Young Union

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Basic data
Establishment date: 17.-21. January 1947
Place of foundation: Königstein im Taunus
Chairman: Tilman Kuban
Honorary Chairman: Philipp Missfelder
Deputy: Heike Wermer
Pascal Reddig
Bastian Schneider
Markus Täuber
Treasurer: Philipp Amthor
Federal Managing Director: Antonia Haufler
Alignment: Christian Democracy
Conservatism
Social Market Economy
Number of members: approx. 110,000
Minimum age: 14 years
Structure: 18 regional associations
Website: Junge-union.de
Magazine: decision

The Junge Union Deutschlands ( JU ) is the joint youth organization of the two German parties CDU and CSU . It is the youth organization of a political party with the largest number of members in the Federal Republic of Germany and in Europe.

Content profile

Principles

As a preliminary organization of its parent parties, the JU is supposed to spread their political goals within the youth and represent the interests of the younger generation within the party structures. It defines itself in its policy statement as liberal as well as conservative and progressive organization. In doing so, she refers to the Christian image of man . The JU is committed to democracy and the social market economy . She is also committed to European unification and a reliable transatlantic partnership within NATO . Within the Union, the Junge Union stands for a consistent reform course. This becomes particularly clear in the demands of the youth organization in the area of ​​social security systems.

Political positions

The Junge Union is committed to more intergenerational equity. The pension and long-term care insurance are to be made demography-proof by converting to a funded system. Through changes in collective bargaining and labor law , the JU wants to create more jobs and training positions for young people. She advocates tuition fees , as well as an enforceable right to private copies for holders of originals. The JU is also campaigning for the establishment of a center against evictions in Berlin . The Junge Union is also committed to the legalization of sports betting. The minimum wage is rejected because it is supposed to cut jobs. She speaks out against lowering the voting age and supports the car toll proposed by Peter Ramsauer . In terms of energy policy, the Junge Union made the switch from nuclear energy to renewable energies even before the CDU parent party.

Foreign policy

In terms of foreign policy, the JU is committed to German-American friendship and partnership. It supported the course of the USA in the run-up to the Iraq war in 2003. In 2013, chairman Philipp Missfelder praised Gerhard Schröder for his stance against the war, as he had meanwhile changed his own mind. She rejects full membership of Turkey in the European Union and instead supports the concept of a privileged partnership . She is also committed to the Belarusian opposition. In the civil war in Syria , the Junge Union sided with the opposition, but criticized the violence against Christians by Islamists.

history

JU membership development

(always on December 31st)

1963
1964
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012

around 85,000
-1968 k. A.
about 117,000
about 116,000
about 127,000
about 133,000
about 167,000
about 191,000
about 213,000
251,087
251,518
252,676
k. A.
258 378
259 345
258 969
261 984
257 034
250 513
244 482
240 125
227 471
212 705
202 208
191 606
181 337
170 108
161 188
154 154
148 350
143 489
139 990
140 811
135 869
128 851
126 617
127 688
127 418
129 065
127 291
126 315
125 873
125 680
122 335
119 562

Foundation and first years (1945–1949)

After the Second World War , young members of the decentralized Christian-democratic groups founded the JU to represent the youth . In the beginning, it was mainly former war veterans who came together in university towns to form working groups. The federal association was founded at the first German meeting from January 17 to 21, 1947 in Königstein im Taunus . Like the parent parties, the JU sought to unite Christians of both denominations within one political organization. Although representatives from the Soviet occupation zone also took part in their second meeting of Germany in Berlin , the JU ceased its work there in 1948 due to the harassment of its members. The last elected chairman of the JU in the Soviet occupation zone was Alfred Sagner in 1947 . As a result of the onset of the Cold War, the JU remained a youth organization limited to West Germany . In March 1950, the JU adopted the “Würzburg Resolutions”, the first joint program. In it, among other things, she referred to Christianity as the basis for the renewal of intellectual and cultural life and called for the reunification of Germany within its historical borders. She also advocated the introduction of the right to vote . In terms of European policy, the JU advocated a merger of European states early on . She has represented this demand since 1948 at several meetings of the youth section of the Nouvelles Equipes Internationales (NEI). At the founding party congress of the Federal CDU in Goslar in 1950 , the latter recognized the JU in its statute as an independent representative of the youth within the party . In the following year, the JU issued its first own statute.

