Fremskrittspartiet

   Fremskrittspartiet (the Stepping-Forward Party, commonly abbreviated as FrP) is the third most popular party in Norway today.  With conservative policies and a strong support for all things culturally Norwegian, FrP follows a foreign policy "basert på sikring av norske interesser".¹  Most policies focus on the life of the individual and not on that of the group. 

    Fremskrittspartiet has long been an opponent of refugees and refugee policy in Norway.  “Flyktningene bør hjelpes i deres nærområder, og ansvaret ligger helt klart hos FN.  Derfor bør de hjelpes i FNs flyktningsleire,” says Carl I. Hagen, Fremskrittspartiet's party leader, and the general feeling among party members is exactly as Hagen says.²  It is better to help refugees closer to home than to send them to foreign lands; the cultural transition can be very difficult for both Norwegians and refugees.                                                                                                                                                 Carl I. Hagen¹⁰

    The threat of terrorism is also one that worries Fremskrittspartiet.  With over 10,000 Iraqi refugees in Norway today³, FrP is on guard against terrorism, especially in light of the American September 11th crisis.  On September 11th, 2002, Morten Høglund, FrP's foreign policy spokesperson, spoke to the Norwegian people: "Vi må ikke tro at alle som er her i landet av innvandrere og flyktninger vil oss vel... vi må få en mer realistisk og strengere innvandringspolitikk, og vi må få folk ut som ikke har noe her å gjøre".⁴ 

    Another of FrP's protests against the acceptance and integration of refugees has revolved around money.  Part of FrP's party platform is the reduction of taxes⁵, and with 4.7 billion kroner going towards the support of refugees every year, meeting that goal can be difficult.⁶  One of the most recent budget negotiations covered exactly this topic. 

    According to FrP, the numbers of refugees should be decreasing yearly; illegal refugees have caught the brunt of this decision.  Illegal refugees who enter Norway and are caught must be escorted back to their home country by Norwegian police forces; this causes a drain on the Norwegian budget that FrP believes can be reduced by creating more stringent refugee policies.⁷ 

"At regjeringen kalkulerer med at det kommer like mange asylsøkere til Norge neste år som i år, betyr at den har resignert og gitt opp kampen mot ulovlig innvandring", stormed Per Sandberg, FrP's immigration spokesperson, on 16 October 2002.⁸   This is not something FrP is willing to do, and they continue to fight for stricter immigration policy.

Per Sandberg⁹

1    "based upon the securing of Norwegian interests".  FrP, "Partiprogrammet, 2001-2005: Utenrikspolitikk", 31 March 2003, <http://www.frp.no/article/?id=167#Utenriks> (16 April 2003)

2    "The refugees ought to be helped in their neighboring lands, and the responsibility clearly lies with the UN.  Therefore they should seek help in the UN refugee camps."  FrP, "Vil ikke ta imot Tampa flyktninger", 9 April 2002, <http://www.frp.no> (12 November 2002)

3    Statistisk Sentralbyrå, "Tabell 1: Flyktninger, etter landbakgrunn og flyktningstatus 1.januar 2001", 1 January 2001, <http://www.ssb.no/flyktninger/tab-2002-06-05-01.html> (5 April 2003)

4    "We must not believe that all refugees and immigrants here in Norway wish us well... we must have a stronger and more realistic immigration policy, and we must remove people who have nothing to do with or in Norway."   Høglund, Morten, "Norge et naivt samfunn", 11 September 2002, <http://www.frp.no> (12 November 2002)

5    FrP, "Partiprogrammet, 2001-2005: Idiologisk Grunnlag", 31 March 2002, <http://www.frp.no/article/?id=167#ideologi> (16 April 2003)

6    FrP, "Pengegalopp i asylpolitikken", 16 October 2002, <http://www.frp.no/article/?id=155&q=flyktninger> (16 April 2003)

7    ibid.

8    "That the government calculates that just as many refugees will come to Norway next year as this year, means that the government has resigned itself and given up the battle against illegal immigration."  ibid.

9    ibid.

10    <http://www.frp.no> (24 April 2003)