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PERSPECTIVE

MERIn AbbASS / KATEInA TVRd / VClAV WAlACh / bARToSz RydlISKI / ToM noCIAR

December 2011

Right-wing Extremismin Central Europe

An Overview

In the newly emerging democracies o Central Europe, such as Hungary, Poland, the

Czech Republic and Slovakia, new political entities have ormed, including a number

o right-wing, nationalist and extremist entities.

Right-wing extremist organisations in the Czech Republic and Slovakia are oten

registered as civic associations or political parties. In Poland, the radical right has no

legal basis, operating only on a semiormal platorm.

These organisations pose a threat to the new emerging democracies in Central Eu-

rope and thus coherent policies are needed to combat them.

n

n

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MERIn AbbASS ET.Al. | RIghT-WIng ExTREMISM In CEnTRAl EuRoPE

1

Introduction(Merin Abbass)

In the 20 years since the collapse o the Soviet bloc, the

Western media has oten reported on the successul

transition o the new EU member states to a ree market

economy, as well as on elections and emerging political

parties.

However, there have been ewer reports about the

other, darker side o Central Europe, with the existence

o right-wing extremists, racists and agitators against

Roma, homosexuals, Jews and other ethnic minorities.

These are obtaining more and more power in the emerg-

ing democracies. The particular dimensions o danger ocourse dier rom one country to another. The Czech

Republic, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia have thereore

conronted these challenges dierently.

In recent years, right-wing extremism has emerged in Eu-

rope. Right-wing extremists are trying to establish them-

selves in society and politics and are deploying a range

o strategies and structures to that end. Especially in hard

times o nancial and economic crisis, right-wing extrem-

ists seek to benet rom peoples insecurity and ear and

to exploit them or their own political aims. Right-wing

extremism pose a threat to democracy thereore more

attention should be paid to developing anti-extremist

policies.

The present paper provides an introduction to the cur-

rent situation with regard to right-wing extremism in

Central Europe and outlines the historical background

and actors and their position within the political system

and society. It also presents some uture scenarios o the

development o right-wing extremism in Central Europe.

Right-wing Extremism in Central Europe(Kateina Tvrd)

In Central Europe the communist system, which re-

mained in place or almost 40 years, was characterised

by strictly limited political competition and the restriction

o undamental rights and civic reedoms. Ater the col-

lapse o the Soviet Union and the all o communism in

1989, however, new democracies emerged and started

to consolidate in Central Europe. The basic eatures o

democracy are plurality, consisting o ree competition

between political parties and members o society, equal-

ity and reedom. In the newly emerging democracies o

Central Europe, such as Hungary, Poland, the Czech Re-

public and Slovakia, new political entities were ormed in

accordance with this, including a number o right-wing,

nationalist and extremist entities. These right-wing ex-

tremist political movements take various orms such as

inormal youth subcultures, media, interest groups and

ormal political parties.1 They have clear ideological at-

titudes that contradict constitutional and democratic

principles.2 They are a threat or the new emerging de-

mocracies in Central Europe so that coherent policies to

combat it are needed.

Czech Republic(Vclav Walach)

In the Czech Republic, right-wing extremism3 has been

developing since 1989. Since the very beginning, there

have been two main strands o the ar right social move-

ment, neo-Nazi and nationalist, although in the 1990s,

their exponents were both to be ound in the Coalition

or the Republic/Republican Party o Czechoslovakia, the

most successul political party in the Chamber o Depu-

ties rom 1992 to 1998. Subsequently, however, relations

between them became airly complicated, ranging rom

collaboration to outright hostility. The Czech ar right

seems on the decline at the moment. Nevertheless, in

some respects it still requires attention.

The Workers Party or Social Justice (DSSS) is the most

important political party within the ar right spectrum,

obtaining 1.14 per cent o the votes in the parliamentary

elections in 2010. As a successor o the Workers Party

that was outlawed by the Supreme Administrative Court

in 2010 because o its antidemocratic aims, xenophobic,racist, and chauvinist programme, and involvement with

the violent actions o banned neo-Nazi groups, it ocuses

on a variety o issues: a Europe o white nations, the

prosperity o the Czech nation, the interests o the work-

1. Bastl, Martin, Mare, Miroslav, Smolk, Jose, Vejvodov, Petra. 2011.Krajn pravice a krajn levice v R. Praha: Grada Publishing, pp. 139143.

