President Petr Pavel.
Prague – According to Jan Charvát, an expert on political extremism from the National Institute SYRI, the arrival of the new president Petr Pavl can in some way moderate the extreme moods in society. Given that the causes of the radicalization of Czech society are deep and have their beginnings in the 1990s, Czech populism is not “on our shoulders”, Charvát said in a press release today.
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Photo gallery: President-elect Petr Pavel and his inauguration
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Pavel assumed the presidency on Thursday for five years. In the second round of the presidential election, he defeated former prime minister Andrej Babiš (ANO) in January. He received over 3.3 million votes, Babiš was supported by 2.4 million voters. “Peter Pavel's victory was unequivocal, but it is only one of the steps. We are not in a film where good wins over evil once and for all,” said Charvát, recalling the high number of votes for Babiš.
In the inaugural speech Pavel mentioned that his joint team now includes voters of all candidates, as well as non-voters. He wants to advocate for the unification of society. According to Charvát, this change in rhetoric after the end of President Miloš Zeman could contribute to a certain easing of extreme sentiments in society. However, according to him, after a total of twenty years of the presidency of Zeman and his predecessor Václav Klaus, Czech politics is far from normal.
According to Charvát, the causes of the radicalization of Czech society are deep and have their roots in the 1990s. The migration crisis in 2015 and the coronavirus epidemic in the years 2020 to 2021 brought about a sharp rise in radicalization, he believes. According to him, errors in the communication of the current cabinet of Petr Fiala (ODS) also lead to an increase in the number of dissatisfied people.
Due to distrust in politicians and the state, dissatisfied people want a complete transformation of the political system. “We have a million people in foreclosures, disadvantaged peripheries, a state apparatus that doesn't work well. Many people have a bad life and really don't think that good will win over evil,” Charvát said.
The state apparatus and politicians according to they must not view less successful people as their own fault. “People are not to blame for being born into a poor family or an underdeveloped region, but it affects their opportunities quite dramatically. Instead of telling them that everything is their own fault, it would be more appropriate to help them to have similar chances as others.” he added.