The JU in the Adenauer era and "Der Geist von Hamm" (1949–1982)

During the 1950s and 1960s, the JU repeatedly called for a reform of the CDU and CSU party apparatus , but remained a largely state-sponsored youth party during the chancellorship of Konrad Adenauer and Ludwig Erhard . There were no major conflicts with the mother parties.

This changed after the CDU and CSU were relegated to the opposition as a result of the federal political change in power in 1969 . At the Germany Day in Hamm in 1969 , there was massive internal criticism of the previous course. From this time on, the number of members also rose continuously, as mainly young people who wanted to counteract the 1968 movement joined the JU.

The 1970s turned into a reform-oriented decade for the JU on various levels. It was renewed programmatically, which was reflected in the new basic program adopted in 1973, “For a humane society ”. The main topics here were, among other things, the democratic state and the open society, education as a future-oriented social policy and the policy for peace .

After the JU had spoken out against it until the late 1960s and in 1965 raised the claim to speak for the youth oppressed in the GDR , it opened up in 1972 to contacts with communist youth organizations such as the FDJ . In 1980, the then JU federal chairman Matthias Wissmann even suggested the creation of a German-German youth agency, which should serve youth exchange.

In the debate about Ostpolitik , however, the JU took a vacillating position in the early 1970s. A decision taken in 1970 to recognize the Oder-Neisse border with Poland was largely withdrawn two years later. With the adoption of a program of environmental protection principles in 1973, the JU tried to make a name for itself in this policy area as well.

There were also important structural reforms in the 1970s. The JU oriented itself away from a mere youth organization and towards a youth organization of the CDU and CSU. For example, after membership was previously possible between the ages of 16 and 40, the JU Germany Day in 1971 decided to reduce the upper and lower age limit to 14 and 35 years respectively. Individual regional associations had already done this at the end of the 1960s. A little later, on June 2, 1972, the Student Union (SU) was founded nationwide in order to interest students in later participation in the JU. The major changes that the JU underwent during this decade can also be seen in the number of members, which doubled by the end of the 1970s.

The JU in the Kohl Era (1982–1998)

The 1980s were initially marked by the debate about NATO's double decision . The JU endorsed this and held factual debates with young people in many places. But the topic of ecology was still high on the agenda, even within the JU. At the 1983 Germany Day, the focus of discussion was on the compatibility of ecology and economy . The 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster sparked a debate within the JU about reactor safety. In the same year the construction of the wall celebrated its 25th anniversary. In 1987 Erich Honecker made a state visit to the Federal Republic of Germany. The JU used both events to condemn the violation of human rights in the GDR and to demand the demolition of the wall .

On the eve of the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the Christian Democratic Youth (CDJ), a free Christian-democratically oriented group of young people in the GDR, was founded again. Even before the reunification of the two German states, the CDJ joined the JU at the Germany Day in 1990 in Leipzig .

Reform-oriented realignment after the Kohl era (1998–2012)

After losing the Bundestag election in 1998 , Hildegard Müller succeeded Klaus Escher as federal chairman, followed by Philipp Missfelder in 2002 . Missfelder continued the course of reform-oriented and market-economy realignment of the youth organization that his two predecessors had begun.

In 2003, Mißfelder initiated a debate on health policy when he suggested reducing specific services for older people in order to improve the financial basis of the health system . For example, according to Mißfelder, artificial hip joints could no longer be financed by general health insurance for people over 85 years of age. This statement caused outrage, especially among the elderly, but also led to controversy within their own party. The statements led to a broad discussion about sustainable financing of the health system.

The association rejects political cooperation with extremists from the right as well as from the left. The chairman of the North-West Mecklenburg district association resigned in 2005 after he had invited Martin Hohmann , who had been excluded from the CDU because of his “perpetrators” speech . The invitation was then withdrawn. In the following years, she also increased her engagement against the party Die Linke , which had emerged from the merger of the SED successor party PDS and the WASG . For example, she accompanied their events with counter-demonstrations.

New basic program at the Germany Day in Rostock 2012

At the Germany Day in Rostock in October 2012, the Junge Union adopted a new basic program.

The JU's demand for the abolition of the general student committees met with criticism that was documented in various media.

