Human Rights
In Europe
Kathryn Sain
Far-Right
Political Parties
 The biggest threat to human rights throughout
Europe would be the growing popularity of far-right
political parties in mainstream European politics.
These parties are anti-immigration and serve
under isolationist policies that highlight nationalism
above all else. They basically seek to rid their
countries of all foreigners who fail to assimilate to
their respective cultures. In this presentation I will
focus on the most prominent groups in different
European countries and how much political power
and influence they hold within their country.
Austria
 The Freedom Party is
headed by Joerg Haider.
They won political power in
the year 2000, which
prompted sanctions by the
European Union (EU).
Although
support
has
eroded from twenty-seven
percent to sixteen percent,
the party still maintains
power and often releases
statements that are seen
as anti-foreigner and antiSemitic.
Britain
 The anti-immigrant party in
Britain, know as the British
National Party, has been
accused of triggering deadly
riots in various towns between
caucasian youth and local
immigrant populations. Although
they are small, the British Labor
Party (one of the two major
British parties in Parliament)
warns that officials should not
underestimate the impact their
candidates have on local
elections.
Belgium
 The far-right party known as
Vlaams Blok (Flemish Bloc)
favors independence for
Flanders, Belgium’s Dutchspeaking northern half. They are
advocates of stopping
immigration and the expulsion of
immigrants who fail to assimilate
to Belgian culture. They
currently hold about fifteen and
a half percent of the seats in the
Flemish parliament and are the
biggest party in Antwerp, the
nation’s second largest city.
Denmark
 In Denmark they are two
prominent far-right parties,
the Progress Party and the
People’s Party. The
Progress Party calls for the
expulsion of all Muslims
from Denmark and holds
twenty-two seats in the
179-member parliament.
The People’s Party is more
moderate but currently
holds no official place in
the government.
France
 National Front is the party
headed by extreme
nationalist and presidential
hopeful Jean-Marie Le
Pen. Immigrants are his
favorite target and are
often blamed for things
such as high
unemployment and violent
crime. He currently has
about seventeen percent
of the national vote.
Germany
 The current government in
Germany has been trying to ban
the far-right party known as the
National Democratic Party due
to the fact that it ferments
skinhead violence and
espouses neo-Nazi ideology.
Although the party is currently
politically insignificant, the
government wishes to keep
them away from state campaign
funds to avoid further exposure
in hopes that they will fade away
without popular support.
Italy
 Italy also has two
important far-right political
parties, the National
Alliance and the Northern
League. The National
Alliance is a direct
descendant of Mussolini’s
fascist party, and garnered
twelve percent of the vote
in the last election. The
Northern League is antiimmigrant and wishes to
deport jobless immigrants.
The Netherlands
 Leefbaar Nederland
(Livable Netherlands) is a
fledgling right-wing party
that has won thirty-five
percent of the vote for city
council seats in
Rotterdam, the secondlargest city. They advocate
a ban on immigration and
criticize Islam as a
‘backward culture.’
Norway
 Party of Progress is a
party known for its antiimmigration views and won
twenty-five seats in the
165-seat parliament in the
last election. Although it is
far-right by Norwegian
socialist standards, it does
not embrace neo-Nazi or
extremist views, it only
believes that their current
immigration policies are
‘too soft.’
Conclusion
 The state of politics throughout Europe could have a
drastic effect on the human rights of immigrants and
foreigners living in countries where far-right political parties
come into power. If a far-right political leader should ever
command a majority of the popular support within their
country, than they could begin to strip immigrants of their
civil rights and liberties, and, at worst, forcibly remove them
from their country. Some countries, such as Germany, have
taken steps to prevent these parties from gaining
exposure, but I believe that the only thing that will lead to a
decrease in support for far-right political parties is to
educate people about human rights and equality issues for
all people, including immigrants.
The End
Thank you!