Green Left (Netherlands)

The “Green Left” party arose as a result of the merger of the so-called “small left” ( Dutch. Klen links ) - four parties that were “ left ” of the Social Democratic Labor Party :

• The Communist Party of the Netherlands (CPN) - founded in 1918 by the revolutionary wing of social democracy, mainly by left-wing communists , the Marxist party, in the last years of its existence revised a number of its attitudes, in particular, towards strengthening the feminist component;
• The pacifist socialist party (PSP) is a broad political party originating in the anti-war movement, uniting in 1957 social democrats who disagree with the support of the colonial war in Indonesia and NATO membership by the Labor Party, with individual communists, left-wing Christians , Trotskyists and anarchists.
• The Political Party of Radicals (PPR) - created in 1968 from the left wing of the Catholic People’s Party, a progressive Christian green party , until 1981 oriented toward an alliance with the Social Democrats;
• Evangelical People's Party (EPP) - since 1981, has united left-wing Protestants who have left the Christian Democratic appeal .

Since the beginning of the seventies, the "small left" parties were represented by an ever-smaller number of seats in the General States , which led to increased cooperation in the eighties. In 1984, the RPP, CPN and PSP participated in a single list in the elections to the European Parliament . The same parties jointly participate in protests against nuclear weapons (neutron bombs) and atomic energy.

In the 1986 parliamentary elections , left parties lost even more seats in parliament: CPN and EPP did not enter the General States, RPP took two, PSP one place. The end of the eighties was marked by internal crises and the change of course of all the "small left".

In 1989, on the initiative of the PSP, the “Small Left” began a discussion of the possibility of participating in the elections with a single list of “Green Left” ( Dutch. Vereniging GroenLinks; VGL ), which happened in the 1989 elections to the Second Chamber . The list includes representatives of four small left-wing parties, as well as independent candidates joining the new party: Rotterdam union activist Paul Rosenmeller, choreographer Rudy van Dantzig, writer Astrid Rumer, environmental activist Mareike Vos and student activist Marten van Pulgest.

Compared to the 1986 elections, the number of seats in the Green Left list of parliament doubled, although expectations were even higher. In the 1990 elections to the European Parliament, the parties repeated their participation in a single list, called the Rainbow, following a similar faction that united leftists, greens and regionalists in the European Parliament.

In 1989-1991 there was a further merger of the party-members of the association and sympathizing independent persons. On November 24, 1990, the Green Left Party was officially registered. In 1991, four merged parties held congresses at which they were officially dissolved. The disagreements of the participants on many issues of principle made the formulation of the political program difficult. After much debate and numerous amendments, the second version of the platform - “Fundamentals of the Green Left Policy” ( Dutch Uitgangspunten van GroenLinkse Politiek ) - was adopted in 1991.

The Green Left was the only parliamentary party in the Netherlands to oppose the Gulf War . An internal discussion on this issue led to the formulation of one of the principles of the party, which later advocated peacekeeping operations exclusively under the auspices of the UN and the professional army, which was different from the early pacifism of the founding parties of the Green Left.

In 1992, a gap was removed from the name of the party ( Dutch GroenLinks ).

In 1994, Paul Rosenmeller became chairman of the Green Left faction in parliament. He soon became an unofficial opposition leader in parliament for Wim Kok’s cabinet. Under the leadership of Rosenmeller, a new party strategy was formulated: the proposal of alternative solutions, and not exclusively the opposition.

In 1998, the number of seats left by the Green Left in parliament increased to eleven, due to 66 seats lost by the Labor Party and Democrats .

In 1999, the party split over support for NATO intervention in Kosovo. Initially, the party supported the bombing of military facilities, which led to the release of several participants. In 2001, a parliamentary faction expressed support for the invasion of Afghanistan after the September 11 terrorist attacks , which displeased many former activists of the Pacifist Socialist Party on the Green Left. The internal opposition, led by the party’s youth organization (DWARS), led to a change in the position of the faction in favor of ending the campaign. In 2003, the party unanimously opposed the Iraq war .

In 2003, Rosenmöller, in response to threats to himself and his family, left parliament and left active political activity. The leader of the party after his departure was Femke Halsema , who came to the Green Left in 1997 from the Labor Party .

Halsema began an internal discussion about the principles of leftist politics. She called for accents on individual freedom, tolerance , self-realization, female emancipation . In her speeches, she called the Green Left “the last remaining left-liberal party,” which attracted the attention of the media and speculations about an imminent change of course.

However, when after the 2006 elections, against the backdrop of the Socialist Party’s electoral breakthrough, negotiations on a coalition between the Labor Party, the Socialists, Christian Democrats and the Green Lefts failed, internal discussions about the correctness of the Halsema’s course (including concessions to liberalism, the elitist image of the party and the absence of internal party democracy) flared up with renewed vigor. The result was the creation of two commissions led by former PPR leader Bram van Oyik and the subsequent adoption of a new declaration of principles in November 2008.

In May 2005, Farah Farimi, a deputy from the Green Left, wrote a book that outlined the details of his participation in the Iranian revolution as part of Mujahhedin-e Hulk .

