Back to 1930s-style politics

Some people said already long time ago that Muslims have now the same role Jewish people had during 1930s. That seems to become more and more obvious. Many kinds of right-wing groups and parties seem to use Muslims as a way to foster divisive politics and to strengthen their own power.

I have already written about the rising Islamophobia in Britain. Anti-Muslim hate crimes increased across Britain by 593% in the week after the Christchurch terrorist attacks (1). The British Conservative Party seems quite complacent regarding Islamophobia and anti-Muslim rhetoric within the party (2). British far-right UKIP party hired notorious Islamophobe Tommy Robinson as a special adviser (3). British far-right figure Katie Hopkins has started touring in Europe and USA with prominent counter-jihadist Elisabeth Sabaditsch-Wolff (4, 5).

The developments in Britain are similar to the situation in mainland Europe, North America and Australia. Anti-Muslim rhetoric and sentiment has become commonplace within right-wing political circles and mainstream media. Therefore it is no wonder that Muslim leaders around the world have criticized mainstream media, politicians and academics for cultivating systemic and institutionalized Islamophobia (6). During his recent visit to Cairo, the Secretary-General of the United Nations Antonio Guterres expressed his concern regarding the growing anti-Muslim sentiment and the increase of hate crimes all over the world (7).


During this spring there will be several important elections in Europe and elsewhere. European far-right populist and nationalist parties are expected to gain more votes because of their anti-immigrant and Islamophobic rhetoric (8). However, the first elections to watch for will take place today in Israel where Prime Minister Netanyahu is trying to win the elections with his far-right allies (9).

References:

1) “Anti-Muslim hate crimes soar in UK after Christchurch shootings” The Guardian 22.3.2019

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/mar/22/anti-muslim-hate-crimes-soar-in-uk-after-christchurch-shootings

2) “The Guardian view on Tory Islamophobia: inaction speaks volumes” The Guardian 28.3.2019

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/mar/28/the-guardian-view-on-tory-islamophobia-inaction-speaks-volumes

3) “Brexit party leader hires prominent anti-Muslim extremist as adviser” The National 23.11.2018

https://www.thenational.ae/world/europe/brexit-party-leader-hires-prominent-anti-muslim-extremist-as-adviser-1.795130

4) “Finland: Katie Hopkins and Elizabeth Sabaditsch-Wolff at the Finnish House of Parliament during live sessions” Tundra Tabloids January 2019

http://tundratabloids.com/2019/01/finland-katie-hopkins-and-elizabeth-sabaditsch-wolff-at-the-finnish-house-of-parliament-during-live-sessions/

5) Katie Hopkins on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/KTHopkins/status/1105498588627521536

6) “‘Systemic Islamophobia’ fuels terror attacks, say Muslim leaders” The Guardian 18.3.2019

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/mar/18/uk-muslim-leaders-seek-funding-for-mosque-security

7) “UN head warns against growing anti-Muslim sentiment during Cairo visit” Middle East Eye 2.4.2019

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/un-head-warns-against-growing-anti-muslim-sentiment-during-cairo-visit

8) “Populists are whipping up a storm as Europe faces lurch to the right” The Guardian 6.4.2019

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/apr/06/brexit-distraction-far-right-nationalists-eu-elections

9) “Israelis prepare to go to the polls: here’s what we know” The Guardian 8.4.2019

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/apr/08/israelis-prepare-to-go-to-the-polls-heres-what-we-know

The enthusiasm of hard-line Brexiteers

The original Brexit day has come and gone. Minting of the commemorative coin has had to be scrapped (1) and Brexit memorabilia has become collectible for entirely different reason. The situation in Britain remains chaotic and difficult – however, one positive thing is the fact that there haven’t been any serious riots or violent clashes.

On Friday, some planned celebrations of the hard-line Brexiteers were cancelled (1) or turned into a campaign against “Brexit betrayal.” UKIP leader Gerard Batten advertised his party’s event on Twitter:

“Today’s the day we could & should remove ourselves from rule by a foreign power. We know our quisling political establishment will betray Brexit, but the fightback resumes its next phase in Whitehall today. Be there at the UKIP event…” (2)

Another far-right Brexit leader Nigel Farage issued a dire warning to British MPs – he believed that British people would wake up angry on Saturday the 30th because Britain had not left the EU (3). However, perhaps the most memorable event on Friday evening and Saturday morning was the appearance of a lonely trespasser with St. George’s flag on the roof of St. Pancras Station – the incident led to cancellation of several Eurostar trains (4).

