Selim Ibraimi– As we approach the end of the year, with a high potential for wars to continue even in 2025, the rise of 20th-century ideologies may be another problem not only for the EU, Eastern Europe, and the Balkans. While the EU has approved the plan of the Balkan states for reform, which is a good sign, something else is happening in Western and developing democracies.
The concerns are real that, even in the democracies created after the war of the 20th and 21st centuries, the rise of ideologies is being revived, with the potential for new differences and conflicts. Let’s be more specific about the new and old ideologies that some countries are seeing in action.
Based on the interpretation of general dictionaries, “Fascism and Nazism often think the same or refer to the same ideology”. Even though both are totalitarian ideologies, they are connected by design, both of them fight together with the world. As far as communism is concerned, it is “a political, social idea that aims to create a classless society with collective economic means”.
But “Stalinist Communism”, so called because it deviated from Leon Trotsky’s concept after Lenin’s death, has nothing to do with the communism that Engels and Marx built as a theory very early on. When it comes to Nationalism, world dictionaries see it as “a modern ideology that emphasizes loyalty and devotion to the nation-state over other interests.”
As for Chauvinism, which we have recorded much less, but it is in recent action in the Balkans, it refers to “excessive patriotism or speech, or a superior attitude towards others”. We wrote about Radicalism, Terrorism, and Extremism years ago. The list of ideologies could be longer, but we will not stop here, and we will continue with the discussion about some ideologies that have taken their form but remain those that are the basis of other articles.
Countries from East to West shaken by the forces are internal ideological and are not internal to what is happening and where it comes from. The time of permanent peace does not seem to exist, because the wing parties are gaining the position before the US, the EU, and even the Balkans.
Also, unresolved issues of the ethnic and territorial past play an additional role in today’s evolving ideologies. In function of all the political ideologies, the groups are the state parties, and in the center also in the fund is. Especially in the Balkans in these times, chauvinism has also been promoted where devaluations are in the possible game of a big thing in the coming years.
In this context, the past has played a major role in changing the attitude towards other ethnic groups and states such as Russia-Ukraine, Serbia-Kosovo, and of course, the “war” of North Macedonia was adapted to the regional policy which has proven to be very effective.
After a few moments with the neighbors who have implemented nationality tactics in the internal plan that are very inter-ethnically fragile, the governments in Skopje without some radical forces, may have been measures to remove the laws that guarantee ethnic equality. Experiments in the journey of the Balkan states towards the EU in this bad time can have devastating effects. And not only in North Macedonia but also in other states of the region with such ambitions. In the global aspect, we must always bear in mind that the ideologies of superiority, nationalism, and other similar forms are present in the laws and institutions in the USA, EU, and other countries of the world.
Therefore, as societies are evolving along with modern technology, ideologies along with misinformation are all part of our lives. For example, in the US at the time of the pre-election campaign, the former president (the current Republican candidate) D. Trump was involved to some extent with the federal government and vice. President (Democratic candidate) K. Harris in the heated debate about the role of the state in the current situation in Florida. We can take such examples from all countries, both with established and developing democracies.
At this time, there is no state that can avoid some degree of the aforementioned bad ideology and practice. It is up to smart people inside and out to think about what is in their best interest. Avoiding such ideologies will be very difficult as I explained above.
It will require a lot of effort and planning to overcome the era of chauvinism, ambitions for territories, and finally to weaken in some way the radical forces that are looking for trouble elsewhere, and in particular, in the EU countries and in the Balkans without mentioning the former – the countries of the Soviet Union.
Ultimately, we must recognize that historically nations and other disaffected groups have promoted different practices and policies. Although societies will try to fight and protect themselves from some of the above-mentioned ideologies, it will be a difficult task. The 21st century is not so different in terms of ideologies in action and other forms of propaganda. They all have one thing in common: to destroy the truth and bring different realities.
The article was written exclusively for Portalb.mk. The publication rights belong only to Portalb.mk and the author, according to the agreement between them.
