Vzpon populizma v Evropi: ustavna demokracija na preizkušnji, analiza Nemčije

Počivavšek Janhar, Manca (author), Bugarič, Bojan (mentor)

Volitve v zvezni parlament Zvezne republike Nemčije septembra 2017 so predstavljale mejnik v povojni zgodovini te države. Prvič po drugi svetovni vojni se je namreč neki desni populistični stranki, Alternativi za Nemčijo, uspelo prebiti v zvezni parlament. Obdobja pred letom 2017 so v Nemčiji zaznamovali predvsem volilni neuspehi tovrstnih strank, kar postavlja Nemčijo v edinstven položaj nasproti drugim evropskim državam, kjer so bile desne populistične stranke prisotne že dlje časa. Magistrska naloga poskuša pojasniti razloge za kasnejši razvoj populizma v Nemčiji in odgovoriti na hipotezo, da je razlog za drugačno pot Nemčije njeno aktivno spopadanje s travmo druge svetovne vojne. Magistrska naloga skuša ta cilj v prvem delu doseči z obravnavo pojmov populizma, liberalne demokracije in demokratičnega nazadovanja. Populizem je predstavljen kot tanka ideologija, ki se razglaša za edinega predstavnika ljudstva proti eliti. Populizem kot tak nima svoje lastne ideologije, lahko nagovarja tako desni kot levi politični pol. Kljub temu pa vsak populizem ne predstavlja grožnje liberalni demokraciji, to prestavlja avtoritarni populizem, medtem ko poskuša emancipatorni populizem ljudem približati demokracijo. Kot možno sredstvo proti demokratičnemu nazadovanju, ki ga povzroča avtoritarni populizem, je predstavljena militantna demokracija, ki pa ne more nuditi celovitega varstva pred zdrsom v avtokracijo. V boju proti avtoritarni retrogresiji najbolj učinkovito vlogo odigra politična kultura, v kateri politične stranke s svojim nesodelovanjem populistom onemogočijo usidranje na oblasti. Ravno to je v Nemčiji odigralo ključno vlogo, v preteklosti je namreč veljalo nenapisano pravilo, t. i. »Josef Strauß dogma«, po katerem v nemškem političnem prostoru ne sme delovati stranka, ki bi bila v svoji usmeritvi bolj desna od bavarske CSU. Z izvolitvijo AfD v zvezni parlament je bilo to nenapisano pravilo prekršeno in je Nemčijo postavilo ob bok drugim evropskim državam.

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: populizem, demokratično nazadovanje, militantna demokracija, liberalna demokracija, Alternativa za Nemčijo
• Work type: Master's thesis/paper
• Typology: 2.09 - Master's Thesis
• Organization: PF - Faculty of Law
• Year: 2022
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-137925
• COBISS.SI-ID: 116534019
• Publication date in RUL: 06.07.2022

Secondary language

• Language: English
• Title: The rise of populism in Europe: An analysis of the challenges to constitutional democracy in Germany

Abstract

In September 2017, election in the Federal German Parliament represented a milestone in the afterwar history of the country. For the first time after the World War II, a right wing populist party succeeded to enter the Federal Parliament. The periods before 2017 marked electoral defeats of such parties, which positions Germany in a unique place in comparison to the other European countries, in which the right wing populist parties were present already long before. The present master thesis' aim is to clarify reasons for belated occurrence of populism in Germany. The thesis is based on the assumption that the reason for such different developments lay in Germany's active facing with its role in World War II. The master thesis tries to clarify this with the examination of notions such as populism, liberal democracy and democratic backsliding. When speaking about populism, a definition of populism as a thin ideology is used, which claims that it is a sole representative of people against the elite. Populism as such does not have its own ideology and can address both, the right and the left political sphere. Despite lacking its own ideology, not every populism is a threat to liberal democracy; the so-called authoritarian populism poses a threat to liberal democracy, while emancipatory populism on the other hand tries to restore the democracy and bring it closer to the people. As a possible remedy against the democratic backsliding that is caused by the authoritarian populism is presented the concept of militant democracy, which, however cannot fully prevent democratic backsliding. In combating authoritarian retrogression, political culture plays the most efficient role, whereby political patries by not collaborating with populist parties prevent their anchoring into the power. In Germany, this played a crucial role, since the so called »Josef Strauß dogma«, a non-written rule, under which there should be no political party with more right agenda than bavarian CSU. With the election of the AfD in the Federal German Parliament, the rule was broken and set Germany in line with other European countries.

• Keywords: populism, democratic backsliding, militant democracy, liberal democracy, Alternative for Germany