Inner structure

Chairperson

Surname Term of office important political offices and mandates
A free photo of Bruno Six is ​​missing here Bruno Six 1947-1948 Member of the North Rhine-Westphalian Parliament (1946–1962)
A free photo of Fred Sagner is missing here Fred Sagner 1948-1949 -
Josef Hermann Dufhues Josef Hermann Dufhues 1949-1950 President of the North Rhine-Westphalian Parliament (1966)
A free photo of Ernst Majonica is missing here Ernst Majonica 1950-1955 Member of the board of the CDU / CSU parliamentary group (1953–1969)
Gerhard Stoltenberg Gerhard Stoltenberg 1955-1961 Federal Minister for Scientific Research (1965–1969), Prime Minister of Schleswig-Holstein (1971–1982), Federal Minister of Finance (1982–1989), Federal Minister of Defense (1989–1992)
A free photo of Bert Even is missing here Bert Even 1961-1963 Deputy Chairman of the Bundestag Interior Committee (1965–1969)
Egon Klepsch Egon Klepsch 1963-1969 President of the European Parliament (1992–1994)
Jürgen Echternach Jürgen Echternach 1969-1973 Parl. State Secretary to the Federal Minister for Regional Planning and Building (1987–1993) and to the Federal Minister of Finance (1993–1994)
Matthias Wissmann Matthias Wissmann 1973-1983 Federal Minister of Transport (1993–1998)
Christoph Boehr Christoph Boehr 1983-1989 CDU parliamentary group chairman in the Rhineland-Palatinate state parliament (1994–1996 and 1997–2006)
Hermann Gröhe Hermann Gröhe 1989-1994 Minister of State to the Federal Chancellor (2008–2009), CDU General Secretary (2009–2013), Federal Minister of Health (2013–2018), Deputy Chairman of the Union Parliamentary Group (since 2018)
A free photo of Klaus Escher is missing here Klaus Escher 1994-1998 -
Hildegard Muller Hildegard Muller 1998-2002 Minister of State to the Federal Chancellor (2005–2008)
Philipp Missfelder Philipp Missfelder 2002-2014

Posthumously honorary chairman since Germany Day 2015

Foreign policy spokesman for the CDU / CSU parliamentary group (2009-2015)
Paul Ziemiak Paul Ziemiak 2014-2019 Secretary General of the CDU (since 2018)
Tilman Kuban Tilman Kuban since 2019

Members

Membership development of the Junge Union

With 119,562 members (as of December 31, 2012), the Junge Union is the largest party-political youth organization in Europe. You can become a member between the ages of 14 and 35, although functionaries, even beyond the age limit, do not leave the JU until the end of their term of office. Simultaneous membership in the CDU or the CSU is not required. In return, members of the parent parties who are younger than 35 years of age are not automatically members of the JU.

Members of the regional associations

Regional association Chairman Members
(as of November 13, 2017)
Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg Philipp Bürkle 10,265
Bavaria Bavaria Christian Doleschal 24,407
Berlin Berlin Christopher Lawniczak 2,770
Brandenburg Brandenburg Julian Brüning 582
Braunschweig Braunschweig Christoph Ponto 794
Bremen Bremen Wiebke Winter 213
Hamburg Hamburg Antonia Haufler (née Niecke) 877
Hesse Hesse Sebastian Sommer 11.208
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Georg Günther 551
Hanover Lower Saxony Christian Fühner 8,141
North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia Florian Braun 30.203
Oldenburg Oldenburg André Hüttemeyer 1,481
Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate Jens Munster 6,543
Saarland Saarland Johannes Schäfer 4,968
Saxony Saxony and Lower Silesia Florian Oest 957
Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt Anna Kreye 655
Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein Birte Glissmann 3,411
Thuringia Thuringia Cornelius Golembiewski 1,558
Foreign associations Foreign associations - 10

structure

Like the CDU / CSU, the Junge Union Deutschlands is divided into 18 state associations, which in turn are subdivided into district, regional, district and local or city associations. In Lower Saxony there are 3 regional associations ( Braunschweig , Hanover and Oldenburg ). Although they form the joint state association of Lower Saxony, they appear independently in relation to the Federal Association of the Young Union.

