My, that is a fine coat of arms for Rhodesia.
Here's hoping the land redistribution goes better for them than OTL Zimbabwe.
Poor Rhodesia though, having Thatcher set upon them.
Thank you!
Here's to hoping. So far things seem to be going well, given it's much more moderate nature, but it's unlikely the reform alone will fix the imbalances facing Rhodesia.
Mrs. Harper was instrumental in dismantling Rhodesia's state-owned enterprises, and helped to ensure all of the industries run by the Southern Rhodesian government (which nationalised every single sector) was sold off and privatised during her tenure, as a means of raising money for the government and to stimulate economic growth.
I think you have the government type incorrect here. Unless Commonwealth Republics are still considered Dominions ITTL?
EDIT: Is "John Harper" an OTL person, and, if so, who?
Oopsie! You saw nothing!!
John Harper *is* a real person, and he was discovered by another poster here.
Thatcher in Africa. Now there's something I've never seen before.
First time for everything!
So you've said in the past climate change is taken more seriously in this world, I imagine that's had quite the effect on the green movement. Is something like "Socialism has no place in Austria" coming from a Green party leader, commonplace?
Such a sentiment is *not* commonplace at all! The National Green Party is a bit different than you'd expect. See my response below.
I was just as astonished, but then I thought that the Socialist Party of Austria
might be fully-fledged authoritarian communists who want a dictatorship of the proletariat and/or to make Austria a puppet of the USSR. Is that the case,
@Kanan ?
They are not. Their ideology is chiefly against the Soviet Union's doctrine of Marxist-Leninism, and instead is what we would call a "Eurocommunist" party. Full details below.
This is fascinating and really interesting to read - where exactly do the parties each sit ideology? I'm slightly confused as to the politics of the National Greens here.
Thank you! Here's a brief rundown of the major (and non major) political parties in Austria.
Democratic Party - A big-tent liberal party that champions multiculturalism. The party's doctrines hark back to the time of the Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary where there was no one dominate linguistic group and seeks to uphold the teaching of German as an administrative language, but allowing regional languages to continue to exist and expanding the culture and teaching of these minority languages. Generally believes that the economy needs controls in order to work correctly, and champions workers rights. The Democratic Party was the political arm of the Anti-Fascist Movement which toppled the dictatorship of Hans Krebs.
Socialist Labour Party - A communist party which rejects the ideas set forth by the Soviet Union and rejects Leninism as a legitimate political ideology for Central and Western Europe. Has strong ties with the on again, off again, Communist Party of Italy. They reject the notion of democratic centralism, and believe that voters are the best to determine the path of the state and the party. The party strongly supports social and economic justice, and looks to retain the market framework of the economy, with the state controlling a significant majority (80%+) of the country's economy. The party manifesto specifically mandates that all private property will be abolished, but is much more liberal about their definition of personal property, which some interpret that Socialist Labour will not seek to nationalise small businesses and companies.
National Green Party - A Green Party which upholds that climate change is one of the most important events that humanity must face in this century, and beyond. They believe in a strong capitalist economy to reinvest into Austria's future, and want to leverage the power of the state to direct private capital to continue to switch over to renewable energy sources, and to levy taxes on large polluters. Much of their policy is centred around taxing corporations, while ensuring that there are significant rebates and tax cuts for the average consumer. The party is unabashedly free trade and promotes the formation of a single European super alliance of economies, much like the Zollverein except across the continent. Generally seen as Austria's main centre-right party.
Autonomous League - A Social Democratic political party which advocates for a federal Austria. They believe the unitary nature of the state is harmful to the ethnic and linguistic minorities, and wants to see the current states reform local state governments, and also wants to see autonomous minority regions that govern their own affairs.
Socialist German League - Social Democratic party that is Pan-Germanic and seeks to unite Austria with Germany, on the condition that Germany is comfortably run by a left-wing party and believes Austria's more left-wing voter base would tip Germany in that direction.
The Left - A Social Democratic party that split from Socialist Labour over minor issues of policy.
Slovenian Independence Party - Advocates for the independence of the Slovene-speaking areas of Austria and reparations to be paid to the new state by Austria.
Beer Lovers-Pirates of Austria - A pirate political party that merged with the beer lovers party. The Beer Lovers party is a political oddity that has stuck around since the fall of the Krebs regime, and references the pro-Democratic underground network that popped up in Beer Halls to resist the fascists. They once held several seats in the legislature.
New Democratic Party - A centrist political party that felt the Democratic Party was too left-wing.
Communist Party of Austria - A communist party that *is* financed by the Soviet Union and does believe in Marxist-Leninism for the country.
Christian People's Party - A standard christian democratic party, centre-right ideology.
Czech Union of Nationalists - Advocates for the return of all of the lands of Bohemia that Austria "retained" during the collapse of Austria-Hungary.
Forward for the Future - A futurist political party that believes in technocracy to solve all of the country's problems through a "Dictatorship of the Computers."
Italian Social League - Despite all other fascist parties being banned, the Italian Social League brands itself as an Italian-language rights organisation, but in reality it's just a fascist party.