THE HINDU Editorial Vocabulary- December 22, 2017- Topic 2

Austrian shift: on coalition government in Europe

Austria’s new coalition government of the conservative People’s Party and the extreme right Freedom Party is a sobering reminder of the persistent danger of the populist upsurge across Europe. The deeply eurosceptic and anti-immigrant Freedom Party registered its best performance in nearly two decades in the October general election, polling about 26% of the vote. Such a showing may in effect have ruled out a repeat of the outgoing coalition between the Social Democrats, which came second, and the conservatives led by the new Chancellor, Sebastian Kurz. 

Moreover, reflecting a continent-wide erosion of the political middle-ground, Mr. Kurz had openly embraced the Islamophobic and anti-immigrant stance of the far-right in an attempt to shore up popular support in the run-up to the polls. A further demonstration of the inroads the Freedom Party has made is the key ministerial portfolios it has bagged, besides the vital position of Vice-Chancellor that its leader Heinz-Christian Strache has assumed. The interior ministry, which holds the levers of immigration control, is in its hands, rattling nerves in Europe. A similar concern arises from the charge of defence and foreign affairs, in view of the Freedom Party’s strong affinities with far-right parties in Hungary and Poland and close ties with Vladimir Putin’s Russia.

When the Freedom Party under Jörg Haider went in for a power-sharing arrangement with the conservatives around the turn of the century, Austria was briefly ostracised by the European Union. But the political realities in 2017 are different. Following the populist tide that led Britain to vote to leave the EU last year, and the extreme right Alternative for Germany’s 13% vote to enter the Bundestag in September for the first time under the 1949 constitution, unsurprisingly Brussels has been more muted in its response to the emergence of the new coalition in Austria. It has sought to emphasise the pro-EU features in the governance agreement, even as the government’s explicit rejection of a referendum on Vienna’s EU membership comes as a relief. The supposedly pro-European stance of an overtly anti-immigrant platform is an obvious contradiction, as freedom of movement is one of the EU’s four founding principles. Similar issues intended to strike at the root of deeper integration are bound to surface when Austria assumes the six-monthly rotating presidency of the EU in the second half of 2018. The electoral consolidation of the far-right in different member states will necessarily impede the process of further integration. The priority for Europe’s leaders therefore ought to be to win greater legitimacy for the project as it obtains now.

Vocabulary

Sober: make or become sober after drinking alcohol.

Example: That coffee sobered him up

Synonyms: quit drinking, dry out, become sober

Persistent: continuing firmly or obstinately in a course of action in spite of difficulty or opposition.

Example: One of the government's most persistent critics

Synonyms: tenacious, persevering, determined, resolute, purposeful, dogged

Upsurge: an upward surge in the strength or quantity of something; an increase.

Example: An upsurge in violent crime

Erosion: the process of eroding or being eroded by wind, water, or other natural agents.

Example: The problem of soil erosion

Embrace: an act of holding someone closely in one's arms.

Example: They were locked in an embrace

Synonyms: hug, cuddle, squeeze, clinch, caress, clasp, bear hug

Demonstration: the action or process of showing the existence or truth of something by giving proof or evidence.

Example: It is not capable of mathematical demonstration

Synonyms: proof, substantiation, confirmation, affirmation, corroboration

Immigration: the action of coming to live permanently in a foreign country.

Example: Patterns of immigration from the Indian sub-continent to Britain

Affinity: a spontaneous or natural liking or sympathy for someone or something.

Example: He has an affinity for the music of Berlioz

Synonyms: empathy for, rapport with, sympathy for, accord with, harmony with

Coalition: an alliance for combined action, especially a temporary alliance of political parties forming a government or of states.

Example: A coalition of conservatives and disaffected Democrats

Synonyms: alliance, union, partnership, bloc, caucus, federation, league, association

Explicit: stated clearly and in detail, leaving no room for confusion or doubt.

Example: The speaker's intentions were not made explicit

Synonyms: clear, plain, straightforward, crystal clear, easily understandable

Contradiction: a combination of statements, ideas, or features of a situation that are opposed to one another.

Example: The proposed new system suffers from a set of internal contradictions

Obvious: easily perceived or understood; clear, self-evident, or apparent.

Example: Unemployment has been the most obvious cost of the recession

Synonyms: clear, crystal clear, plain, plain to see, evident, apparent, manifest

Legitimacy: conformity to the law or to rules.

Example: Refusal to recognize the legitimacy of both governments