European Values? Populist Anti-Immigration Parties, Abortion and Prostitution

This paper discusses the legal regulation of abortion and prostitution in Europe in light of the rise of populist political parties, in particular far-right parties, many of which are also Euro-sceptic. Populist parties typically emphasise national traditions and values and distrust discourses around ‘common European values’ that to them imply EU encroachment upon sensitive areas of national concern. They are often also male-dominated and, in many cases, attract male voters more than female ones.

This paper argues that the recent electoral successes of populist parties, especially those that are generally anti-immigration, are interesting from the perspective of gender equality in the EU and, more specifically, potentially illuminating regarding the legal regulation of abortion and prostitution (as well as homosexuality). On the one hand, populist parties are, in many cases, critical of female emancipation and sexual liberation inasmuch as they see these as contributing to the loss of ‘traditional family values’.  On the other hand, studies also show that populist parties, especially those with an anti-immigration bent, have often sought to instrumentalise gender equality and tolerance of diversity to mark the (alleged) difference between European and other cultures (most notably Islam).  The paper examines populist parties’ policy proposals on prostitution and abortion, ranging from those the True Finns in Europe’s north to those of the Lega Nord in the south, analysing what they imply for the future of European debates on reproductive and sexual governance.