2. Backes, Uwe. 2007. Meaning and Forms o Political Extremism, CentralEuropean Political Science Review, Vol. IX, No. 4, pp. 242262.

3. Since it has little analytical signicance, the author o this paper leavesthe concept o political extremism to one side, preerring to use the termar right.

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ing class in particular and criticism o the liberal capitalist

regime and its political elites, immigrants, ethnic minori-

ties, including Jews and minorities with regard to sexual

orientation. Interestingly, they are at least partly willing

to satisy the territorial and state demands o German

neo-Nazis.

Two phases o the DSSS can be distinguished. Until 2007,

the party mainly dealt with the deence o workers in-

terests. Since then, however, it has concentrated on eth-

nic minorities and crime: or example, Roma and some-

times Vietnamese people are portrayed as criminals or

socially maladaptive. One requently deployed strategy is

to march through localities inhabited by Roma.

There are several inormal organisations in the country

that are clearly infuenced by developments in Germany.

National Resistance, Free Resistance and Autonomous

Nationalists are the most signicant. At the moment,

the importance o particular groups is obscure. How-

ever, inormally organised groups continue to unction

as important the segments o ar right, which is evident

mostly at public demonstrations. Besides acts o vio-

lence, they propagandise National Socialist ideas and try

to mobilise new adherents. They have abandoned the

discredited skinhead image and have opened up the

movement to some extent to a wider range o people,

insisting only on adherence to National Socialist belies.

They are also trying to speak directly to youngsters by

holding concerts, organising environmental activities,

distributing leafets and so on.

Last but not least, there is a substantial nationalist

movement (associated with right-wing populism). The

National Party the most important, but nevertheless

politically marginal party, obtaining only 0.17 per cent o

the vote in the 2006 parliamentary elections ceased to

exist in 2009, but representatives carry on its work. Theoremost organisation is Action D.O.S.T. (whose name

stands or Condence, Objectivity, Freedom, Tradition).

This campaign seeks to promote traditional amily values

and private property, and rejects antidiscrimination poli-

cies, a multicultural society or Europeanisation. Some

members are employed in various oces and have direct

support rom the government.

The government is dealing with ar right organisations in

a variety o ways. Neo-Nazis are subject to surveillance

by the police and intelligence services. They are pros-

ecuted and imprisoned. Nationalists are tolerated and

sometimes even deended by members o the govern-

ment, i the latters connections to neo-Nazi or anti-Se-

mitic organisations are discovered: Ladislav Btora is the

best example. The ar right especially neo-Nazis may

be declining, but nationalists are gaining ground among

mainstream political parties.

Poland(Bartosz Rydliski)

Right-wing extremism has a very long tradition in Pol-

ish history. Right-wing language and discourse can beound not only in the Second Polish Republic (1918

1939), but also in the Peoples Republic o Poland

(19441989). During the communist period, the Party4

used anti-Semitic language in expressions o ocial

policy in 1968. It was a time o campaigns against the

intelligentsia and the students movement, which were

demanding reorms and liberalisation o the Party. A-

ter 1980 even some members o the main opposition

orce, Solidarno, used exclusionary language, based

on the view that only true Poles, with a right-wing

orientation and a strong Catholic background, could be

policymakers in the new, ree Poland.

Ater the political transition that commenced in 1989,

the Third Polish Republic witnessed urther right-wing

extremism in public lie. New political organisations such

as ZChN (Zjednoczenie Chrzecijasko-Narodowe), LPR

(Liga Polskich Rodzin) and PiS (Prawo i Sprawiedliwo)

have at times used right-wing extremist arguments

based on anti-Semitism, nationalism and homophobia.

In todays parliament, only PiS uses similar political lan-

guage, but its right-wing extremism is progressively di-

minishing. Right-wing extremism in Poland is based onsmall quasi-political organisations (or more details, see

below).

