Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

PORTUGAL: A NEW LOOK AT THE EXTREME RIGHT

2007; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 43; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/00344890701463654

1749-4001

José Pedro Zúquete,

Diaspora, migration, transnational identity

Abstract This article examines the recent emergence and increasing visibility in Portugal of an extreme right party, the Partido Nacional Renovador (National Renewal Party), whose driving force is no longer nostalgia for the 'New State' of Salazar but rather the rejection of modern trends such as globalisation, immigration, and the overriding influence of supranational bodies like the European Union. It looks at the structural conditions that have facilitated the National Renewal Party's emergence, and outlines the main features, themes, and values of the party's ideological core. It then focuses both on the conditions that might lead the party to achieve an electoral breakthrough and the obstacles that can impede its development. It argues that the traditionally perceived 'marginalisation' of the Portuguese extreme right, in a context of crisis and the emergence of a political entrepreneur who could profit from it and supply a new alternative, may come to an end. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The author would like to thank Michael Baum, Roger Eatwell and the two anonymous reviewers for their comments and suggestions on an earlier draft of this paper. Notes 1. Myriad terms have been used to describe the family of the parties – typically located on the right – that have gained some electoral preponderance in the last two decades. As there is not a commonly accepted definition for these parties, the terminology is diverse and includes such epithets as 'populist', 'neo‐populist', 'radical right', and 'extreme right'. The issue of categorisation of these parties is beyond the scope of this article; thus I side with the consensus and brand these parties as 'extreme right'. On this issue see Eatwell (2004 eatwell, roger. 2004. "Introduction: The new extreme right challenge.". In Western democracies and the new extreme right challenge, Edited by: Eatwell, Roger and Mudde, Cas. London and New York: Routledge. [Google Scholar]). 2. From the Comissão Nacional de Eleições (National Elections Commission) website (http://eleicoes.cne.pt). 3. Read the founding manifesto of the party here: http://www.bloco.org/pdf/comecardenovo.pdf. In the last legislative election of February 2005 the party obtained 6.35 per cent, electing eight members of parliament. From the Comissão Nacional de Eleições (National Elections Commission) website (http://eleicoes.cne.pt). 4. These numbers are from the December 2005 report Estatísticas da Imigração, published by the Alto Comissariado para a Imigração e Minorias Étnicas. In 2003 the total immigrant population accounted for 368.729 of the total population (http://www.acime.gov.pt/docs/GEE/Estatisticas_GEE_2005.pdf). 5. The government announced that the combat against illegal immigration would be a major priority during the 2007 six month Portugese Presidency of the European Union. See 'Costa diz que combate à imigração ilegal é prioridade', Diário de Notícias, 12 July 2006. 6. Socialist Finance Minister Fernando Teixeira dos Santos said in a TV programme in early 2006 that at current levels of income and expenditure, Portugal's pension fund may be unable to meet payouts in 10 years. Read 'Ministro desdramatiza Teixeira dos Santos', Diário de Notícias, 11 January 2006. The current socialist government has already set out new reforms of the pensions system aimed at cutting costs. Read 'Portugal plans pension reforms; childless, single‐child couples will be penalized', Financial Times, 15 May 2006. 7. This association is markedly nostalgic, stating that the 'art of governance' of Salazar should be applied to modern times, and preaching what they call a 'democratic Salazarism'. Its programme is ultra‐Catholic and characterised by the defence of a 'specific' Portuguese nationalism that, unlike that of other nationalists, is 'universal' and 'anti‐racist'. Its mentor, former PNR president António da Cruz Rodrigues, regularly attacks the new 'ethnic‐racial' direction of the party, accusing the new leadership of anti‐Catholicism and racism (see http://nacionalismo‐de‐futuro.blogspot.com). 8. For example, in the weekly magazine Visão the party is described as 'neo‐fascist, of Salazarist inspiration and corporative doctrine. Though organizations that defend fascism are forbidden by the constitution, the [PNR's] discourse leaves no room for doubt'. In Visão, 'O novo PNR', 15 June 2006. Public television RTP1 has broadcast a programme titled A Extrema‐direita existe? [Does the extreme‐right exist?] on 6 June 2006 that makes minimal distinction between the PNR and the National Front, skin‐heads, or white supremacist movements. As another example of this association between the two, see 'Dirigente da Frente Nacional e militante do PNR sob termo de residencia', Público, 8 June 2006. 9. The CDS governed in a coalition with the major centre‐right Portuguese party (PSD – Partido Social Democrata – Social Democratic Party) from 2002 to 2005 and different perspectives on issues such as abortion and immigration caused tension within the coalition. See 'Portas diz que o "PSD não desejava listas conjuntas"', Portugal Diário, 2 May 2005. 10. For example, see the debate about immigration on the public channel RTP1, in the programme Prós e Contras, 15 December 2003. Portuguese essayist and philosopher Eduardo Lourenço has stated in an interview that 'Africa, in order to survive, if allowed, would transfer itself to Europe … Europe must convince itself that it is surrounded …' See 'A Europa está cercada pela imigração', O Diabo, 20 June 2006. 11. The Constitution forbids these movements in its Article 46, under the heading 'Freedom of Association'. The ordinary law was approved during the second constitutional government in 1978. 12. See 'Extrema‐direita procura dinheiro no Irão', Expresso, 17 June 2006, where the constitutionality of the PNR was questioned and legal scholars supported its illegalisation. The issue emerged again in the spring of 2007 during the anti‐immigration billboard episode. There were calls to ban the PNR by law, and the General Public Prosecution Office vowed to follow closely the activities of the party (Público, 29 March 2007). 13. Efforts have been underway for some time, by the two main parties (PS and PSD), to reform the electoral system in a majoritarian direction, which would inevitably harm the ability of smaller parties to influence governmental decision‐making (see, for example, Diário de Noticias, 31 October 2006). 14. See 'Igreja atenta à nova lei da imigração', 14 June 2006, available online at http://www.agencia.ecclesia.pt/noticia.asp?noticiaid = 33921.