Agir (Act) was a Belgian far-right political party active in Wallonia. The party existed from 1989 to 1997 and elected representatives at a provincial and municipal level.
Agir | |
|---|---|
| Founder | Willy Freson Robert Destordeur Robert Steuckers |
| Founded | 1989 |
| Dissolved | 1997 |
| Succeeded by | Front National |
| Headquarters | Wallonia, Belgium |
| Ideology | Cultural nationalism Identity politics |
| Political position | Far-right |
The initial base of Agir was the Liège branch of the Parti des forces nouvelles (PFN). The PFN had endured poor electoral results as well as adverse publicity following a brawl with police at the Brussels International Book Festival, resulting in the Liège going their own way in 1989.[1] The three founding leaders of Agir were Willy Freson, a one-tine leading activist in the Front de la Jeunesse, Robert Destordeur, a member of the PFN secretariat and Robert Steuckers, the main ideologue of the Nouvelle droite tendency in Belgium.[1]
The party belonged to an authoritarian and xenophobic ideology of the far-right, eschewing the neoliberalism that was growing in importance at the time.[2] The party however rejected the biological racism of its PFN predecessor, preferring instead to emphasise cultural nationalism and identity politics.[3] It strongly supported the repatriation of immigrants.[4] They described themselves as an "opposition popular party" and rejected the label of extreme right.[1]
Agir were ideologically close to the Groupement de recherche et d'études pour la civilisation européenne (GRECE) and members of the party took place in a number of GRECE conferences.[5] Although of a firmly Walloon identity Agir also sought good relations with the Vlaams Blok.[6] Externally, the party established connections with the German League for People and Homeland and the French National Front as well as individual activists within the neo-Nazi subculture.[5]
The party held seats in the Liège Provincial Council as well as the Municipal Councils within the region.[7] The 4.7% of the vote they captured in the 1991 Provincial election was enough to ensure that Freson captured a seat.[8] However, never operating outside its Liège stronghold, in 1997 the group merged with the Front National (FN).[9] With the FN in disarray at the time, the arrival of the Agir activists led to something of a revival in that party's fortunes.[10]
References edit
- ^ a b c Piero Ignazi, Extreme Right Parties in Western Europe, Oxford University Press, 2006,p. 128
- ^ Elisabeth Carter, The Extreme Right in Western Europe: Success Or Failure?, Manchester University Press, 2005, p. 59
- ^ Carter, The Extreme Right in Western Europe, p. 38
- ^ Carter, The Extreme Right in Western Europe, p. 33
- ^ a b Institute of Jewish Affairs, Antisemitism World Report 1994, Institute of Jewish Affairs, 1994, p. 14
- ^ Bernd Baumgartl, Adrian Favell, New Xenophobia in Europe, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1995, p. 40
- ^ Baumgartl & Favell, New Xenophobia in Europe, pp. 38-39
- ^ Ignazi, Extreme Right Parties, p. 130
- ^ Carter, The Extreme Right in Western Europe, p. 47
- ^ Ignazi, Extreme Right Parties, p. 131