Czech neo-Nazis becoming more violent and sophisticated, report warns

(Czech Ministry of Interior logo)




This very important piece, published on March 1, 2012, is reprinted from Czechposition.com:

Despite a fall in numbers compared to the 1990s, extreme right-wing movements in the Czech Republic are becoming more discreet and sophisticated and widening their range of targets, a report commissioned by the Czech Ministry of Interior says, warning that neo-Nazis and other groups may resort to terrorism.

According to the 50-odd page report authored by political scientist Miroslav Mareš and several contributors, a rise in racially motivated attacks can be expected over the next five years. While the ethnic Romany population will continue to be the target of violence, the report says far-right groups are increasingly focusing their attention to resistance to multiculturalism and immigration to the Czech Republic.

“Calls to form home defense units (which came from the [banned] Workers Party) against Vietnamese present a risk because they could lead to an escalation in ethnic violence,” the report published on Thursday states.

Mareš says in the report an increase in violent attacks can be expected due to: worsening economic conditions; increasing social exclusion; mainstream political failure by extreme right-wing parties; and the influence of foreign white supremacist groups.

There are currently around 4,000 extreme right-wing activists in the Czech Republic, the report says, with an especially active core of around 400 leaders and ideologists. The core of the movement is now formed by the free nationalist and autonomous nationalist movements, which operate in coordinated regional cells as opposed to adhering to a national leadership, the report says.

‘The Russian way’ of terrorim

“Within the neo-Nazi scene, which is attempting to work out courses of action, terrorist concepts influenced in part from Russia (the so-called ‘Russian Way’), are being propagated,” the report states. It notes that numerous Russian judges who have sentenced neo-Nazi activists have been attacked — and several murdered (though no right-wing militants have been convicted for the homicides).

“It’s necessary to monitor whether the Czech neo-Nazi scene will adopt similar tactics in reaction to a wave of controversial trials,” the report’s author recommends, pointing out that the Czech far-right movement has close ties with similar organizations in Russia.

The Ministry of Interior last year published an instructional booklet intended primarily for police chiefs under the title Extremism as a Security Threat warning of right-wing extremists infiltrating police ranks. The new report likewise warns that Neo-Nazi activists are drawn to the police force: “We can expect more conspiracies in this area than there have been before.”

Similarly, right-wing extremists are attracted to employment with private security firms, which is a way for them to get firearms licenses. Mareš also draws attention to potential problems arising from the increasing use of private security firms in conflict zones, warning that some extremists have gained conflict or combat experience in this way.

Mareš and his colleagues also warn that some core members of extreme right-wing movements are attempting to influence public life, primarily on the local rather than national level. They do so by infiltrating mainstream politics by joining the major political parties, gaining positions in public organs other than the police, where “for the time being they covertly act in the interests of their ideological orientation.”

Change of image

Czech extreme-right wing organizations are turning away from the skinhead image, which was widely adopted by its activists and sympathizers in the Czech Republic in the 1990s. As well as the changing tastes of the younger generation of right-wing extremists, many of the activists prefer not to wear the politics on their sleeves, so to speak. “The neo-Nazi scene is not as visible as in 2008, but the number of activists remains the same,” the report says.

Further, it warns that in response to a shift in ideological outlook — and with their perceived war on multi-culturalism in Europe and protecting European traditions — neo-Nazi groups will likely try to recruit sympathizers and active supporters by exploiting populist issues and opposition by conservatives and traditionalists to “liberal” tendencies such as same-sex marriages, as well as some stereotypical perceptions.

“Today they manage to blend in with larger mass protests as was the case in the Šluknov district last year, where it was very difficult to tell who belonged to the neo-Nazi scene, and who were ‘ordinary citizens,’” the report says, referring to the large protests against a wave of attacks and a rise in crime in the northern Bohemian district last fall, which many local residents attributed exclusively to the growing Romany population.

Italian professionalism

The report also notes the influence of the Italian neo-Fascist movement Casapound, which spurns identification with the traditional image of the far-right and presents itself as a mainstream political movement beyond the confines of traditional left- and right-wing politics — although the party is openly anti-immigration.

“Professionalism is a key characteristic off the neo-Nazi movement of the new millennium. In the case of Casapound, there is a managerial leadership and managers are groomed for specific activities,” the report says, adding that the movement makes a point of appealing to university students.

“A part of the Czech neo-Nazi scene views Casapound positively precisely because the movement has managed to penetrate into everyday public life. ... they view the concept positively because they themselves are attempting to find a form more acceptable to society, thus the collections for dog kennels, cleaning refuse from woods and forests, help in the wake of floods, etc.,” the report states.

