Invisible Party
Encyclopedia
The Invisible Party was a Swedish
conceptual
anti-capitalist media campaign masquerading as an "organization" with the purpose of connecting all anti-capitalist action, however small or without actual realization, to an "invisible" political party
.
Although it called itself a party, it did not have official members but instead had participants. It could not, and did not wish to, participate in elections. The professed goal of the group was to undermine the capitalist system
. It was founded by different parts of the Swedish extra-parliamentary left, in particular the Swedish Anarcho-syndicalist Youth Federation
.
The Invisible Party "disbanded" after a September 16, 2006 press release by the "central committee" behind the campaign declaring that they would discontinue their activities:
The Invisible Party can been seen as a shared concept
, a symbol for a struggle against capitalism and the perceived exploitation of the workforce. Participation in the party has involved strikes
, blockade
s, flyposting
, sabotage
, shoplifting
, riot
s, and other radical tactics.
Anna-Lena Lodenius, a Swedish author on political extremism, has described the Invisible Party as follows:
The leftist website Motkraft described the views of the group as follows:
proposed a special youth contract for those under 26 (similar to France
's First Employment Contract
policy), activists claiming to be members of the Invisible Party responded by vandalizing Centre Party offices throughout Sweden. The Centre Party was in opposition at the time, with the Invisible Party thus supporting the policies of the sitting Social Democrat government.
Activists under the banner of the Invisible Party continued the vandalism throughout the 2006 Swedish general election campaign, hitting the offices of the Christian Democrats
, another opposition party, as well.
As of 2006, the Swedish Security Service
(Säpo) was gathering information about the Invisible Party and its supporters.
prize-money to the project. After the actions against the Centre Party, the party demanded that the license-funded public broadcaster SVT
should ask Nilsson to repay the money, and the Centre Party Youth claimed that SVT was "responsible for the attacks", but SVT chose not to take any action against Nilsson.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
conceptual
Conceptualism
Conceptualism is a philosophical theory that explains universality of particulars as conceptualized frameworks situated within the thinking mind. Intermediate between Nominalism and Realism, the conceptualist view approaches the metaphysical concept of universals from a perspective that denies...
anti-capitalist media campaign masquerading as an "organization" with the purpose of connecting all anti-capitalist action, however small or without actual realization, to an "invisible" political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
.
Although it called itself a party, it did not have official members but instead had participants. It could not, and did not wish to, participate in elections. The professed goal of the group was to undermine the capitalist system
Capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
. It was founded by different parts of the Swedish extra-parliamentary left, in particular the Swedish Anarcho-syndicalist Youth Federation
Swedish Anarcho-syndicalist Youth Federation
Swedish Anarcho-syndicalist Youth Federation, is a youth-based group in Sweden that supports anarcho-syndicalism....
.
The Invisible Party "disbanded" after a September 16, 2006 press release by the "central committee" behind the campaign declaring that they would discontinue their activities:
Ideology
Concept
The word concept is used in ordinary language as well as in almost all academic disciplines. Particularly in philosophy, psychology and cognitive sciences the term is much used and much discussed. WordNet defines concept: "conception, construct ". However, the meaning of the term concept is much...
, a symbol for a struggle against capitalism and the perceived exploitation of the workforce. Participation in the party has involved strikes
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
, blockade
Blockade
A blockade is an effort to cut off food, supplies, war material or communications from a particular area by force, either in part or totally. A blockade should not be confused with an embargo or sanctions, which are legal barriers to trade, and is distinct from a siege in that a blockade is usually...
s, flyposting
Flyposting
Flyposting is a guerilla marketing tactic through the act of placing advertising posters or flyers in legal or illegal places. In the United States, these posters are known as bandit signs, snipe signs, or street spam. Posters are adhered to construction site barricades, building facades, in...
, sabotage
Sabotage
Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening another entity through subversion, obstruction, disruption, or destruction. In a workplace setting, sabotage is the conscious withdrawal of efficiency generally directed at causing some change in workplace conditions. One who engages in sabotage is...
, shoplifting
Shoplifting
Shoplifting is theft of goods from a retail establishment. It is one of the most common property crimes dealt with by police and courts....
, riot
Riot
A riot is a form of civil disorder characterized often by what is thought of as disorganized groups lashing out in a sudden and intense rash of violence against authority, property or people. While individuals may attempt to lead or control a riot, riots are thought to be typically chaotic and...
s, and other radical tactics.
