing Southern Italians of laziness, lack of education or criminality. The LN has increasingly criticised mass immigration to Italy, and Islam, and sought Italy’s exit from the Eurozone and EU. In 2018 left and right parties remain bitterly opposed, with neither grouping able to form government
Finally, in the Netherlands, right-wing populism was first seen in the House of Representatives in 1982, when the Centre Party won a single seat. Since then parties and alliances have been formed, then splintered and finally disappeared. However, right-wing representation has continued, and since 2006, the Party for Freedom (PVV) has held seats in the Dutch House of Representatives. The party’s main program revolves around strong criticism of Islam, restrictions on migration from new European Union countries and Islamic countries, pushing for cultural assimilation of migrants into Dutch society, opposing Turkey joining the EU, advocating for the Netherlands to withdraw from the European Union and ending Dutch usage of the euro. In the general election in 2017, the PVV gained new seats to a total of 20, becoming the second largest party in the House of Representatives.
Compared to these European countries, the United Kingdom has seen much less success for the extreme right. The largest right-wing and populist party has been the UK Independence Party, led by Nigel Farage. It campaigned for Brexit from the European Union, and it is a strong supporter of a ‘points based immigration system’ (like that in Australia). However, while Farage makes good use of the media, and worked tireless in support of Brexit, the party is weak compared to similar groups on the Continent, and has no seats in the UK parliament.
Should these various parties be taken seriously? A sense of their growing confidence was evident in 2017 when prominent leaders of Europe’s right-wing populist parties gathered in the German city of Koblenz to discuss ‘Freedom for Europe’, celebrating Trump’s win in the US as evidence of growing worldwide support for an extreme right wing agenda. [i] Among others, the meeting brought together Frauke Petry, chairwoman of the Alternative for Germany (AfD), Marine Le Pen, president of France’s National Front, Dutch anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders and Matteo Salvini of Italy’s Northern League.
The flavour of the group was well captured by remarks by Marcus Pretzell, an AfD member of the European Parliament, speaking to the Washington Post. He did not attempt to hide his contempt for journalists. “I don’t like how you work! … I don’t give a damn what you write!” he said, refusing to answer almost all of The Post’s questions about the meeting. Pretzell then abruptly hung up the phone — but not before pointing out that he wasn’t taking any cues from Trump. “I’ve been doing this longer than Trump . . . treating the press exactly for what they are!”[ii]
Parallels between these leaders and Trump are clear. “Indeed, in what analysts see as another parallel to Trump, stirring controversy appears to be an essential part of the AfD’s strategy for the upcoming German parliamentary elections. As an internal document revealed, the party wants to use “carefully planned provocations” to irritate political opponents. To be unfairly stigmatized by the established parties, according to the AfD’s reasoning, would make the party even more popular with voters. At the same time as the conference, Björn Höcke, the AfD’s chairman in the German state of Thuringia, sparked outrage by calling the Berlin Holocaust memorial “a memorial of disgrace” and German commemoration culture “stupid.” Höcke defended the statements, which he made in a speech in Dresden, arguing that nothing could be wrong with calling the Nazi genocide a “disgrace.” [iii] His speech drew considerable attention, which was probably the main objective of the Koblenz conference!
Depressed yet? What can we learn from this brief overview? Extreme right political parties have been successful, to some extent, in several European countries. All of them have histories over two or more decades (even if party names and key figures do change from time to time). More alarming, slowly but surely support is growing in Europe, as the ‘move to the right’ is evident in many countries. The only exception appears to be the UK, where the right-wing UK Independence Party remains a minor player. Certainly, examining the evidence of the past thirty years weakens my suggestion that right wing prominence is a matter of serendipity: achievements are the result of careful, sustained planning, appealing to disenfranchised ‘traditional’ voters. It seems the European ‘Trumps in waiting’ are riding the same carefully engineered wave that helped bring Donald Trump to the US Presidency.
Before I draw any further conclusions, I’d like to turn to Australia. There, what we see is more similar to what has happened in the UK than the other countries I have discussed so far.
