Rajewski: The more the left shouts their extreme ideas in the media, the more right-wing extremism will appear

“Right-wing extremism occurs where there is left-wing extremism,” political scientist Filips Rajevskis said in TV24’s “Dienas personality ar Velta Purina”, commenting on the warning of the State Security Service (VDD) about the tendency for the risks of right-wing extremism to grow in society.

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He points out: where there is one extreme, there is immediately another extreme.

This has been very well observed in European politics: “The moment the governments went into some kind of extra-left extremism, when this unjustified introduction of refugees and migrants started here. Improper benefits for migrants. Logically, in the elections, everyone voted for the right-wing parties, which say that it is not necessary, and then everyone is surprised.”

The political scientist emphasizes that the more the leftists shout their extreme ideas in the media, the more right-wing extremism will appear.

“I think left-wing extremism will always breed right-wing extremism. And the more left-wing extremism there is, the more right-wing extremism there will be,” Rajevsky said.

He reminds that historically left-wing extremism, left-wing ideas, left-wing parties have always been a special area of ​​interest for the Russian intelligence services.

Rajevsky points out that the Russians have always, and this is a legacy of the times of the USSR, this is a legacy from the time of Stalin, financed and supported and used the left parties as a basis to project their interests in Europe.

It has already been announced that the VDD warns of the tendency for the risks of right-wing extremism to grow in society, especially among young people.

Over the weekend, the State Police in cooperation with the VDD arrested several representatives of the skinhead subculture, who are suspected of publicly glorifying the genocide, crimes against humanity, crimes against peace and war crimes committed by Nazi Germany, as well as for carrying out activities aimed at inciting racial hatred.

“Already in the previous year, we identified an increase in the number of young people who show an increased interest in the ideologies of right-wing extremism and share their views on social networking sites and communication platforms, especially – “Telegram”, trying to find like-minded people both in Latvia and in other countries,” he says. Head of VDD Normunds Mežviets.

“Although the threat posed by such persons to the democratic system of our country is currently assessed as low, the tendency to increase the number of supporters of right-wing extremism creates risks for public safety. In order to prevent the spread of right-wing extremism in society, our service has strengthened preventive measures to identify and prevent cases of possible radicalization of individuals.”

In the assessment of VDD, the mentioned trend is related to the increase in the number of immigrants of other races in Latvia, who are targeted by right-wing extremists. The increase in the spread of right-wing extremism among young people can potentially result in an increase in the number of violent attacks against representatives of different races, the service warns.

The service reminds that on July 11 of last year, a criminal trial was started against a person who turned to right-wing extremism on suspicion of public justification of terrorism, training, as well as recruitment and training of other persons for terrorism. In the investigation, the service found that the person was inspired by right-wing extremists such as Anders Behring-Breivik and Brenton Tarrant, whose acts of terror have killed a large number of people.

Since last year, VDD has strengthened measures to prevent the spread of both right-wing and left-wing extremism. The VDD closely cooperates with the State Police in identifying supporters of violent extremism.

Since young people are one of the groups of society exposed to the risk of radicalization, VDD officials have visited several hundred educational institutions in Latvia this year, informing their administration representatives and social pedagogues about the signs and risks of radicalization of young people.

In the near future, the VDD plans to organize presentations on the signs of turning to right-wing or left-wing extremism for several state institutions whose daily work is related to groups of society exposed to the risk of radicalization, including prisoners and persons with mental health disorders.

This year, the VDD has already conducted preventive talks with several persons who show signs of radicalization, as well as persons related to them. The Service has warned these persons of the expected criminal liability in case of committing criminal offences.

Also, to inform the wider public, the service has prepared two informative booklets this year – about signs and symbols characteristic of supporters of right-wing and left-wing extremism. These leaflets are available on the website of the service.

When detecting signs of radicalization in a fellow human being, the VDD recommends first, within the limits of possibility, to try to find out the reasons for changes in behavior or appearance through a calm conversation. If what a person says increases the suspicion of possible radicalization, it is worth encouraging this person to consult a psychologist or social worker.

However, if the person is not focused on cooperation and shows increased aggressiveness, the VDD should be contacted immediately. You can contact the service by calling the 24-hour phone number 67 208 964 or writing to the e-mail address “[email protected]”.

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