Important background in any presentation o right-wing

extremism in Poland is provided by Article 13 o the Con-

stitution, which sets out clearly what kinds o organisa-

tion are orbidden: Political parties and other organi-

sations whose programmes are based on totalitarian

methods and the modes o activity o Nazism, ascism

4. Polish United Workers Party (Polska Zjednoczona Partia Robotnicza).

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and communism, as well as those whose programmes or

activities sanction racial or national hatred, the applica-

tion o violence or the purpose o obtaining power or to

infuence state policy, or provide or the secrecy o their

own structure or membership, shall be prohibited.5

ONR (Obz Narodowo-Radykalny)6 is an organisation

with a long nationalist tradition. Its main platorm is the

establishment o a Great Poland (Wielka Polska) and it

regards itsel as a union standing or the Polish nation,

state and language. ONR is radically against democracy,

which it considers the enemy o European civilisation. Its

main values are, proessedly, justice, morality, conscience

and honour, based on Christianity. ONR rejects human

or civil rights that confict with the European heritage.Equality is also regarded as subordinate to a harmonious

and hierarchical nation. Only heterosexual amilies have

a right to raise children and amilies must be a national

priority. Foreign policy should be strictly based on Pol-

ish interests. ONR is against the European Union and its

multicultural prole is perceived as an enormous danger.

Falanga7 envisions a great, civilised Nation. The state

should be strong and not democratic. Only in this way

will a Great Poland become a reality. The basis o Polish

identity, in Falangas view, is the Catholic aith and the

PolishCatholic triangle o God, Honour and Fatherland.

Freedom is primarily a matter o reedom o choice in the

labour market: Falangas motto here is Not Ireland, not

Chicago job or Poles in Poland. It supports private

property, but also the nationalisation o strategic indus-

tries or the benet o the Polish nation. It also avours

universal national service: only in that way will uture

generations will be able to understand their obligations

to the nation, according to Falanga.

These organisations are partial to strongly nationalistic

rhetoric. They also avour the use o orce, order and hi-erarchy. The project o a Great Poland is exclusionary:

only true Poles without any other roots can be part o

this total and nationalistic vision.

Right-wing extremist organisations do not have political

representation in the current Polish Parliament. They do

5. Constitution o the Republic o Poland, http://www.sejm.gov.pl/pra-wo/konst/angielski/kon1.htm.

6. Ocial website o ONR: http://www.onr.h2.pl/

7. Ocial website o Falanga: http://www.alanga.boo.pl/

not take part in elections as political organisations. Some-

times, individual PiS MPs support right-wing extremist

initiatives (such as seminars, marches or demonstrations).

The principal aim o right-wing extremist organisations is

to present their ideas in public. They entice young, nation-

alistic people with strong conservative and religious back-

grounds. The Polish government does not consider these

organisations a danger and tends to justiy their existence

on the basis o human and civil rights, such as reedom o

opinion, speech and political expression.

Any possible uture success on the part o right-wing

extremism in Poland would arise rom the social reper-

cussions o the global nancial and economic crisis. The

core o right-wing extremist views that are o sociologi-cal interest comprises unrest concerning the current eco-

nomic situation in Poland, poverty, low wages and pen-

sion cuts. The prominence o right-wing extremism in

Poland is likely to increase, albeit gradually.

Slovakia(Tom Nociar)

Right-wing extremism has been present in Slovakia since

the demise o the communist regime in 1989. Originally,

when it came to public awareness in the early 1990s, it

took the orm o a violent neo-Nazi skinhead subculture.

A number o dierent orms and political eorts (de-

scribed below) have emerged in due course.

Right-wing extremism (as well as the ar right) in Slova-

kia can be classied into two groups:

(i) those with a xed organisational structure, ocially

registered and o direct oreign inspiration;

(ii) those without a xed organisational structure, unreg-

istered and without direct oreign inspiration.

Both these groups include people who incline towardseither nationalism or neo-Nazism or a mixture o both.

The most signicant oreign inspiration comes indirectly

rom Germany, through the Czech Republic (or exam-

ple, inormal groups such as National Resistance and

Autonomous Nationalists). The domestic inspiration

comes mainly rom the era o the ascist Slovak state

(19391945).

The most signicant maniestation o right-wing ex-

tremism in Slovakia is Slovak Togetherness (Slovensk

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pospolitos SP) and its current and ormer oshoots.