Mareš and colleagues say the best way to combat far-right extremism in the long-term is through educational programs. Also in cases where school pupils have become involved in extremist groups, patient persuasion as opposed to in-school punishments such as suspension or detention are far more effective, they conclude.

The Czech Ministry of Interior has published a number of documents in English about the ministry’s “Fight against Extremism,” which are available here.

Czechs Prepare to Say No to Hate this Saturday

Czech Roma and human rights activists are gearing up to take a stand against racism and neo-Nazism at a demonstration many fear could turn chaotic, even violent. This coming Saturday, March 12, the Workers' Social Justice Party (Dělnická strana sociální spravedlnosti - DSSS) is scheduled to gather and march through the town of Nový Bydžov, the new epicenter of anti-Roma sentiment in the Czech Republic.

The Workers' Social Justice Party says its mission is to stand up "against rising crime." The group's messages have consistently targeted and intimidated the Roma community, against whom the mayor of Nový Bydžov unleashed what some have called "a war on Gypsies" by collectively libeling this ethnic group following a rape of a 21-year-old woman in November 2010 by a suspect who was allegedly a Roma.

"The worst-case scenario," states a press release issued by Freedom Not Fear, a group which supports the counter-demonstration, "would be another attempt at a pogrom similar to the one that played itself out three years ago at the Janov housing estate in Litvínov," a town in the north of the Czech Republic.

Amnesty International, who plans to monitor the event, has just released a public statement urging "the Czech authorities to ensure protection of Roma in Nový Bydžov during a demonstration by the Workers’ Social Justice Party planned on 12 March."

"Following the Mayor’s statement," explains the Amnesty International public statement, "the Workers’ Social Justice Party welcomed 'open and truthful naming of the problem' and announced its readiness to help, including by providing monitoring patrols to the municipality."

The AI document also provides a bit of history on the Workers’ Social Justice Party (DSSS):

The Worker’s Party, the predecessor to the Workers’ Social Justice Party, was dissolved by the Supreme Administrative Court in February 2010. The Court held that its programme led to incitement to national, racial, ethnic intolerance and amounted to an attempt to infringe the basic rights and freedoms of certain groups, in particular the minorities.

Young Greens (Mladí zelení) civic association is one of the groups actively opposing the Workers’ Social Justice Party's message and upcoming neo-Nazi demonstration. In their statement and invitation to all others to stand up against hate this Saturday, the Young Greens explain:

This DSSS action has been convened under the guise of being "Against Rising Crime“. However, we believe, after this country's experiences with similar demonstrations in Litvínov-Janov and Přerov, that in reality this will be a hate gathering intended to exploit the anti-Roma mood in society in order to score more political points for the DSSS and the totalitarian, undemocratic ideas that party represents.

As you all certainly know, a group of mayors recently met in Nový Bydžov and has started calling for the increased repression of people whom this society has learned to generally call the "inadaptable" (often as a front for racism, xenophobia and other generally asocial worldviews) - even though the sociologist Stöcklová asserts that "'Inadaptability' or resistance is essentially a positive value in society. Rejection of that value made it possible for Nazism to prevail in Germany during the 1930s."

The official municipal web pages of the town of Nový Bydžov are shocking in the their anti-Gypsy content. There it is possible to read the completely open claim that "The Gypsies have committed rape!" The hatred against one group of the town's inhabitants culminated in the publication of a document entitled "The Town's Measures" on that website. This generalization about and condemnation of an entire ethnic group on the basis of legal violations committed by individuals is not only something completely unbelievable in the 21st century, but primarily borders itself on being a crime. We continue to believe in the democratic principles of the Czech Republic and in values such as a right to a fair trial, including the presumption of innocence, in respect for human dignity, and in human rights. The behavior represented by the leadership of Nový Bydžov seriously jeopardizes those values.

The problem of ostracizing a certain section of the population, however, does not end in Nový Bydžov. The ideological prevalence of anti-Gypsyism, together with anti-humanism, Europhobia and Islamophobia, is becoming ever more clear in our republic. In addition to the mayors' conference in Nový Bydžov, another possible piece of evidence for this is the recent attempt by Czech Education Minister Dobeš to appoint Ladislav Bátora, a former candidate for the ultra-right National Party (Národní strana - NS), to the post of first deputy minister, as well as the hysterical defense of Bátora by Czech President Klaus, a defense such has never been seen not only in the history of the Czech Republic, but in the history of the state of Czechoslovakia. Thanks to these political attitudes and the often one-sided stereotyping of societal diversity by the most frequently-consumed Czech media, hatred of the Roma community achieved unbelievable dimensions by the end of last year. This must be prevented. It is not possible to just stand by as the internal societal mood of the Czech Republic comes closer and closer to that of 1930s Germany, where it resulted in something everyone is convinced should never be repeated.

