Issue 61
Liberal International receives Dr Martin Lee
1996 LI Prize for Freedom Laureate Dr Martin Lee, an individual member of LI and Mr Sin Chung Kai, the vice- chairman of Democratic Party of Hong Kong, visited the LI Secretariat in London on the 15th of October. Their visit to the United Kingdom was part of a European tour to exchange views with officials concerning the political situation in Hong Kong. Dr Lee stressed that he is still concerned about the future of a democratic Hong Kong, in particular among the younger generations, thus education is an essential aspect.” Secretary-general Emil Kirjas added “We will continue supporting Dr Lee's efforts in promoting democratic values in Hong Kong. It is not only necessary for the people of Hong Kong, but a benefit to the liberal community in Asia and worldwide”.
60th Anniversary: LI Executive Committee Meeting Hamburg and Liberal Thinkers’ Conference, 16-17 November 2007
The LI Secretariat wishes to draw your attention to the documentation regarding forthcoming Executive Committee meeting in Hamburg. A 60th Anniversary booklet containing the official program and speakers' introduction will be provided, however please print out the Executive Mailing documentation as the LI Secretariat will not have extra copies available.
The Executive mailing will be sent out on the Friday 2nd November. If you do not receive the mailing, please contact all@liberal-international.org.
Human Rights Conference of Liberal International & CALD General Assembly 8-10 December 2007
For those who have not registered Liberal International's last event of 2007, President of LI Lord Alderdice appeals to all member parties to join this Conference, “This event is an opportunity for global human rights advocates and liberal party representatives to work together and offer a platform for the discussion of the theme from a wide perspective, furthering a liberal agenda on human rights”.
The Conference will start by a welcome address from President Chen Sui-bian on the evening of the 7th December, and then leads to the heart of the discussions involved in the topics of advocacy of parliamentarians on human rights, liberal regional network and promotion of human rights, ASEAN Human Rights mechanism, combating human trafficking, and political action and insight into Burma. The conference is held on the 8-9 December.
The Council of Liberals and Democrats will hold its General Asssembly on the 10th December. In this three day conference, there will be a great number of the parliamentarians and political leaders from Asia. Speakers from UK, Russia, the Philippines, Germany, Cambodia, Egypt, Tanzania, Seychelles, Columbia, Thailand, Malaysia, Sweden, India and Burma are also invited to the conference.
The conference venue is the Taipei International Convention Centre and the Taipei Grand Hyatt has been booked as the accommodation. Thanks to the generosity of the host party, the hotel accommodation will be covered for every LI participant.
We would like to remind you that the final registration date for the conference is Tuesday 20th November. For more information concerning the conference program,hotel and conference venue, please visit LI website.
New Gains for Morocco’s UC
Following the September 9th Elections in Morocco, the Union Constitutionnelle (UC) a member party of LI, has enjoyed a ground swell of support. The UC has bolstered its representation from 16 seats in 2002 to 27 seats in 2007. The Alliance des Libertés kept their representation in the parliament with one seat. The recently formed Mouvement Populaire (MP) (an amalgam of the former Mouvement Populaire and the Mouvement National Populaire) lost ground in the election, yet still has a combined 41 seats in the parliament. Together these parties make up a combined 21% of the parliament with 69 seats. Seven female ministers were sworn in to the cabinet, up from 2 in the previous election. After a month of tough negotiations, a government was formed on October 9th. At his swearing in ceremony, King Mohammed VI asked new Prime Minister Rabat M. Abbas El Fassi (of the secular Istiqlal party) to “act in consultation with the different political parties and to submit, without delay…a proposal in regards to the composition of the new government.” — hinting at the near certainty of a coalition government.
Right-wing Swiss recored the election results
The election for the Swiss Federal Assembly was held on Saturday, 20 Octoebr 2007. The right-wing Swiss People's Party won 29 percent of the vote, 62 seats out of 200. The main cause for the victory of the rightwing camp is centered around migration issues. Two LI members, Free Democratic Party of Switzerland received 15.6 percent of the vote with 31 seats, the Liberal Party of Switzerland received 1.8 percent with 4 seats respectively. The turn out was 48.9 percent.
Slovene run-off presidential election due on 11, November 2007
Former Slovene Prime Minister Lojze Peterle (conservative), 59, was forced into the second round of the presidential election after receiving 28.7 percent of votes on 21 October. The longtime diplomat Danilo Tuerk received 24.5 percent and would make it into the runoff. The third place vote-getter, former Central Bank Governor Mitja Gaspari, back by the Liberal Democracy of Slovenia, member of LI, got 24 percent of the votes and was defeated narrowly by about 4,000 votes. Turnout was 57 percent.
The runoff is set on 11 November 2007, a contest between Slovenia's two political poles: although both run as independents, Peterle is backed by the center-right government and Tuerk by several center-left opposition parties.
Liberal Coalition Party in Poland Makes Electoral Comeback
In the recent Polish elections, Poland's Left and Democrats (LiD) came third, signalling a turn from Poland's traditional stance of conservative nationalism towards a more open Europeanism. The party won an electoral victory that garnered the party 13% of the vote and marked a return to a position of influence within the Polish political landscape. Woljciech Olejniczac, the head of the party, says that he has high hopes that his party can contribute by supplying constructive opposition. The party has stated that they will not enter into a coalition with the centre-right Civic Platform party, which won the election. However the LiD will support the Civic Platform's pro-European position. The LiD party is a coalition of four political parties, on of which was the Democratic Party (a party with social liberal-leanings).
New Researchers at Liberal International
After completing secondary school in the Netherlands, Jan van Ewijk went to a Liberal Arts college in the United States, where he is studying for a BA degree in History and International Studies. Currently he is participating in the Hansard Scholars Programme, attending lectures on British politics at the London School of Economics. After graduation he wants to go to graduate school and work in journalism or foreign affairs.
James Patava was born in Toronto, Canada in 1984. Having lived in Toronto, Calgary and Montreal, he completed his university education at McGill University. With a major in Politics (focussing in International Relations) and a minor in English Literature, it was in Montreal that James first became politically active. A member of the Parti Liberal du Canada (Quebec), he was fortunate enough to work at the 2006 Liberal Leadership Convention. He has also worked for Elections Canada and Le directeur général des élections Quebec. Previously working at a corporate law firm, a small town newspaper, and on a ski hill, James is looking forward to the new challenge of working with Liberal International and living in London. His interests include reading, travelling, spending time in the country and being a proud Canadian.