In this regard, SP plays the role o parent organisation.

In terms o the political spectrum, the organisations

around SP operate on the border between constitu-

tional conormity and right-wing extremism. While they

endeavour to operate legally in order to develop their

current marginal support into broader support, their

ideology is based on nationalism, racism, anti-Semitism,

neo-Fascism and also neo-Nazism.

SP operates as a civil association with national scope.

It has been registered at the Ministry o Interior since

1995. SP considers itsel the strongest nationalist organi-

sation, synonymous with Slovak nationalism today anddemanding real change and national revolution.

SPs organisational structure is based on the leadership

principle, which they consider the only way o achieving

their objectives. The organisation cooperates with vari-

ous ar-right groups (both ormal and inormal) within

Slovakia and also internationally. However, there are

tensions between SP and the Slovak National Party, the

strongest ar-right political party in the country.8

Up until 2003 SPs activities were limited. It made no

eort to impinge on the general consciousness. From

2003, however, the members o SP started to appear

in public in uniorm. This reminded many o the as-

cist era o the Slovak state and SP became known as a

paramilitary vigilante organisation.9 The push to increase

public visibility was probably aimed at establishing the

organisation as a political entity, which took place at the

turn o 2004/2005, resulting in the organisation Slovak

Togetherness National Party (Slovensk pospolitos

Nrodn strana SP-NS). In 2005, the state took ac-

tion against these political eorts, leading to a series

o clashes between the police and members o SP. Fi-

nally, this culminated in a ban being imposed on SP-NSin March 2006 because o its antidemocratic character.

The period starting in March 2006 and ending at the

close o 2008 was a low point in the ortunes o the

SP. This ended with an unsuccessul attempt to wind up

the SP by the Ministry o Interior, which served only to

mobilise its members and sympathisers.

8. Website o Slovak Togetherness http://www.pospolitost.org/SP/onas.html

9. Paramilitary vigilantism involves violence by non-state organisations.

Probably the greatest success in the SPs history occurred

during the summer o 2009 when it participated in a

series o marches against so-called gypsy crime. It led

to more clashes between SP sympathisers and the po-

lice, but more importantly to a boost in its media prole

as its popularity grew. The best known gure o Slovak

extremism (a ormer head o the SP and the SP-NS) and

one o the main protagonists o these demonstrations

is Marin Kotleba, who took advantage o the situation

and decided to run or president o one o the eight sel-

governing regions in Slovakia in the municipal elections.

The election result (10.03 per cent or 13,629 votes, giv-

ing Kotleba ourth place)10 can be considered the big-

gest electoral success o the non-parliamentary ar right

in Slovakia to date.

In autumn 2009 Kotleba began preparations to ound a

new political party, which was nally ormed by inltrat-

ing the existing Party o Wine Lovers and was renamed

the Peoples Party Our Slovakia (udov strana Nae

Slovensko SNS). The party ran in the parliamentary

elections in 2010 and obtained 1.33 per cent o the

votes (33,724).11

The partys programme was presented in 2005 and con-

sisted o a number o basic theses generally hostile to

parliamentary democracy, liberalism, pluralism and the

ree market, and avouring a paternalistic economic

approach, as well as nationalism, xenophobia, authori-

tarianism, conspiracy theories and unrealistic national-

populist demands, particularly but not only in oreign

policy. Since the ban was imposed on the SP-NS some o

the demands have become more moderate: most nota-

bly, SNS declares that it is pro-democratic in contrast to

the SP-NS, which took an antidemocratic stance.12

The SP continues to represent the most important

branch o right-wing extremism in the country, whileSNS, as its political representative, takes a more moder-

ate stance, at least according to its programme. Future

development will depend on both internal (whether it

chooses to present itsel as moderate or more extreme,

and whether it will be able to unite dierent ar-right

10. Number and share o valid votes cast or candidates or the presiden-cies o sel-governing regions, 2009: http://app.statistics.sk/vuc2009/sr/tab5.jsp?lang=en

11. Parliamentary election results o 2010: http://app.statistics.sk/nrsr_2010/sr/tab3.jsp?lang=en

12. The statute o Slovak Togetherness: http://www.lsns.sk/stanovy.pd

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positions) and external (the governments counter-ex-

tremism policy, the activities o NGOs, the success or

ailure o SNS and public trust in mainstream political

parties and elites) actors.