We have decided to call you to action, to call on us all and on all our friends to mobilize for active participation in the demonstration against the DSSS march and to express our emphatic disagreement with the growing right-wing extremism in the Czech Republic.

As the news server Romea reports, "strong tensions can be felt among residents of the town."

Regional police say they will increase their patrols in the town in order to protect people's property and ensure order.

The Nový Bydžov is not alone! Initiative, a group which is organizing the counter-demonstration, has called on the Czech Government Human Rights Commissioner to actively participate.

The organizers write: "Our gathering is being organized under the rubric of the newly-created Nový Bydžov is not alone! Initiative, whose members include Roma people living in Nový Bydžov and activists who have long been involved in human rights, often working in NGOs focused on Roma rights or other human rights topics." They emphasize the non-violent nature of the planned counter-protest.

If you are in the region, please join all those of good will and take a stand against hate this coming Saturday. More information on the protest here.

Interview with Dženo Association's chairman Ivan Veselý

This video, featuring the Dženo Association's founder and chairman Ivan Veselý, provides a very good overview of some of the issues facing the Roma community in the Czech Republic and in Europe at large. The video was created by Christina Hooson, 2009 Advocacy Project Peace Fellow with Dženo.

Czechs' Response to Rising Extremism: Prevention through education?

With right-wing extremism on the rise, increased risk of racially motivated harassment and violence against minorities has become a reality in the Czech Republic. The economic downturn in Europe, as in the United States, is plunging people into poverty and fueling xenophobia, racism, insecurity and hightening tensions between disadvantaged groups. Extremist ideology is also becoming increasingly used in political rhetoric, and many worry about the possibility of hate becoming a mainstream political vehicle as has happened in Hungary, for instance, where the far-right party Jobbik currently holds 47 of 386 parliamentary seats.

The annual report of the human rights group, Czech Helsinki Commitee, cites as one of the primary issues facing the Czech Republic, "the increasing radicalization of neo-Nazis and violent attacks against the Roma population." An example of this is an April 2009 arson attack on a Roma family, which resulted in a two-year-old girl suffering severe burns to 80 percent of her body. The perpetrators of the attack are associated with a far-right group and are currently on trial.

In light of this alarming trend, what kinds of efforts are Czech institutions undertaking, specifically in the field of education (a later post will focus on violence prevention via the criminal justice system), to curb the appeal of hate group ideology to economically struggling whites?

In response to the growth of the neo-Nazi movement, and with the intention of steering young people away from the dangers of the ideology of hate, Varianty, an educational program of the human rights organization People in Need, created a booklet for teachers to use in the classroom. The booklet is available online and in CD-form to be ordered for free by schools. The organization is, according to the news service iDnes, currently out of funds to provide printed copies of the text.

The approximately two-hundred-page long booklet, "The Threat of Neo-Nazism, Democratic Opportunities", describes the history of homegrown right-wing extremism. The text, developed in cooperation with the police unit specializing in monitoring extremist activity, also contains pictures of neo-Nazis and their insignia as well as topics for facilitated discussions. The most controversial aspect of the booklet is the inclusion of passages from hate group literature. The authors, however, argue that such information is widely available to those students who choose to seek it out and that examining it critically is crucial.



In the booklet, teachers are provided with guidelines on how to present and analyze the materials with their students. However, the reality is that many educators are still unsure about how to approach the subjects of extremism and racism, and as a result steer away from providing their students with the opportunity to examine hate group ideology critically. Clearly, instructors need more tools and support on how to implement such ambitious programs in their classrooms. Additionally, there needs to be a system-wide effort to infuse public school curriculum with anti-bias education.

According to the press agency iDnes, the Czech Ministry of Education is currently preparing "a directive concerning education against racism, xenophobia, and intolerance." It is unclear how this directive will differ from the 1995 version, which simply asks of schools and educators to teach about tolerance without any accountability. Let us hope the initiative goes beyond a directive in outlining a strategy for teacher training and support and in setting some specific, measurable goals. Education countering the power of hate ideology is of crucial importance now.

Of course, one key way of preventing extremism, aside from discussing and taking a strong stance against it outright with students, is through dismantling divisions and prejudice between groups from an early age. In the Czech Republic, where segregation in education is a serious problem affecting the Roma, more of an effort must be made to make schools inclusive and to retain Romani students and teaching assistants in mainstream classrooms.

"Exclusion of Romani students from mainstream classrooms and their education in segregated schools in Romani communities," states the Czech Government Approach toward Roma Integration for the Years 2010-2013, "make experiencing contact impossible for other students, thereby endangering their readiness for peaceful coexistence in the future. Segregation elevates the risk of mistrust, spread of prejudice and xenophobia between the two groups."

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[This post originally appeared on Tereza Bottman's Advocacy Project blog]