The neo-fascist Australia First Party (which the Wikleaks Party preferred to the Greens in the NSW Senate race) took part in the federal election last Saturday. Results for the party were negligible, with some small segment of its votes presumably siphoned off in the direction of other right-wing micro-parties. Despite making a solemn vow, party fuehrer Dr James Saleam (535/0.65%) failed to capture the seat of Cook from the capable hands of Scott Morrison, while the party’s best result appears to have been obtained by Lorraine Sharp in Riverina (1,165/1.43%). Final figures will not be available for some days yet. (You can read an interview with AF candidate for Bennelong Victor Waterson here.)
In Greece, AF’s comrades in Golden Dawn (Chrysi Avyi/Χρυσή Αυγή) have drawn some further media attention (Teh Grauniad) when several days ago a gang of perhaps 30–50 GD members armed with clubs and other weapons attacked a smaller group of ‘leftists’ (members of the Stalinist Greek Communist Party KKE) in the port city of Perama (see : ‘Golden Dawn thugs attack KKE members in the neighbourhood of Perama; 8 seriously injured’, Occupied London, September 13, 2013). Apart from its ferocity and size, I’m unsure how significant the attack is as, contrary to Teh Grauniad, GD frequently attacks their political opposition (especially the anarchists). It may, however, be that this is one of the most violent (?) attacks they’ve launched thus far against Greek Communists, and therefore constitute an escalation in their battle from the usual cast of immigrants, queers and anarchists to more ‘mainstream’ elements — and a demonstration of their growing confidence in both their own strength and the ability of the Greek political establishment to protect them from some of the less palatable consequences for their actions.
Closer to home, word on the street is that Golden Dawn have recently opened an office in the Melbourne suburb of Oakleigh, having drawn some significant financial support from a local Greek businessman as well as attracting a small number of local Greek yoofs to their banners, first raised publicly back in early 2012. In response to GD’s implantation, Greek-Australian antifascists have been keeping busy, among other things establishing a blog titled, appropriately, ‘Greek Australian Antifascists’. It contains a useful guide to GD, outlining the party’s bullshit politics and deconstructing its fascist and neo-Nazi agenda in ’10 Myths about Golden Dawn (or why golden dawns bring black days)’.
Elsewhere in Melbourne, on Saturday September 7, boneheads celebrated Blood & Honour’s 20th anniversary by throwing a party and inviting various others nazis to join them. According to a bonehead on Stormfront, the special guest * invited on stage for the event was the UK band Brutal Attack, featuring crooner Ken McLellan. Like any musician, Brutal Attack’s Ken McLellan wants to be heard. Only, what he wants people to hear are self-described “white power” anthems with lines like “This is the Final Solution / Our turn / They’ll burn.” (Racist Music Goes Digital, Spin, December 23, 2008.) Ken’s band got some mileage in The Independent back in June when it played a nazi muzak festival in Italy; note that Ken and Attack appear to have had less luck when they tried to play another nazi gathering in North Carolina back in 2006, Ken being turned away by US Customs.
Speaking of nazis (and er, Mormons!), Kyle Chapman’s latest political vehicle ‘Right Wing Resistance New Zealand’ has supposedly also set up shop in Australia. Fingers xed the t-shirt salesman’s venture goes as well as it did in Sweden …
A final note: ‘Smashing the fash: fascism in Australia’ (Rafi Alam, Honi Soit, August 30, 2013) is an interesting examination of Australian fascist politics. I may respond to it at greater length at a later date. In the meantime, I was amused (happy/sad face) to read that “[a]lthough there are groups and individuals that oppose fascism in Australia, they fail to make an impression in public opinion. Anarchist blogger slackbastard follows the trends of fascism in Australia, but is a lone writer. Fight Dem Back was prolific in combating racial hatred in Australia, but is effectively defunct now.”
