Although Australia does not present the same risks of right-wing extremism as the more politically polarized countries, international factors contribute to the spread of violent ideology.
Right-wing terrorism is on the rise worldwide, increasing by 250% as liberal democracies begin to retreat, according to Lydia Khalil, a researcher at the Lowy Institute.
Mandatory voting and a relatively high standard of living provide a buffer for extremist ideology in Australia, but international factors such as the pandemic are still fueling the flames, the national security expert said.
“(Mandatory voting) means that political parties on both sides are not tempted to take extreme positions to appeal to their bases, so they must necessarily be centrist in some way,” Ms. Khalil told AAP.
“Although the polarization is not that strong … Australia is not immune to global trends and challenges.
“The prevalence of speeches, influences and discussions on political events in the United States – and in Europe to a lesser extent – is significant for Australia’s far-right scene.”
Populist politicians and politicians abroad offering a “strong man” narrative have appealed to private individuals with a promise to restore their lost status, Ms. Khalil says.
This includes people who feel neglected by the democratic system due to growing inequality and economic disadvantage, which especially emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Far-right and far-right ideological movements have fueled these sentiments through anti-immigrant narratives,” he said.
“When Trump came to the fore, he had a huge influence on the Australian far-right scene.”
Although there are also far-left anti-government sentiments, Ms. Khalil is wary of people who draw false equivalences between the two, with threats coming largely from the right.
“At this stage, there is no equivalence between the threat from the far right and the far left,” he said.
“Due to their greater legitimacy of the use of violence, the threat from the far right is much more concerning.”
Ms. Khalil, who is also an associate researcher at Deakin University, is the author of a new book on the subject, Rise of the Extreme Right, published by Penguin.