References:

1) “Brexit coins and cancelled parties: What is happening on 29 March now?” BBC News 29.3.2019

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-47712530

2) UKIP leader Gerard Batten on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/GerardBattenMEP

3) “Nigel Farage issues DIRE warning to MPs about MORNING of March 30th – ‘Just you wait!'” Alpha News UK 29.3.2019

https://youtu.be/j5IIBfAZmJ8

4) “Eurostar passengers stranded as trespasser with St George’s flag halts trains” The Guardian 30.3.2019

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/mar/30/eurostar-trains-cancelled-as-man-spends-night-on-st-pancras-station-roof-with-st-georges-flag

The Brexit cliffhanger in Britain continues

Things are heating up in Britain. Britain was supposed to leave the EU today, but during the recent days it has become more and more likely that there will be a delay – just how long, it is unclear. The chaotic cliffhanger continues. Prime Minister May promised to resign, if her Brexit deal is accepted. Her promise predictably started a fervorous leadership competition within the Conservative Party. (1) The hard-line Brexiteers lead by Nigel Farage will congregate on the Parliament Square around 4 p.m. GMT today. Farage tweeted yesterday:

“Westminster has betrayed the greatest democratic vote in the history of our country, and we won’t let them get away with it.” (2)

The far-right UKIP Party has been advertising their own Make Brexit Happen Rally which is sponsored by notorious far-right figure Tommy Robinson and his TR News service (3). Leader of UKIP Gerard Batten tweeted yesterday:

“There are reports that water cannon may be deployed tomorrow in London, & that some of the police may try to aggregate and provoke Brexiteers. There is always the danger of provocateurs planted to cause trouble. I hope it is not true but I call on everyone present to be peaceful.” (4)

Several far-right extremists and groups are going to try to cause riots and other trouble. For example, members of the UK “yellow vests” threatened on social media:

“If you stop Brexit, we’ll make the Paris riots look like a f***ing tea party.” (5)

Counter-protesters, including anti-fascists and trade unions, are going to oppose the far-right rallies. The police are bracing for possible unrest and clashes between different demonstrators. (5)

References:

1) “At least 10 cabinet ministers considering prime ministerial bids” The Guardian 28.3.2019

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/mar/28/cabinet-ministers-considering-running-prime-minister-theresa-may-conservatives-tories

2) Nigel Farage on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/nigel_farage

3) UKIP National News 25.3.2019

https://www.ukip.org/national-ukip-news-item.php?id=196

4) Gerard Batten on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/GerardBattenMEP/status/1111394659551584257?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Eembeddedtimeline%7Ctwterm%5Eprofile%3AUKIP%7Ctwcon%5Etimelinechrome&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ukip.org%2Fnational-ukip-news-item.php%3Fid%3D196

5) “Brexit protest: Police brace for disorder after far-right threaten to riot at London rallies” The Independent 29.3.2019

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/police-brexit-riot-violence-far-right-tommy-robinson-leave-ukip-eu-met-scotland-yard-a8844181.html

British hardline right-wingers welcome new controversial youth organization

British hardline right-wingers and Brexiteers, such as Jacob Rees-Mogg and Priti Patel, have been enthusiastic about a new right-wing youth organization Turning Point UK which is a spin-off from a controversial American youth organization Turning Point USA founded by Charlie Kirk. Turning Point USA has close ties with President Trump’s family and inner circle and Fox News as well several alt-right figures and media outlets, for example Steve Bannon and Breitbart News. Kirk is a former contributor to Breitbart News and he also worked for Trump presidential campaign in 2016. (1,2)

The UK organization will be headed by George Farmer, whose father Michael Farmer is a multimillionaire financier and longtime Tory donor. George Farmer has been socializing with some hardline right-wingers, such as Paul Joseph Watson, who works for far-right conspiracy theory website Infowars. George Farmer is engaged to Candace Owens who is a spokeswoman and Director of Communications of the Turning Point USA. George Farmer has caused controversy because of his derogatory and Islamophobic tweets. (1, 3)

Anne Marie Waters, founder of British anti-Muslim party For Britain, has praised the launch of Turning Point UK and hopes to be able to cooperate with the organization (1). Former leader of far-right UKIP party Nigel Farage expressed his support for Turning Point UK on Fox News today:

https://youtu.be/sZlrzwpCEUg

References:

1) “Tory MPs back youth group with apparent links to US far right” The Guardian 4.2.2019

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/feb/04/tory-mps-back-rightwing-youth-group-turning-point-uk

2) “Who Funds Conservative Campus Group Turning Point USA? Donors Revealed” International Business Times 28.11.2017

https://www.ibtimes.com/political-capital/who-funds-conservative-campus-group-turning-point-usa-donors-revealed-2620325

3) Turning Point USA website

https://www.tpusa.com

From friend to foe – new American approach to Europe

Perhaps one of the most surprising changes during the Trump presidency has been the change in the attitude towards Europe and particularly the European Union. When asked to identify his biggest competitor or foe during an interview in July 2018, President Trump said:

“Well, I think we have a lot of foes. I think the European Union is a foe, what they do to us in trade. Now, you wouldn’t think of the European Union, but they’re a foe.” (1)

USA and particularly Republicans have increased their cooperation with European far-right and right-wing populist leaders. The former leader of British far-right party UKIP, “Mr. Brexit” Nigel Farage has had close ties particularly to President Trump and Steve Bannon (2). Farage is still campaigning for Brexit and according to him President Trump is a “believer in Brexit” (3, 4). In last year’s Conservative Political Action Conference CPAC, organized by American Conservative Union ACU, one of the guest speakers was Marion Maréchal-Le Pen, who describes herself to be “the political heir” of her grandfather Jean-Marie Le Pen, founder of the French far-right party National Front (5).