Anna-Lena Lodenius, a Swedish author on political extremism, has described the Invisible Party as follows:
The leftist website Motkraft described the views of the group as follows:
Methods
After the Centre PartyCentre Party (Sweden)
The Centre Party is a centrist political party in Sweden. The party maintains close ties to rural Sweden and describes itself as "a green social liberal party". The ideology is sometimes called agrarian, but in a European context, the Centre Party can perhaps best be characterized as social...
proposed a special youth contract for those under 26 (similar to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
's First Employment Contract
First Employment Contract
The contrat première embauche was a new form of employment contract pushed in spring 2006 in France by Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin...
policy), activists claiming to be members of the Invisible Party responded by vandalizing Centre Party offices throughout Sweden. The Centre Party was in opposition at the time, with the Invisible Party thus supporting the policies of the sitting Social Democrat government.
Activists under the banner of the Invisible Party continued the vandalism throughout the 2006 Swedish general election campaign, hitting the offices of the Christian Democrats
Christian Democrats (Sweden)
The Christian Democrats ) is a political party in Sweden. The party was founded in 1964 but did not enter parliament until 1985 in an electoral cooperation with the Centre Party and on the Christian Democrats' own accord in 1991. The leader since April 3, 2004 is Göran Hägglund. He succeeded Alf...
, another opposition party, as well.
As of 2006, the Swedish Security Service
Swedish Security Service
The Swedish Security Service , former name Rikspolisstyrelsens säkerhetsavdelning , is the security service of Sweden, belonging to the Swedish National Police Board....
(Säpo) was gathering information about the Invisible Party and its supporters.
Controversy
The Invisible Party was widely misunderstood outside the extra-parliamentary left. Media presented the party as an actual organization with members in the strict and traditional sense. Because of the actions against the Centre Party the party was vilified by Swedish media and presented as a violent and anti-democratic organization. This led to the true purpose of the campaign becoming even more obscure than before. The winner of the Swedish political reality show Toppkandidaterna (The Top Candidates), Petter Nilsson, donated 100,000 of his 250,000 SEKSwedish krona
The krona has been the currency of Sweden since 1873. Both the ISO code "SEK" and currency sign "kr" are in common use; the former precedes or follows the value, the latter usually follows it, but especially in the past, it sometimes preceded the value...
prize-money to the project. After the actions against the Centre Party, the party demanded that the license-funded public broadcaster SVT
Sveriges Television
Sveriges Television AB , Sweden's Television, is a national television broadcaster based in Sweden, funded by a compulsory fee to be paid by all television owners...
should ask Nilsson to repay the money, and the Centre Party Youth claimed that SVT was "responsible for the attacks", but SVT chose not to take any action against Nilsson.
See also
- AnarchismAnarchismAnarchism is generally defined as the political philosophy which holds the state to be undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful, or alternatively as opposing authority in the conduct of human relations...
- Alter-globalizationAlter-globalizationAlter-globalization is the name of a social movement that supports global cooperation and interaction, but which opposes the negative effects of economic globalization, feeling that it often works to the detriment of, or does not...
(or Anti-globalizationAnti-globalizationCriticism of globalization is skepticism of the claimed benefits of the globalization of capitalism. Many of these views are held by the anti-globalization movement however other groups also are critical of the policies of globalization....
) - Distributive justiceDistributive justiceDistributive justice concerns what some consider to be socially just allocation of goods in a society. A society in which incidental inequalities in outcome do not arise would be considered a society guided by the principles of distributive justice...
- The Global EconomyWorld economyThe world economy, or global economy, generally refers to the economy, which is based on economies of all of the world's countries, national economies. Also global economy can be seen as the economy of global society and national economies – as economies of local societies, making the global one....
- Politics of SwedenPolitics of SwedenPolitics of Sweden takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic constitutional monarchy. Executive power is exercised by the government, led by the Prime Minister of Sweden. Legislative power is vested in both the government and parliament, elected within a multi-party...
- direct actionDirect actionDirect action is activity undertaken by individuals, groups, or governments to achieve political, economic, or social goals outside of normal social/political channels. This can include nonviolent and violent activities which target persons, groups, or property deemed offensive to the direct action...