The state associations with the largest number of members are North Rhine-Westphalia with over 34,000 and Bavaria with a good 27,600 members. The JU regional association in Bremen is the smallest of all 18 regional associations. Smallest JU-state association of a surface state is the JU-Landesverband Brandenburg. With over 8,000 members, the JU Oberbayern is the strongest district association. The largest district association is the JU district association Borken with over 2,600 members.

organs

The organs of the JU at the federal level are the Deutschlandtag, the Deutschlandrat, the federal executive board and the federal arbitration tribunal. There are also thematic federal technical committees.

The Germany Day is the highest body of the JU. It is comparable to a party congress . It consists of 240 elected delegates from the regional associations as well as members of the federal executive board and the German Council of the JU. It meets at least once a year. Every two years the Germany Day elects the members of the federal executive committee.

The Germany Council decides on fundamental political questions between the Germany Days. It consists of 42 delegates from the regional associations, the federal executive board and the federal chairman of the Schüler Union .

The federal executive does the daily political work. It consists of the federal chairman, his four deputies, the treasurer and eighteen assessors. In addition, the federal board elects a federal manager who is a member of this executive committee in an advisory capacity. The office of federal chairman is also seen as a career springboard; almost all previous federal chairmen made careers in the party.

The federal arbitration tribunal decides in disputes about the application or interpretation of the JU statutes . It is also an appeal body against legal decisions in individual state associations, provided that the state statutes provide for this. It consists of a chairman, four assessors and five deputies. The chairman of the arbitral tribunal and two of the assessors must be qualified to serve as judges . JU members who are delegates or members of the Deutschlandtag, the German Council or the Federal Executive Committee may not be elected to the Federal Arbitration Court.

Germany Days and their mottos

Sub-organizations

  • In recent years, groups of the Junge Union have taken part in the RCDS at some universities, for example in Greifswald , Osnabrück and Kiel . A specialty is the Junge Union university group in Cologne , which is also a member of the RCDS. Also as an independent group of the RCDS, the "Campus Union Cologne - Junge Union & RCDS" is a JU university group, in which the Junge Union has rights to intervene: "so the responsible district board and the regional board of the Junge Union can arrange the necessary, in extreme cases one Appoint a representative who temporarily performs the duties of the board of directors ".
  • The Student Union , which has its own structures, is a JU working group at the federal level .

Membership in associations

The JU is a member of the Ring of Political Youth . She is also a member of the Youth of the European People's Party (YEPP), the youth organization of the Christian Democratic and Conservative European People's Party (EPP) and the International Young Democrat Union (IYDU), the youth organization of the International Democratic Union (IDU).

Press

A slogan against red-green in Bremen, 2007

The official member magazine of the JU is The Decision . Officials receive it free of charge. Individual state and district associations also have their own member magazines , such as the JU Hamburg the forJU , the JU Hessen the snapdragon , the JU Saar the mouthpiece , the JU Rhineland-Palatinate the BLACK , the JU Berlin the JU Intern , the JU NRW the BISS35 , the JU Baden-Württemberg the Humane Gesellschaft , the JU Südbaden the impetus , the JU Württemberg-Hohenzollern the Black Ridge , the JU Nordwürttemberg the windshield wiper , the JU Lower Saxony the war horse , the JU Bayern the BaJUwaren , the JU Bremen the Bernd , the JU Thuringia the nJUspaper , the JU Saxony & Lower Silesia the Black Pages , the JU Oldenburg the Schwatt sheet and the JU Harz "The Harz - Young and Black". The circulation generally corresponds to the number of members, with many magazines appearing quarterly.

Similar organizations

literature

  • Philipp Missfelder (Ed.): "60 Years of the Young Union of Germany", Berlin 2007 ISBN 978-3-923632-06-0
  • Christoph Böhr (Ed.): Youth moves politics. The Young Union of Germany 1947 to 1987 , Sinus-Verlag, Krefeld 1988 (series of co-responsibility, volume 5) ISBN 3-88289-305-2 [ed. in cooperation with the Junge Union Deutschlands]
  • Claus-Peter Grotz: The Young Union. Structure - function - development of the youth organization of the CDU and CSU since 1969 , Engel, Kehl am Rhein / Strasbourg 1983 ISBN 3-88357-031-1 .
  • Wolfgang Hackel: The selection of the political next generation in the Federal Republic of Germany. The Young Union as a springboard for political careers in the CDU , Verlag Bonn Aktuell, Stuttgart 1978 (Studies on Politics, Volume 2) ISBN 3-87959-098-2 .
  • Brigitte Kaff (ed.): Junge Union 1945–1950. Youth policy in the Soviet-occupied zone , Herder, Freiburg / Basel / Vienna 2003 ISBN 3-451-20442-8 .
  • Wolfgang R. Krabbe: Party youth in Germany. Young Union, Young Socialists and Young Democrats 1945–1980 , Westdeutscher Verlag, Wiesbaden 2002 ISBN 3-531-13842-1 .
  • Mike Schmeitzner / Wolfgang Marcus: In the shadow of the FDJ. The “Young Union” in Saxony 1945–1950 , Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 2004, ISBN 3-89971-201-3 .

