Respect - The Unity Coalition
| Respect - The Unity Coalition | |
|---|---|
| Party leader | George Galloway |
| founding | January 25, 2004 |
| resolution | 18th August 2016 |
| Headquarters | Manchester |
| Youth organization | Student RESPECT |
| Alignment | Socialism , Democratic Socialism |
| Colours) | Red Green |
| Parliament seats |
0/650 |
| European party | European anti-capitalist left |
| Website | www.voterespect.org |
Respect - The Unity Coalition was a left-wing political party in Great Britain that split off from the Labor Party under Prime Minister Tony Blair in protest against British involvement in the Iraq war and officially founded in January 2004. The name of the party is an acronym for the words respect, equality, socialism, peace, environmentalism, community and trade unionism ( RESPECT , English for about respect, equality, socialism, peace, environmental protection, community and trade union movement ). The party was represented by one MP in the British House of Commons from 2005 to 2010 and from 2012 to 2015 . Member of the European Anti-Capitalist Left Alliance at European level . For a long time , the party leader was Salma Yaqoob , who announced her resignation from the party on September 11, 2012.
According to the UK election officer, the National Electoral Commission , RESPECT was removed from the party register in August 2016 and has been dissolved since then.
aims
In addition to rejecting the Iraq war, the party tried to create “a broad alternative to the parties of privatization, war and occupation” according to its program and claims a “broad socialist agenda”.
Some of their political goals included:
- the re-nationalization of the railways and other public services
- Rejection of the targeted privatizations and cuts in the health ( National Health Service ) and education systems, including the rejection of university tuition fees and support for an annual pension increase in parallel with the average wage increase
- Increase in the minimum wage to £ 7.40 an hour.
- the withdrawal of the works constitution laws of the Conservative Thatcher government in the 1980s (which, among other things, weakened the role of the trade unions)
- defending the rights of refugees and other asylum seekers
- Support for the Palestinian people and an end to the British Government's support for Israeli action against the Palestinians
- Support for the British environmental movement
- Rejection of the European Stability Pact to limit the European Union's new indebtedness in the event of an intended accession to the euro zone
In its founding declaration, the party stated that its general aim was to help “create a socially just and environmentally sustainable society”, recognizing social justice as “organizing society in the most open, participatory and responsible manner possible on the basis of Common property and democratic control ”.
elections
In the general election of 2005 , the party was able to win a seat in parliament in the electoral district of Bethnal Green and Bow in east London , which has a high proportion of Muslim migrants, v. a. from Bangladesh . The Labor “party rebel” George Galloway surprisingly won the direct mandate of Labor MP Oona King , who later testified that she was covered with anti-Semitic abuse during the election campaign.
Overall, the party received support from a. by British Muslims , a group of voters in which Labor lost heavily in this election because of Britain's involvement in the Iraq war and because of strict anti-terrorist laws. The Socialist Workers Party was part of the movement until the split in 2007 . a. support for the Communist Party of Great Britain and other radical left groups. Filmmaker Ken Loach and Nobel Prize winner for literature Harold Pinter also publicly declared their support.
For the 2010 general election , Galloway decided to run in another constituency, which was much more difficult to win, but which he did not conquer. So Respect - The Unity Coalition lost their only seat in the House of Commons in this election.
On March 29, 2012, Galloway was able to win a triumphant victory in a by-election in the Bradford West constituency . He received 55.9 percent of the vote in the district previously held by a Labor MP. During the election campaign, he had specifically targeted Muslim voters, who make up a large proportion of the electorate in this part of Bradford town .
In the 2015 general election, Galloway lost his parliamentary seat to Labor politician Naz Shah and the party failed to achieve any further success in the subsequent local elections, but lost its seats in Bradford. In the meantime, Labor under the new party chairman Jeremy Corbyn made a clear left swing and adopted almost all domestic and foreign policy demands of the Respect Party in its election manifesto. In view of the increasing unsuccessfulness, the party decided in August 2016 to remove it from the electoral register and disbanded.
Web links
- Website of Respect (English)
- Split of the British alliance "Respect-Unity". Critical article of 23 November 2007 =
Individual evidence
- ^ Siobhan Fenton: George Galloway's Respect Party deregisters, prompting speculation politician may rejoin Labor . August 21, 2016.
- ^ New Germany, May 5, 2010