Conclusion(Kateina Tvrd)

As we can see rom the contributions presented here,

right-wing extremism threatens not only society but also

political culture in the Czech Republic, Poland and the

Slovak Republic. Increasing right-wing extremism in the

1990s was associated mainly with the consolidation o

democratic regimes in these states. However, in the late1990s, extreme right-wing political parties became mar-

ginal. Right-wing extremism in these countries exhibits a

number o dierences in terms o actors, issues, strate-

gies, roots and political involvement.

The situations in the Czech Republic and Slovakia are

airly similar. We can dierentiate between ormal and

inormal adherence to right-wing extremism. The Czech

and Slovak ar right take their inspiration rom historical

totalitarian regimes, such as the Nazis in Germany. The

various expressions o right-wing extremism are similar

in the countries dealt with here, including symbolic vio-

lence, public demonstrations and propaganda. However,

in Slovakia right-wing extremism has achieved the great-

est degree o organisation and political engagement, in

contrast to Poland and the Czech Republic. The main is-

sues o the Czech and Slovak ar right are related to rac-

ism and hatred. Polish right-wing extremists also proess

Christian values and nationalist ideas.

Right-wing extremist organisations in the Czech Republic

and Slovakia are oten registered as civic associations or

political parties. They participate in public lie, includingelections. In Poland, the radical right has no legal basis,

operating only on a semiormal platorm. Importantly,

the Czech Republic and Slovakia also prohibit right-wing

extremist political parties or civic associations, as does

Poland, but Czech and Slovak organisations do not o-

cially present themselves as right-wing extremists. The

question here is whether it is preerable to allow the ex-

treme right to operate within the political and legal sys-

tems or not. I ar right actors are integrated, the state

thereby provides them the opportunity to infuence

public opinion and to have access to political processes

(as long as right-wing extremists do not go too ar). On

the other hand, i the state denies right-wing extrem-

ists the opportunity to become legal, it also denies itsel

the possibility o infuencing them in a positive way. This

may even contribute to the urther radicalisation o right-wing extremism. So the question still remains whether

we should exclude right-wing extremists rom political

lie or integrate them in it. However, in the uture we

can expect a continued decline o extreme right-wing

entities, or two main reasons national anti-extremist

policy and an ideological shit by extreme right-wing

organisations rom extreme anti-system ideas to radi-

cal conormist ideas. The development o right-wing

extremism will also depend on the socio-economic situ-

ation and the demands o the voters, which can change.

Compared to other European states, right-wing extrem-

ism has not achieved much political success in the coun-

tries under discussion. Also, in electoral terms, ar right

organisations are still on the margins o public lie. Nev-

ertheless, it is necessary to prevent and combat all orms

o racism and xenophobia by all means and at all levels

to protect undamental rights and liberties and demo-

cratic values. New European Union states, such as the

Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland, could play a spe-

cial role in promoting the peaceul development o soci-

eties. They can be living examples o states not marred

by right-wing extremist crimes and symbolic violence inthe public sphere.

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At te atrs

Meri Aass, Desk ocer, Friedrich Ebert Stitung, Depart-ment o Central and Eastern Europe

Kateia Tvrd, Ph.D. student Center or Security and Strate-gic Studies, University Brno

Vcav Waac, Ph.D. student Political Science, University Brno

bartsz Rydiski, Alexander Kwasniewski Foundation Ami-cus Europae

Tm nciar, Ph.D. student, Research on right-wing extre-mism in Slovakia and Hungary

ISbn 978-3-86498-026-8

Imprit

Friedrich-Ebert-StitungInternational Dialogue | Central and Eastern Europe DepartmentHiroshimastrae 28 | 10785 Berlin | Deutschland

Responsible:Dr. Ernst Hillebrand, Director Central and Eastern Europe Department

Tel.: ++49-30-26935-6 | Fax: ++49-30-26935-9250http://www.es.de/international/moe

Orders / contact:[email protected]

The views expressed in this publication are not necessarilythose of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung or of the organization for

which the author works.

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