The migrant crisis in Europe is continuing to take a heavy toll on mainstream political parties even as right-wing parties are riding an unprecedented populist wave that shows no signs of abating. It’s unfortunate that large sections of European population are still gripped by an unreasonable fear of immigrants though the crisis has largely been contained. The right-wing parties are capitalising on the public unease and are stoking fears and paranoia with false propaganda and scaremongering, forcing moderate and other conservative parties to harden their stance and refrain from actions that will further infuriate their voter base. German Chancellor Angela is one victim of the anti-immigrant populist wave.
Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) suffered a stinging setback in Berlin on Sunday, ceding territory to the anti-Islamic, anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) party won seats in the regional parliament with 14 percent of the vote -- not far behind the CDU’s 18 percent result. “From zero to double-digits, that’s a first for Berlin,” cheered an AfD. The results showed a continuation of voter anguish against Merkel. Two weeks earlier, the AfD had ahead of the CDU in a northeastern regional poll. The persistent electoral blows are more than what a feisty leader like Merkel can take. Politics is all about public mood, and sensing a continuing hostile mood against her open-door migration policy, Merkel finally admitted that there were mistakes in her handling of last year’s refugee crisis, and promised that there would be no repetition of mistakes. Merkel was forced into a retreat and if her party’s fortunes don’t improve, she will be forced into further isolation that will result in the tightening of border security and even the sending back of tens of thousands of migrants who would otherwise have been able to stay back.
In France, Norway, Austria, Finland, Denmark, Netherlands and several other European countries, far-right parties are on a roll. For example, in Netherlands, the Freedom Party is currently leading polls for a March 2017 legislative vote. Its firebrand and venom-spewing leader Geert Wilders wants a referendum on EU membership, while the party’s platform calls for “all mosques and Islamic schools closed” and a ban on the Islamic holy book.
Like Merkel, other mainstream European leaders too are expected feel the heat of the anti-immigrant wave and change or even dilute their position. Merkel has rightly said that the European Union as a whole was failing to recognise the refugee crisis as “a global and a moral challenge”. It’s a candid remark, and a warning of the hard times ahead for refugees.