President Trump has appointed ambassadors who have caused controversy. The US ambassador to the Netherlands Pete Hoekstra has worked closely with some American anti-Muslim organizations and he has made several unsubstantiated anti-Muslim claims (6). The US ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell caused controversy already before his appointment because of his insulting and derogatory remarks about women. After becoming the ambassador Grenell gave an interview to far-right news outlet Breitbart and said that he wanted to “empower” anti-establishment right-wing forces throughout Europe (7, 8). Steve Bannon has been trying to start a “Trump-style populist insurgency” with his Brussels-based group The Movement. However, many European far-right parties or politicians haven’t been very keen to join his operation (9).

Italy’s far-right Interior Minister Matteo Salvini has joined Bannon’s group (9, 10). Salvini has also wanted to create “Italian-Polish axis” that could help to spark right-wing populist “European Spring” and replace the center-right “French-German axis” in Europe (11). Poland has become increasingly important ally of USA. President Trump has praised Poland and Polish people “for standing up for their independence, their security and their sovereignty.” The ruling Polish nationalists have wanted to strengthen the American-Polish alliance even more by requesting that USA would establish a permanent armored base, “Fort Trump”, in Poland. European diplomats have been worried that “hard-liners in the White House are using a willing Warsaw as a wedge to divide and weaken the EU, with which Trump has clashed over trade, climate change, defense spending, Middle East diplomacy and global governance” (12).

Reference:

1) “Donald Trump calls the EU ‘a foe’ ahead of Putin summit” Independent 15.7.2018

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/trump-calls-eu-foe-putin-summit-european-union-china-russia-a8448421.html

2) “Nigel Farage on the story behind his friendship with Trump” The New Yorker 30.11.2016

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/persons-of-interest/nigel-farage-on-the-story-behind-his-friendship-with-trump

3) “Nigel Farage: Trump supports Brexit because it will upend ‘global bureaucracy’” Breitbart 20.12.2018

https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2018/12/20/nigel-farage-trump-supports-brexit-because-it-will-upend-global-bureaucracy/

4) “Nigel Farage joins Leave Means Leave campaign as Vice Chairman” Leave Means Leave

https://www.leavemeansleave.eu/nigel-farage-joins-leave-means-leave-campaign-vice-chairman/

5) “Trump’s GOP is morphing into France’s far right” The Washington Post 23.2.2018

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2018/02/23/trumps-gop-is-morphing-into-frances-far-right/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.12446e5a9a6c

6) “New US ambassador to Netherlands regularly made unsubstantiated ‘no-go zones’ claims, speculated 15% of Muslims could be jihadists” CNN 9.1.2018

https://edition.cnn.com/2018/01/09/politics/kfile-pete-hoekstra-no-go-zones/index.html

7) “Senator weighs holding up Trump nominee over ‘insulting and derogatory’ tweets” The Daily Beast 12.7.2017

https://www.thedailybeast.com/senate-democrat-holding-up-trump-nominee-richard-grenell-over-insulting-and-derogatory-tweets?ref=scroll

8) “New US ambassador to Germany under fire for rightwing support” The Guardian 4.6.2018

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jun/04/new-us-ambassador-to-germany-under-fire-for-rightwing-support

9) “Steve Bannon’s far-right Europe operation undermined by election laws” The Guardian 21.11.2018

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/nov/21/steve-bannons-rightwing-europe-operation-undermined-by-election-laws

10) “Italy’s Matteo Salvini joins Bannon’s European populist group” The Guardian 8.9.2018

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/sep/08/italy-matteo-salvini-joins-steve-bannon-european-populist-group-movement

11) “Salvini calls for ‘Italian-Polish axis’ to replace Paris-Berlin” EurActiv 10.1.2019

https://www.euractiv.com/section/eu-elections-2019/news/salvini-calls-for-italian-polish-axis-to-replace-paris-berlin/

12) “Poland’s risky ‘America first’ policy” Politico 6.10.2018

https://www.politico.eu/article/poland-risky-america-first-policy-jaroslaw-kaczynski-donald-trump/

What British hardline Brexiteers say about Brexit

The Brexit chaos continues and Britain seems more divided than ever. The British hardline Brexiteers have defended Brexit enthusiastically, sometimes even aggressively. Here are some comments made by them:

