The article first appeared in КлинКлин
A number of political philosophers and analysts have spoken more boldly about the growing chauvinism in the world. The stronger presence of nationalist and far-right parties in government is due to successive economic, health and social crises, support from influential politicians such as Donald Trump, Marine Le Pen, Viktor Orban, Matteo Salvini, Jaroslaw Kaczynski and... Kostadin Kostadinov.
In the public sphere, and now from the podium of the National Assembly, there is a lot of speculation with terms like Fascism, Nazism, nationalism, but what do they actually mean? It is important to differentiate between them in order to fine-tune our analysis and response to the situation. For example, both Fascism and Nazism have militarism and authoritarianism as their basis. People are deprived of their basic freedoms that are associated with living in a democratic and liberal state. Above all, the element of extreme nationalism takes over, which is why both ideologies are often associated with the extreme right. But the main difference between the two ideologies is that racism is at the heart of Nazism, whereas the ideology of Fascism has no such racial segregations and does not oppose the social mobility of people.
Populism is a characteristic that both ideologies share. And nowadays all liberal societies are confronted with rising extreme nationalism and its accompanying populism.
WHAT IS POPULISM
The term populism was first used in the late 19th century in the US to describe the protest of American farmers against the banks and railway monopolies. Now the term describes the anger and resentment that workers and citizens lower down in the social pyramid feel towards privileged, powerful elites in both the public and private sectors.
To this day, there is still no consensus among academics on what exactly populism is - an ideology or a political discourse and style. However, a generally accepted definition of the term is provided by Cas Mudde as a set of ideas that together "consider society ultimately divided into two homogeneous and antagonistic groups, the 'pure people' versus the 'corrupt elite' and which argues that politics should be an expression of the volonté générale (common will) of the people."
"ANTI" IN THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY AND BEYOND
Consequently, we are increasingly talking of general populism, when in fact we are referring mainly, and often exclusively, to a specific type of populism. This is the populist far-right, which in Bulgaria is represented by formations such as "Revival", VMRO, NFSB, BNS-ND, Ataka, etc.
The difference between the leader of "Revival", Kostadin Kostadinov, and the other formations listed above is that the "new populism", of which Kostadinov is a part, does not appeal to certain socio-economic strata, but to a specific identity and culture.
Kostadinov's target audience is not homogeneous, it is scattered across the political spectrum, but it shares common identities - for example, he received crucial support for his party's entry into the National Assembly from anti-vaxxers, anti-Western and pro-Russian people of different social and economic status, ethnic origin, religion and sexual orientation.
It is paradoxical that an extreme nationalist like him receives support from members of the Roma community, given his view that:
"This inhuman scum [the Roma community] simply has no place anymore in our country, let alone in our civilization. It has once again proven that its only common thing with the rest of the human race is physical appearance."
But this is a fact due to the identification of these representatives of various groups and communities with the anti-Western and anti-American movement in Bulgaria, of which the so-called mocking nickname Kostya Kopeikin (after the Russian kopek, the smallest denomination within their currency system) has become the messiah and leader.
The rhetoric Kostadinov uses is very similar to that of Donald Trump. His ultimatum to the other parliamentary political parties to stop working together and to dismiss the current National Assembly and the subsequent threat of an invasion of "the people" in the parliament can be seen as analogous to the case of the US Capitol in 2021. Called to action by Trump, thousands of his supporters rallied in Washington on January 5 and 6, 2021 to support his false claim that the 2020 election had been "stolen by the brave radical-left Democrats" and to demand that Congress overturn Biden's victory. In Kostadinov's case, his threat is direct and dangerous because he is adamant: "listen to us or revolution." By jeopardizing the integrity of the government, the leader of Revival is violating Article 95 of the Bulgarian Criminal Code:
"Art. 95 Whoever, with intent to overthrow, subvert, or weaken the authority of the Republic, participates in the attempted coup d'état for the forcible seizure of power in the centre or locally, or in a rebellion or armed insurrection, shall be punished by imprisonment from ten to twenty years, by imprisonment for life, or by imprisonment for life without parole."
THE FUELLING FORCES OF POPULISM
The claim that populism is a product of democracy may be received with scepticism. But populism emerges when people develop a sense of injustice, a lack of listening to the 'voice of the people'.
However, it is important to note that linking populism to the 'voice of the people' is dangerous and incorrect. It implies that populists are the authentic representatives of the people, which is largely a mischaracterisation. It can be seen abroad, but also in Bulgaria - in the parliamentary elections in April 2023 Kostadin Kostadinov and Revival won the votes of just over 358,174 people (14.16%), which does not even represent 6% of the 6,500,000 Bulgarian citizens eligible to vote.
Populism creates two dimensions - vertical and horizontal. Populists purposefully create and exploit these contradictions in society, First, this vertical relationship places in conflict the people at the top of society (the so-called "elites"), who may be politicians, businessmen or scientists, and the people at the bottom of the social pyramid. The second approach of populists is to create and exploit horizontal relations in society between "us " and "others", by which they mean class, religious, ethnic and other enemies.
