With the resignation of the founding father of the ODS, “an era” has ended. For those who were watching the dramatic congress of the strongest government party over the weekend, it could not have gone unnoticed that the party’s bond to Václav Klaus is not as strong as some may have expected. Though several politicians (for example the deputy Vidím or the former Central Bohemia regional governor Bendl) wept over Klaus’ vigorous pounding, but most of them stuck to the motto “it’s no drama, let’s go on”. The key for politics and administration of the state, of course, will be what direction the ODS will choose in the post-Klaus period.
The re-election of Mirek Topolánek as party leader has outlined a little the party’s future direction. Although his election victory was not at all impressive (Topolánek received 284 votes, while his rival Pavel Bém received 162 votes), most of the delegates leaned toward Topolánek’s vision that the ODS should remain in the coalition government and try to push through important reforms (pension and health care), which are important for the country. And also to adopt the radar as soon as possible. On the other hand, the delegates refused Bém’s calling for the break-up of the coalition and his bet on an uncertain attempt at a minority government with the support of the ČSSD.
However, something else is more interesting about the issue. “We need change, a good prospect for the future,” was a slogan that carried through the congress hall during the three-day meeting. The majority of more than 60 speakers who suggested this topic, including the party leaders, were not, however, able to say what they expected from such a change and what it should actually look like. Despite the fact that it is not necessary to go too far for the inspiration. It is sufficient to look across the English Channel to Great Britain.
Let us therefore remind ourselves again that the “new” British Conservative Party came with an essential turn of events some time ago – they are not defining themselves only against the Labourists, but also against the legendary era of Margaret Thatcher. They say that the contemporary slush, which has been sped up by the Labourists due to the way they are governing the state and due to their “cultural revolution”, has its origin at the time of Thatcher’s liberal economic reforms. The new Conservatives have made the defence of interests of local communities the centre of their programme and economics became only the instrument. Their leader David Cameron’s speeches are full of references to “social justice” and “balance between work and life”.
To be more specific: The lowering of taxes disappeared from the local party programme. Cameron speaks about “post-bureaucratic period” and promises, for example, right of parents to set up new state-supported schools or decide about transportation regulations in referendums. Supermarkets or prefab suburb houses, as well as nuclear power plants, are looked upon with distaste. “It is strange that nuclear energy was considered to be a conservative solution,” the new Conservatives now say. “After all, it relies on a monopoly supplier with a state licence.” The Conservatives dream of decentralization and sustainability, in this case about the production of electricity from various local sources.
When listening to Czech conservatives over the weekend, one could have easily got the impression that they are stuck in time: The remedy for energy security are additional nuclear power plants, the midpoint of the ODS programme should be lowering of taxes, and only bad things usually come from Europe. However, when one listens for a while, it is possible to observe interesting sprouts of possible future transformation into a real inspirational right-wing party. “It is not sufficient to build an economic programme, we have to look for other topics how to address voters. The topic should be mainly a bet on educational policy,” Petr Nečas outlined his vision. “Let’s become a party that will build the best educational system in Europe within several years.”
What the future Czech right-wing policy will look like lies especially in the hands of local conservatives. However, their search is slightly easier in comparison with the past, as the legacy of their father – a founder that definitively cut himself off from them – will not get in the way.
Translated with permission by the Prague Daily Monitor.