In the main program of the party, “Fundamentals of Green Left Politics,” it is described as a left-wing party that focuses on freedom. The program affirms five principles of party policy:

• Democratic state of law. The radical democratization of the state and industry.
• Stable development, including environmental balance and a decrease in consumption in Western countries.
• A fair distribution of power, knowledge, property, labor and income, both in the Netherlands and around the world.
• The right to social protection.
• Pluralistic society. Resistance to alienation and infringement of the rights of social and ethnic groups.

Initially, the party tried to balance the liberal economic views of the PPR with the socialist attitudes of the PSP and CPN. However, over time, socialist ideas, such as the socialization of the means of production and planning, began to play an ever smaller role in the party’s election programs. Instead, reform of the welfare state is receiving increasing attention. ^[one]

After Femke Halsem became the leader of the party, a further revision of the political course began. Freedom is becoming a key value; a new course is sometimes characterized as left-liberal . ^[2] Like Isaiah Berlin , Halsema distinguishes between positive and negative freedom. ^[3] Negative freedom, according to Halsem, consists in the liberation of citizens from the influence of the state. She applies this concept to conditions in a multicultural legal state , which, in her opinion, should protect, and not limit, the freedom of citizens. Positive freedom is the emancipation of citizens from states of poverty and underdevelopment. This concept of Halsem applies to areas of the social state and environment, the solution of which the state should be able to exert a greater influence.

Politically, the Green Left, calling itself the “party of social reforms”, occupies an intermediate position between the anti-capitalist Socialist Party, on the one hand, and the center-left Labor Party and Democrats 66, on the other. Emphasizing the priority of personal freedom, the Green Left speaks out in support of the rights of migrants, refugee asylum, the legality of soft drugs , and the protection of civil rights on the Internet. In the long run, the party proposes to abolish the monarchy and establish a republican form of government in the Netherlands. In addition, she advocates the reduction of the state bureaucratic apparatus, in particular, by reducing the number of ministries and the dissolution of one of the chambers of parliament.

An important component of the party’s program installations is international cooperation, with emphasis on developing relations with poor countries. Thus, the Green Left supports increasing aid for the development of economically backward countries to 0.8% of Dutch GDP. They advocate strengthening international control over financial markets and dramatically democratizing economic institutions like the IMF and the World Bank. Although the Green Left supports European integration in principle, it critically evaluates the current policy of the European Commission; supporting the European Constitution in 2005, after the failure of the latter in a referendum in the Netherlands, the party demanded a new agreement in which more space would be given to democracy and solidarity. The green left criticizes the “war against terror” and advocates the dissolution of NATO with the transfer of its functions to the UN and the EU.

The requirements of the Green Left in the field of environmental protection, in particular in the fight against climate change and the introduction of alternative energy sources, are significant. Like the Animal Welfare Party , they advocate incorporating animal rights into the constitution.

Copyright

Along with other political parties ( Pirate Party , Democrats 66 , Socialist Party , Christian Democratic Appeal ), the Green Left believe that the copyright institution in its current historical form is outdated and requires modernization, taking into account the ease of copying copyright objects using computer technologies and their distribution in computer networks ^[4] .

In the program of the party in 2010, expressed the desire to reduce the duration of the exclusive rights to exploit the work. The original wording implied limiting the term to 10 years after the creation of the work, which caused a negative reaction from the Buma / Stemra organization ^[5] , after which the wording was changed - the specific term is no longer called ^{[6] [7]} . In this regard, Femke Halsem in an article on the party’s website noted that the original wording was too harsh and that the party was ready for dialogue with the creators of artworks about the acceptable scope of copyright reforms. ^[8] .

Another change proposed by the party in the field of copyright is the restriction of its use to commercial use. Non-commercial use of works, including file sharing on computer networks, according to the party, cannot be equated with the production and sale of fakes and prosecuted as a crime. Finally, the Green Left is a proponent of the use of open source software in the public sector.

The party has 21,901 members, united in 250 local cells. The mass base of the Green Left is made up of urban residents, especially students. In addition, their support is higher among women and immigrants - migrants of Turkish and Moroccan descent. Accordingly, the party’s electoral performance is 12.5% ​​in Amsterdam, 12.2% in Utrecht, 11.8% in Wageningen, 10.4% in Nijmegen and 10.0% in Leiden. Party congresses are open to all members of the Green Left.

The Green Left election campaigns were attended (including as “last candidates” or “pushers of the list”) by many famous figures, including astronaut Wübbo Johannes Ockels , writer Geert Mack , singer Ellen ten Damme, musician Herman van Wen, comedian Herman Finkers , poet Rutger Copland .

The supreme body is congress ( congres ), between congresses - party rule ( partijbestuur ), delegates of local organizations can gather for a party council ( partijraad ), the supreme bodies of provincial organizations - provincial membership meetings ( provinciale ledenvergadering ), between provincial membership meetings - provincial boards ( provinciaal bestuur ), the highest organs of primary branches are affiliate meetings of branches ( afdelingsledenvergadering ).

• Party official website
• Information about the party on the website of the documentary center of the Netherlands political parties
• Green Left Charter