This means that either populists are able to create antagonistic relations through their discourse, or that they are very good at exploiting existing antagonistic vertical and horizontal social relations, and that these existing relations themselves give rise to populism.
An example of this is the ongoing campaign of "Revival" to position itself as the only Bulgarian party in the National Assembly and to condemn the other parties as "servants of the US" that are turning Bulgaria into an American colony. In this way they declare to the general public that only "Revival" works in the interest of the Bulgarian people and for the Bulgarian national interest (what it is - they cannot explain, but they firmly defend the idea that it is they who are fighting for it).
Another driving motives of populism are the various economic, political , social and health crises. In Bulgaria, the fight against political corruption is one of the main characteristics of the newly established parties - We Continue the Change, Democratic Bulgaria, There is Such a Nation, Revival, Stand Up! - all of which were born in response to the inability of systemic parties to meet public needs at the expense of their own interest, leading to a desire for revanchism in the people and a search for an alternative. While the main economic and social causes may be rising unemployment and inequalities, low growth and investment, lack of good social policy, migration, high levels of corruption, etc. Some of these problems are largely the result of the 2009 financial crisis, and it is expected that an upcoming financial crisis will further exacerbate these problems and antagonise various groups in society. Similar processes took place in Nazi Germany and Italy, leading to the rise of Hitler, Mussolini and Fascism. The health crisis of the Covid-19 in the last three years is one of the main arguments in favour of the populists.
Another strong motive of populism is cultural reasons. These cultural reasons can be linked to changes in the "value systems of our society - from a patriarchal to an egalitarian society; from "protectionism" and nationalism to an open society; from xenophobia and homophobia to human rights. Such changes in society can be generally formulated as a slow, gradual process of change in one's value system from conservatism to liberalism.
Populism can harm democracy in a country even if it is not directly involved in governance. As a matter of fact, one of the fears of populists is that they will get a chance to exercise power, which will hold them accountable to the public. A prominent example is Nigel Farage, after the referendum (so-called Brexit) in the United Kingdom , who, after the kingdom's exit from the European Union, resigned and left politics. In early July 2023, information was revealed that Farage had received funding from the Kremlin for his Brexit campaign. Farage's accounts are currently frozen at a number of banks due to the new findings.
COUNTERING POPULISM IN THE FUTURE
Countering populism is difficult to shape into a panacea because the problems that empower these people are still here and getting worse. However, Austrian professor Karl Aiginger suggests four steps to help combat rising populism.
STEP 1: The first step is to correct the wrong framework on which today's populism is based. The pessimistic interpretation is that life has become bad, the economy is approaching collapse, and moral and social relations are worse than in some golden past .
STEP 2: The second step is to develop a vision outlining where the country or region wants to be in the medium-term future, for example by 2030. The vision should indicate which public services should be provided and how living conditions can be improved. Implementation should be assessed on the basis of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The vision must be ambitious but accessible and achievable, shared by citizens and developed with experts and political parties.
STEP 3: The third step is to define game-changing tools and find partners in the change process. The strategy should be discussed and finessed in dialogue with citizens, NGOs, reform-minded trade unions and representatives of new businesses. In addition, migrants' skills must be used and their children integrated.
STEP 4: Finally, a new strategy requires a narrative that evokes and unites Europe. Europe's old narrative of peace no longer moves its citizens, even though we see every day that peace is no guarantee. Since Europe is a small geographical region and Europe's share of the world's population is proportional in size, this must be a narrative based on quality, innovation, and partnership.
It is important to note that much of the support for populist parties comes in the form of voter revanchism. They do not often ideologically agree with the populists' positions so much as they want to punish the status quo parties or find a more morally respectable alternative. Others - victims of increasingly escalating disinformation campaigns by external and internal political forces - quite naturally find refuge in the radically simplistic messages of the populists. Messages that rest on people's fears and dreams of a decent, peaceful, and secure life.
Populism and far-right movements are symptoms of a sick political, economic, and social system. They can be suppressed, only to return stronger afterwards, until the real causes are addressed and resolved. Fighting them is our duty, otherwise we are putting democracy, the economy, the environment, and peace at risk. Unfortunately, people rarely believe that the worst will happen, and it will happen to them.
We are a dedicated group of students who are passionate about shedding light on pressing political and socio-economic issues across the globe. Our analysis articles aim to inform, inspire, and ignite meaningful discussions.
But we can't do it alone. We rely on the support of individuals like you who believe in the power of independent journalism. By making a donation, you become a vital pillar in our mission to awaken society's political and social engagement by preparing the future generation of leaders in the fields of civic society, politics, and journalism.
Join us in amplifying voices that often go unheard. Help us continue our important work by donating now. Together, we can make a difference, one article at a time.
Comments