Democratic Alliance (Greece)
Encyclopedia
The Democratic Alliance is a centrist
-liberal political party in Greece
. It was founded on 21 November 2010 by Dora Bakoyannis
, a few months after she was expelled from the centre-right party New Democracy
for voting in support of an European Union
-International Monetary Fund
backed financial stability
loan. The party's founding congress took place on 27 May 2011.
. As it has fewer than ten MPs, the Democratic Alliance is not allowed to form an official parliamentary group:
The party also has one MEP
in the European parliament
(defected from ND):
movement that is ideologically inspired by the anthropocentric values of humanism
, the rational thought and personal freedom brought forth by the Enlightenment
, as well as the economic, political and social freedom of liberalism
as an underpinning for social justice
. It is also influenced by the 19th and 20th century struggles for social solidarity in Europe. Some of the positions advocated by the party are:
Centrism
In politics, centrism is the ideal or the practice of promoting policies that lie different from the standard political left and political right. Most commonly, this is visualized as part of the one-dimensional political spectrum of left-right politics, with centrism landing in the middle between...
-liberal political party in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. It was founded on 21 November 2010 by Dora Bakoyannis
Dora Bakoyannis
Dora Bakoyannis , born Theodora Mitsotaki , is a Greek politician. From 2006 to 2009 she was Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece, the highest position ever held by a woman in the Cabinet of Greece; she was also Chairperson-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe in...
, a few months after she was expelled from the centre-right party New Democracy
New Democracy (Greece)
New Democracy is the main centre-right political party and one of the two major parties in Greece. It was founded in 1974 by Konstantinos Karamanlis and formed the first cabinet of the Third Hellenic Republic...
for voting in support of an European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
-International Monetary Fund
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...
backed financial stability
2010 European sovereign debt crisis
From late 2009, fears of a sovereign debt crisis developed among investors concerning some European states, intensifying in early 2010 and thereafter.....
loan. The party's founding congress took place on 27 May 2011.
Representation
The party is represented by the following MPs in the Greek parliamentHellenic Parliament
The Hellenic Parliament , also the Parliament of the Hellenes, is the Parliament of Greece, located in the Parliament House , overlooking Syntagma Square in Athens, Greece....
. As it has fewer than ten MPs, the Democratic Alliance is not allowed to form an official parliamentary group:
- Dora BakoyannisDora BakoyannisDora Bakoyannis , born Theodora Mitsotaki , is a Greek politician. From 2006 to 2009 she was Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece, the highest position ever held by a woman in the Cabinet of Greece; she was also Chairperson-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe in...
- Christos Markogiannakis
- Lefteris Avgenakis
- Georgios Kontogiannis
The party also has one MEP
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
in the European parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
(defected from ND):
- Theodoros Skylakakis
Political positions
As outlined in its founding declaration, the Democratic Alliance defines itself politically as as a centristCentrism
In politics, centrism is the ideal or the practice of promoting policies that lie different from the standard political left and political right. Most commonly, this is visualized as part of the one-dimensional political spectrum of left-right politics, with centrism landing in the middle between...
movement that is ideologically inspired by the anthropocentric values of humanism
Humanism
Humanism is an approach in study, philosophy, world view or practice that focuses on human values and concerns. In philosophy and social science, humanism is a perspective which affirms some notion of human nature, and is contrasted with anti-humanism....
, the rational thought and personal freedom brought forth by the Enlightenment
Age of Enlightenment
The Age of Enlightenment was an elite cultural movement of intellectuals in 18th century Europe that sought to mobilize the power of reason in order to reform society and advance knowledge. It promoted intellectual interchange and opposed intolerance and abuses in church and state...
, as well as the economic, political and social freedom of liberalism
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
as an underpinning for social justice
Social justice
Social justice generally refers to the idea of creating a society or institution that is based on the principles of equality and solidarity, that understands and values human rights, and that recognizes the dignity of every human being. The term and modern concept of "social justice" was coined by...
. It is also influenced by the 19th and 20th century struggles for social solidarity in Europe. Some of the positions advocated by the party are:
- A drastic reduction in taxation, by instituting a 20% flat rate tax. This tax rate would not apply to people with really low incomes, as it would be complemented by a system that replaces the currently existing tax cuts with negative taxation.
- A reduction in the number of civil servants and the abolition of tenure, for those hired from now on, that would allow the government to function with 2/3 of its current workforce. This would be coupled with increased salaries, for those that remain, that would be pinned on performance evaluations.
- A law that would force trade unionTrade unionA trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
leaders themselves to work. - Introducing the requirement of secret ballotSecret ballotThe secret ballot is a voting method in which a voter's choices in an election or a referendum are anonymous. The key aim is to ensure the voter records a sincere choice by forestalling attempts to influence the voter by intimidation or bribery. The system is one means of achieving the goal of...
voting for all decisions of strike actionStrike actionStrike 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...
. - Introducing a coupon-based system of education.