Jacob Rees-Mogg, chair of the hardline European Research Group ERG, hosted a champagne party after PM May suffered the historical defeat in parliament on Tuesday (1). Rees-Mogg, as many other supporters of No Deal, wants UK to leave on WTO terms:

On Twitter 15.1.2019: “The law is in place for us to leave on WTO terms. The Government ought to go back to Brussels and say: if we can’t agree anything in the interim that is what will happen.” (2)

Rees-Mogg was interviewed by Professor Anand Menon on Wednesday evening. Rees-Mogg believes that Theresa May’s cabinet is “the most pro-European part of the Conservative Party” and that 70 per cent of the people who are voting Conservatives seem to be Eurosceptic. Rees-Mogg said that No Deal would be better alternative than the deal offered by PM May or no Brexit at all (3).

One of the architects of the original Brexit campaign in 2016, former UKIP leader Nigel Farage has been criticizing PM Theresa May and the EU and he has also been promoting Leave Means Leave campaign on his Twitter page (4):

15.1.2019: “Parliament has voted down Theresa May’s terrible Brexit deal. Join us on Thursday in Westminster as Leave Means Leave pushes for a WTO Brexit!”

16.1.2019: “If the betrayal becomes complete and we are forced into a second referendum then some will be in for a shock, the British people will be even more defiant than they were before.”

16.1 2019: “Mrs May’s cross-party talks are all with Remainers and weaken Brexit. She cares about Parliament and not the people. This is betrayal, sadly we must prepare to fight again.”

UKIP leader Gerard Batten has attacked PM May, the British political establishment and the EU:

14.1.2019: “Mrs May’s so-called deal would turn Britain into a vassal state of the EU prepared to go back in in a few short years. What we are witnessing is the political establishment fighting over their preferred method of stopping Brexit – should it be through Mrs May’s surrender document, a General Election or another referendum? In their arrogance and contempt for the will of the 17.4 million who voted to leave the European Union, the political establishment have embarrassed the nation in the eyes of the world. At this point, it is clear that the only way Britain will leave the EU is if the people choose to remove the political establishment through the ballot box.”  (5)

16.1.2019: “The British Parliament has the opportunity to redeem itself. If it betrays the result of the referendum then it will destroy what remaining belief or faith there is in our democratic system, which isn’t very high to start with. But they can turn things around if they want to. They can take the initiative, they can stop asking you (i.e. European Union) how we can leave and they can start telling you how we are going to leave, and I can tell you that the British people will never surrender!” (6)

British poster-girl for far-right Katie Hopkins is an ardent admirer of President Trump and she has supported No Deal Brexit. However, she had some kind words for PM May:

“In many ways, I look to America as kind of hope, like inspiration. You’ve got someone tough in the White House that’s determined to get things done. You’ve got a whole group of people who believe they’ve been forgotten which to me is the Brexiteers. It’s the same, it’s the rest of the UK, it’s the rest of America that isn’t California or isn’t New York, and the rest of America got their voice heard and that really speaks to the Brexiteer in me.”  (7)

On Twitter 12.7.2018: “No deal Brexit looks exactly like the Brexit I voted for.” (8)

On Twitter 16.1.2019: “Come on @theresa_may You may have really p*ssed on my chips over Brexit. But you are one tough, tenacious bird. And I completely admire you for enduring and withstanding it all. You go girlfriend. Grip that lectern like a sausage in a roll. And Sock it to them.” (8)

References:

1) “Jacob Rees-Mogg hosts champagne party after May Brexit defeat” The Guardian 16.1.2019

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/jan/16/jacob-rees-mogg-hosts-champagne-party-after-may-brexit-defeat

2) Jacob Rees-Mogg on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/jacob_rees_mogg

3) “Beer and Brexit with Jacob Rees-Mogg” The UK in a Changing Europe 16.1.2019

http://ukandeu.ac.uk/multimedia/beer-and-brexit-with-jacob-rees-mogg-mp/

4) Nigel Farage on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/nigel_farage

5) “Political establishment fighting over their preferred method of stopping Brexit says UKIP Leader” National UKIP News 14.1.2019

https://www.ukip.org/national-ukip-news-item.php?id=155

6) “‘The British people will never surrender!’ – UKIP Leader tells EU Parliament” National UKIP News 16.1.2019

https://www.ukip.org/national-ukip-news-item.php?id=158

7) “‘We are the forgotten voices!’ Hopkins blasts ‘Londonistan’ saying Brexiteers need Trump” Express 3.8.2017

https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/836625/Brexit-eu-uk-Donald-Trump-Katie-Hopkins-Dave-Rubin-youtube-us-london-brexiteer-europe

8) Katie Hopkins on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/kthopkins?lang=fr