Just a couple of days ago, on October 22 precisely, Giorgia Meloni was sworn in as Italy’s first woman Prime Minister. And while that is laudable in itself, a cause for concern is that her party, Brothers of Italy, is a far-right political outfit that swept to victory in an election held in September, giving the country its most chauvinistic government since World War II. Brothers of Italy contested as part of a coalition that included Forza Italia, led by former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, and Matteo Salvini’s far-right, anti-immigrant Lega Nord party.
Italy is not alone in electing right-wing parties and politicians to power. In Sweden, the far-right Sweden Democrats emerged as the second-most popular party in the country’s recent election. Though the Swedish parliament elected conservative leader Ulf Kristersson as the Prime Minister, his government is backed by Sweden Democrats, which is as chauvinistic, if not more.
All across Europe, right-wing forces have been winning larger shares of the vote in recent elections. In Spain, the vote share of populist, right-wing political parties nearly doubled between 2015 and 2019. In the Netherlands, right-leaning nationalist parties grabbed almost 16% of the vote in 2021 — something that has not been witnessed in nearly a decade of parliamentary elections. In both Hungary and Poland, right-wing populist parties have risen to power, making spectacular gains in the last two decades.
It’s not just Europe — not too long ago, Donald Trump became the 45th president of the United States and served in that capacity till 2021. When Trump started his campaign, many thought of it as a side event with no real merit. But Republican Trump actually went on to win, much to the shock and chagrin of the Democrats. His tenure was full of scandals and anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim, right-wing rhetoric.
As for India, not only are right-wing forces firmly entrenched at the Centre and in most of the states, they seem to be gaining new ground practically every day, with the democratic process almost becoming a farce.
Right-wing ascendancy: Characteristics and impact on the world
The growth of right-wing populism has been on for quite a while now. It manifests itself in different ways in different parts of the world, but it has some common elements. Right-wing politicians and political outfits all share xenophobic, nationalistic traits. They uniformly lean towards authoritarianism and boast of aggressive, charismatic leadership. Such outfits secure their place in the public imagination by resorting to fear-mongering and “othering” of those they perceive as the ‘enemy’. All right-wing politicians need some cohort or the other to hate and some community to pander to.
Incendiary comments, hate speeches, and chest-thumping about the so-called glorious past of the majority community, race, religion, or original population are the hallmarks of all right-wing politicians. Historically, it has been observed that financial recession, poor economic performance, and the widening of the gap between the rich and the poor are the main causes that result in increased support for right-wing politics. Worsening economic conditions lead to an increase in unemployment, which creates anger and resentment towards those with minority statuses in the country.
The noticeable growth in right-wing politics and xenophobia, hatred of asylum seekers, immigrants and minority religious communities has set alarm bells ringing across peace-loving populations of the world. The ascendancy of far-right movements is a particularly dangerous development because it threatens to disrupt economic progress, create deep rifts in the fabric of society, and lead to the escalation of geopolitical tensions. In such a volatile atmosphere, even the slightest provocation can lead to a catastrophic event, including the use of nuclear weapons. The world urgently needs to de-escalate tensions and stop pandering to right-wing elements. They bring nothing of consequence in their emergence but leave rubble of devastation in their wake. One good look at history will tell you that.
