Far-Right Parties Win Big in Europe

The far-right scored a major victory in France and throughout Europe in the elections for the European Parliament.  

“When there is such a vote in France, a founding member of the European Union — when one in four vote for the (far-right) National Front, yes, there is a problem,” said French President Hollande. “This is not just a problem for France, but a problem for Europe.” (The New York Times, 27 May)

European presidents and prime ministers met in Brussels on Tuesday to assess the fallout from the election, in which centrist political parties lost ground to fringe groups in country after country.

The mainstream parties “are all in a disaster because they have not done their job,” said Jean-Paul Fitoussi, an economics professor at the Institut d’Études Politiques de Paris. “They have not found a solution to the problem of France, which is to recover, to have employment and growth.” (NTTimes, 27 May)

In France, 31 percent of voters surveyed by Harris Interactive cited immigration, the rallying point for the far right across the Continent, as their central concern. But nearly as many cited declining purchasing power, the crisis in the euro zone or rising unemployment.

Photo credit: Marine Le Pen’s party, the National Front, earned a stark victory in European Parliament elections. (European Pressphoto Agency/NYTimes)

EU Delegation Returns From Iran

A delegation from the European Parliament has returned from a one-week visit to Iran, the first since 2007. The visit comes amid a thaw in relations between Iran and the West.

While in Iran, the delegation met with 2012 Sakharov Prize winners Nasrin Sotoudeh and Jafar Panahi and said it discussed human rights issues with the parliament and opposition. (RFE/RL, 18 December)

The delegation, which returned today, said it hoped the EU's special representative on human rights could soon travel to Tehran to start a human rights dialogue.

File photo: European Parliament building in Strasbourg (lonelyplanet.com)

Iran Cancels Visit by European Parliament Delegation

Parliamentarians Wanted a Visit with Sotoudeh and Panahi

Iran has canceled the visit by a European Parliament delegation to Tehran after the group asked to meet two Iranian activists awarded EU’s prestigious Sakharov prize. The prize for human rights and freedom of thought were given to human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh, who represents opposition activists and is now in prison for her legal work, and banned filmmaker Jafar Panahi.

The decision came after senior officials at the European Parliament, which on Friday awarded its Sakharov prize to Sotoudeh and Panahi, said they wanted the delegation to meet the two dissidents. (Reuters, 27 October)

“After hearing the new conditions, the Iranians decided to cancel,” European Parliament spokeswoman Satu Helin told Reuters. The delegation was set to travel to Tehran from 27 October to 2 November.

Iran's Mehr news agency quoted an Iranian parliamentary official as saying the European delegation had stated as a “precondition” a visit with Sotoudeh and Panahi.

The meetings between European and Iranian parliamentary delegations were meant to keep open another line of communication, including with civil society.

Sakharov Prized Awarded to Sotoudeh and Panahi

The European Parliament's annual Sakharov prize has gone to two Iranian dissidents; Lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh, who represents opposition activists and is now in prison for her legal work, and banned filmmaker Jafar Panahi. The Sakharov Prize is awarded by the European Parliament for dedication to the defense of human rights and freedom of thought. Photo: Panahi (L) and Sotoudeh (AFP)