Pauline Hanson has been an Australian political figure for more than twenty years. Among her more provocative personal comments over the years (combined with those of members of her right wing party) include several that might sound somewhat familiar in the age of Trump. An end to multiculturalism. A ban on Muslims: “We are in danger of being swamped by Muslims who bear a culture and ideology that is incompatible with our own”. Promoting the belief that Islam is a political ideology, and Islamist terrorist are being funded from mosques in Australia. Suggesting the country is being swamped by Muslims, and promoting a ban on the burka being worn in public places. Suggesting the country is being swamped by Asians, and that these immigrants “have their own culture and religion, form ghettos and do not assimilate”. Calling for zero net immigration, an end to multiculturalism and a revival of Australia’s Anglo-Celtic cultural tradition, a culture that she worries has been diminished; the abolition of native title, an end to special Aboriginal funding programs, and an opposition to Aboriginal reconciliation which her party says will create two nations.
Her political life has been like that of a chameleon. Hanson first entered politics as a member of a local government council in 1994. She was chosen to stand for a Federal electorate in the 1996 election by the Liberal Party, but was dis-endorsed shortly before the election. Although listed on the ballot paper as the Liberal Party candidate, she won Oxley as an independent. In 1997, Hanson co-founded One Nation, a right-wing political party with a conservative and populist platform. She lost her seat the 1998 election, and after various travails and scandals was expelled from One Nation in 2002. Hanson rejoined One Nation in 2013, becoming leader again the following year, and was elected to Senate in 2016 with three other members of her party. Did I say a chameleon? No, it would be more accurate to say this leopard never loses her spots. She’s a committed racist bigot, and someone a Trump would admire.
Will Pauline Hanson manage to find herself in government? I don’t think so, as Australia seems to have a strong enough sense of fairness to obviate an extremist rising to power. My view is rather hesitant, however. After decades of continuing reasonable economic growth, the country may be entering a tougher period, with costs increasing, growth slowing, and challenges to exports. As financial problems are rising, so the racism the country has witnessed in the past could break out and become more widespread once again.
History is informative. The 1970s could have been a time of increased tensions as waves of refugees came from Asia, but leaders on both sides of politics kept racism under control: first by Labor Prime Minister Gough Whitlam and then by Liberal PM Malcolm Fraser. It was the late 1990s and early 200s that saw more serious trouble, as Pauline Hanson became increasingly prominent. This was the time of John Howard’s Prime Ministership: he initially failed to repudiate Hanson; he failed to bring about a parliamentary apology to indigenous Australians, and consistently appealed to Aussie ‘battlers’, poorer working class Australians. However, equivocations to one side, he was far from being a right wing extremist.
It’s not just one person, of course. This week an Australia Party senator, Fraser Anning, has praised the old White Australia Policy and spoke of a “final solution to the immigration problem”. In his inaugural address to the Senate, he said “we as a nation are entitled to insist that those who are allowed to come here predominantly reflect the historic European-Christian composition of Australian society” and called for a ban on Muslim immigration. “Not all Muslims are terrorists, but certainly all terrorists these days are Muslim, so why would anyone want to bring more of them here?” Fraser said. [iv] Sounds ominously familiar?
Trump-like figures have been appearing in many places. However, while I don’t think such a figure will lead Australia in the near future, events worldwide give me pause: so perhaps this is a hope rather than a prediction. Freedom House has recorded a decline in democracies worldwide. Its most recent report states: “Democracy faced its most serious crisis in decades in 2017 as its basic tenets—including guarantees of free and fair elections, the rights of minorities, freedom of the press, and the rule of law—came under attack around the world. Seventy-one countries suffered net declines in political rights and civil liberties, with only 35 registering gains. This marked the 12th consecutive year of decline in global freedom.” [v]
Despite everything I have reported here, I remain optimistic, even though that requires me to rely on the longer view. Australia is a good example to consider. It has suffered periods of racism over the years, but each time managed to get through them. It rejected Pauline Hanson once, and I believe it will do so again. A little earlier, I described right-wing extremism as a cancer. It wasn’t a good analogy. It is better thought of as a virus, worming its way into the community, only eventually to be rejected. We do find ways to inoculate against viral infections, even if it takes time. The day will come when the various ‘Trumps’ have been isolated and thrown out of our system.
[i] <https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jan/21/koblenz-far-right-european-political-leaders-meeting-brexit-donald-trump>
[ii] <https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/europes-right-wing-populist-leaders-to-confer-in-germany/2017/01/19 >
[iii] The Guardian, op cit
[iv] Reported in the Sydney Morning Herald on 14 August <https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/senator-honours-white-australia-policy-in-first-speech-and-calls-for-final-solution-on-immigration-20180814-p4zxhr.html>
[v] You can find the 2018 report here: <https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/freedom-world-2018>
