448
PARTISAN REVIEW
Central European country. Although Haider himself has no official
function in this coalition, the charismatic speaker with the bleak touch
of a hatemonger is still calling the game in his party.
What the majority of Austrians experienced as an unfriendly act by
the European Union, the so-called "measures against Austria" (which
domestically was shortened into "sanctions") for allowing such a party
to gain governmental recognition, turns out to have been an important
early warning. The fourteen EU member states signaled their fear, not
only that political consensus and political hygiene were at stake, but
that a gate to xenophobia and anti-European feelings may be opened.
When we look at the European political landscape today-only two
years later-we see that the EU had a correct and well-founded premo–
nition.
In
Italy, the current Berlusconi government is burdened with the
post-fascist Gianfranco Fini and the Lega Nord chief Umberto Bossi–
two heavy right-wing stalwarts.
But only the Austrian practical experience can prove witness to what
"really happened and changed" since the inclusion of the FPO: Once in
power, the party whose fingers were sharply pointed at all the profiteers
of power and position, claiming to expose an apparently rotten estab–
lishment, fell for the same seduction .
Within the shortest time they positioned all their friends and sponsors
in powerful places; they thought less about the have-nots (their best
"clients" before the elections) than about securing their own positions.
Immigration was tightened, social benefits were cut, legislation for "law–
and-order" issues were chased through parliament. The Ministry of Jus–
tice became the stronghold of steady attempts to undermine the more
liberal penal code.
In
short, the political climate veered in a much colder,
more ruthless direction with certain authoritarian characteristics .
There are questions to be asked regarding the future of Europe in
view of the dramatic rise of the right populists. Will these populist
groups turn into a big disappointment for their idealistic protest voters?
Will they lose their magic spell by their specific performances in differ–
ent governments? Or is there a danger that they-united perhaps on a
European list or ticket-will change the look of Europe in a devastat–
ing, lasting manner?
It is probably too early to tell whether European democracies will be
strong enough to meet this challenge. Envisioning the consequences of a
possible failure, one can only hope that the pragmatic political parties
and their representatives do hear the alarm clock in time.
