Features
Global economic downturn could spur strident Far Rightism
If there is a marked spike in violence in the West and the world over linked to the Far Right, it ought to be only expected in view of the economic downturn that has overtaken the world in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Scandinavian countries have been seen as relatively free of such political blights thus far, but recent riots in Southern Sweden which were linked to the Far Right in that country ought to caution the observer on being overoptimistic about the comparative non-occurrence of these negative political tendencies in that part of Europe.
The riots in question were triggered by the burning of a copy of the Quran recently by Far Right activists in the southern Swedish city of Malmo. The event was to be attended by notorious anti-Muslim Danish politician Rasmus Paludan. The Swedish authorities, however, prevented the latter from arriving at the event from Den Mark in view of anticipated law and order problems.
Immigrant majority Malmo City, however, erupted in violent protests against the burning of the Muslim holy book subsequently. This is fresh proof of the continuing grave dangers of Far Rightism. It is relevant to note that even Den Mark has witnessed violence of this kind in the past.
However, one would be stating the obvious by saying that Far Rightism is a near world wide phenomenon. For example, it is rampant in South Asia, with Sri Lanka proving no exception, of course. It is found in some of its most disruptive and dangerous forms in even the most vibrant democracies of the West, including the US and Britain. In the latter, Far Rightism manifests itself in mainly white supremacist sentiment and anti-minority violence.
For example, white supremacist attitudes surged to the surface in the wake of the unrest which swept the US subsequent to the George Floyd killing. White Skinhead-initiated anti-migrant violence has time and again surfaced in Britain, its democratic credentials notwithstanding.
However, the economic setback suffered by the world in the wake of the COVID-19 contagion could set the stage for a strong resurgence of right wing-sourced anti-migrant, anti-minority violence the world over and the international community and democracies in particular will need to brace for this scourge. Economies of the world are shrinking fast and with this decline in growth will come a plethora of socio-political ills, including anti-minority violence and religious extremism.
It will be a case of aiming for the biggest slice of the national economic cake. Extremist political opinion among majority communities in most of the mentioned countries are bound to see religious and ethnic minorities in their midst, for example, as threats to their economic survival amid the current pandemic. The minorities will be seen as getting in the way of their prosperity and well being by majority communities, since the economic cake is shrinking dangerously.
Thus will the stage be set for stepped-up Far Right atrocities against minority groups. Over the years this has been happening in some major countries of the West, which have been witness to a significant migrant presence, and one could only expect a marked uptick in this disquieting trend in the days ahead. As a matter of interest it needs to be mentioned that the exception taken by the political Right to the presence of East European migrants, in particular, in Britain proved a major factor in Britain’s decision to break away from the EU.
The civilized world is hard pressed to act fast in the face of this bleak outlook for everyone. Violence of any kind within states, if it goes unmanaged, would eventually lead to national disintegration. This is an undisputed lesson of history. Accordingly, states, wherever they may be, are obliged from now on to attach top most priority to national integration and social amity. In such programmes, racial and religious tolerance ought to figure prominently.
Fortunately for the world, notable democracies, such as Britain, have indicated to it as to how a pluralistic country could go about strengthening national integration. Britain has zero tolerance for hate speech, for instance, and those countries that are desirous of stemming the rot in the deteriorating communal relations field, could take a leaf from it. Those countries which are keen on strengthening race relations could also model their relevant legislation on Britain’s Race Relations Act. But it does not follow from the foregoing that Britain is not having its fair share of ethnicity-related problems.
However, it would be naive on the part of states to believe that Far Right-linked violence could be put down by law and order means alone. There could be some short term relief as a consequence of adopting these means but such comfort is usually short lived. The more sensible option is to adopt the democratic approach of making religious and ethnic tolerance a solid reality within states by winning hearts and minds. Peace brings peace. Violence brings increasing violence. These are the relevant home truths that states would do well to bear in mind.