Web links

Commons : Junge Union  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. https://www.junge-union.de/ueber-uns/
  2. The successful model of the social market economy shows the way to growth and prosperity! (No longer available online.) In: Junge-union.de. Junge Union, July 4, 2009, archived from the original on October 1, 2013 ; Retrieved July 13, 2013 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.junge-union.de
  3. NATO is a 60-year success story for peace and freedom! (No longer available online.) In: Junge-union.de. Junge Union, April 2, 2009, archived from the original on October 1, 2013 ; Retrieved July 13, 2013 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.junge-union.de
  4. Regulated opening for sports betting. (No longer available online.) In: Junge-union.de. Junge Union, December 12, 2006, archived from the original on November 13, 2013 ; Retrieved July 12, 2013 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.junge-union.de
  5. Against a uniform minimum wage! (No longer available online.) In: Junge-union.de. Junge Union, November 2, 2011, archived from the original on October 26, 2013 ; Retrieved July 12, 2013 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.junge-union.de
  6. Position paper on lowering the voting age (RTF; 15 kB), resolution of the Federal Executive Board of May 2, 1997.
  7. Archive link ( Memento of the original from October 26, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.junge-union.de
  8. ↑ Disarm Saddam Hussein! Strengthen transatlantic friendship! (PDF; 6 kB) Decision of the German Council of the Junge Union in Regensburg on March 14th and 15th, 2003
  9. http://www.n-tv.de/politik/Missfelder-lobt-Altkanzler-Schroeder-article10331656.html
  10. Freedom for Belarus! (No longer available online.) In: Junge-union.de. Junge Union, May 13, 2011, archived from the original on May 21, 2015 ; Retrieved July 12, 2013 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.junge-union.de
  11. End violence against civilians in Syria! (No longer available online.) In: Junge-union.de. Junge Union, March 2, 2012, archived from the original on October 26, 2013 ; Retrieved July 20, 2013 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.junge-union.de
  12. ↑ Preserve religious freedom - release Syrian bishops! (No longer available online.) In: Junge-union.de. Junge Union, April 23, 2013, archived from the original on October 26, 2013 ; Retrieved July 20, 2013 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.junge-union.de
  13. a b Annual Statistical Report October 14, 2016 to October 5, 2017
  14. Junge Union invites Hohmann in - and out again
  15. New basic program adopted Junge Union relies on tradition and new media ( Memento from October 9, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
  16. Archived copy ( memento of the original from August 19, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.grundsatzprogramm2012.de
  17. Dispute between JU and RCDS: Asta, who needs it? Der Spiegel August 3, 2012
  18. Co-determination at universities Junge Union doesn't give a damn about Asten TAZ August 6, 2012
  19. ^ Anger about JU's basic program: Asta la vista, student representative Der Spiegel October 8, 2012
  20. ^ Young Union against Student Representatives Against Mitbeststellung Süddeutsche Zeitung October 9, 2012
  21. Interview: Should Asten be abolished? Deutschlandfunk October 10, 2012
  22. Discussion in Osnabrück Junge Union wants to abolish the AStA Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung November 27, 2012
  23. As of November 2017. www.junge-union.de (list)
  24. Klaus Escher is an exception
  25. Germany Day Vechta. Retrieved August 7, 2020 .
  26. http://ju-hsg-koeln.de/
  27. http://rcds.de/gruppen-3/
  28. http://www.ju-nrw.de/ju-nrw/satzung/geschaeftsordnung-hochschulgruppen
  29. ^ Website of the Youth ot the Europeans People's Party: Members ( Memento of the original from January 20, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed January 18, 2016 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / youthepp.eu