Natural Law Party
Encyclopedia
The Natural Law Party was a transnational party based on the teachings of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
. It was active in up to 74 countries, and ran candidates in at least ten. Founded in 1992, it was mostly disbanded in 2004 but continues in India and in some U.S. states.
The NLP viewed "natural law" as the organizing principle that governs the universe. The Natural Law Party advocated using the Transcendental Meditation technique
and the TM-Sidhi program
to reduce or eliminate problems in society.
Perhaps the most prominent candidate running on the NLP platform was John Hagelin
, who campaigned for U.S. president in 1992, 1996, and 2004. The NLP in the United Kingdom received attention due to the support of former members of The Beatles
. The only electoral successes were achieved by the Ajeya Bharat Party in India, which elected a legislator to a state assembly, and by the Croatia
n NLP, which elected a member of a regional assembly in 1993. Also, in the Netherlands in the province of Flevoland, the NLP has had a candidate in office since around 1993.
, many of whom practiced the Transcendental Meditation technique. While Natural Law Party leaders denied formal connection with the Transcendental Meditation movement, Bob Roth, a spokesman at the party's headquarters in Fairfield reportedly said, "It's no secret this is the TM party."
Delegates from 60 countries attended an international convention of Natural Law Parties held in Bonn Germany in 1998.
In addition to national politicians, Benoît Frappé of France was the party's candidate for the European Parliament
.
campaigned for a seat in a district in suburban Adelaide
for the Australian House of Representatives
on the NLP ticket.
. The Maharishi was said to be "keenly interested" in building a political base in his native province. The MVVP received 0.28% of the vote in its first election. Mukesh Nayak left the cabinet and the Congress Party to assume the leadership of the Madhya Pradesh MVVP. For the November 1998 election, the Ajeya Bharat had a list of 100 candidates for the Assembly. It received 0.5% of the vote and won one seat in the 320-member state assembly. The following year, that member switched parties, leaving the Ajeya Bharat with no representation. In 2008, Nayak left the party to rejoin the Congress Party. In 2009, the Ajeya Bharat party president, Ambati Krishnamurthy, filed a complaint against another party for using a flag similar to its own.
in 1994 and was based in Dublin.
. It has not run in an election since.
it won 24,897 votes (0.06%) for the Chamber of Deputies
and 86,588 votes (0.26%) for the Senate
. The list was on ballot in a few constituencies only. In the 1996 general elections
the Natural Law Party ran candidates only in the Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol region, who won 8,298 votes for the Chamber of Deputies and 5,842 for the Senate (about 1% on a regional basis, 0.2% in the whole country).
in Trinidad and Tobago
contested the 1995 general elections
. It received 1,590 votes, but failed to win a seat.
The UK manifesto, as published on its website was founded on assertions that included:
The UK manifesto also asserted that Natural Law governs the universe, including the lives of the citizens of the UK, and that the Natural Law party had "the scientific knowledge as efficient and nourishing as the government of Nature."
In the 1992 general election, held on 9 April, 310 candidates stood for the NLP in the UK, garnering 0.19% of the vote, with every candidate losing their deposit for failing to receive at least 5% of the vote. The group announced that they had budgeted nearly 1 million pounds for the campaign. A significant number of constituencies were contested by nationals of countries outside the UK, including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and India, as British electoral law allows any member of a Commonwealth
country to stand for Parliament. Among them was Canadian-born magician Doug Henning
.
George Harrison
performed a fund-raising concert at the Royal Albert Hall
in London for the NLP on 6 April 1992, his first full concert in the UK since 1969. A week before the general election, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
suggested to Harrison that he, Paul McCartney
and Ringo Starr
stand for election as MPs for Liverpool
as NLP candidates, but they declined.
In the 1997 general election, the NLP ran 197 candidates for Parliament in the UK, garnering 0.10% of the vote, with every candidate losing their deposit.
The NLP ran 16 candidates in the 20 by-elections held between 1992 and 1997, with every candidate losing their deposit.
The NLP ran 8 candidates for the 16 by-elections held between 1997 and 2001, averaging 0.10% of the vote, with every candidate losing their deposit.
The NLP did not run any candidates for Parliament in the 2001 general election or in the succeeding by-elections.
The party, along with its Northern Ireland wing, voluntarily deregistered with the Electoral Commission
at the end of 2003.
as its presidential candidate in 1992, 1996, and 2000. He was on ballots in 48 states and received 0.12% of the vote in 1996. The party also ran congressional and local candidates. In California, psychiatrist Harold H. Bloomfield ran as candidate for Governor
in 1998. It attempted to merge with the Reform Party
in 2000. The NLP in the United States was largely disbanded in 2004. However, some state affiliates, such as Michigan, have kept their ballot positions and have allied with other small parties.
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi , born Mahesh Prasad Varma , developed the Transcendental Meditation technique and was the leader and guru of the TM movement, characterised as a new religious movement and also as non-religious...
. It was active in up to 74 countries, and ran candidates in at least ten. Founded in 1992, it was mostly disbanded in 2004 but continues in India and in some U.S. states.
The NLP viewed "natural law" as the organizing principle that governs the universe. The Natural Law Party advocated using the Transcendental Meditation technique
Transcendental Meditation technique
The Transcendental Meditation technique is a specific form of mantra meditation often referred to as Transcendental Meditation. It was introduced in India in 1955 by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi...
and the TM-Sidhi program
TM-Sidhi program
The TM-Sidhi program is a form of meditation introduced by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in 1975. It is based on, and described as a natural extension of the Transcendental Meditation technique...
to reduce or eliminate problems in society.
Perhaps the most prominent candidate running on the NLP platform was John Hagelin
John Hagelin
John Samuel Hagelin is an American particle physicist, three-time candidate of the Natural Law Party for President of the United States , and the director of the Transcendental Meditation movement for the US....
, who campaigned for U.S. president in 1992, 1996, and 2004. The NLP in the United Kingdom received attention due to the support of former members of The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
. The only electoral successes were achieved by the Ajeya Bharat Party in India, which elected a legislator to a state assembly, and by the Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n NLP, which elected a member of a regional assembly in 1993. Also, in the Netherlands in the province of Flevoland, the NLP has had a candidate in office since around 1993.
Origins
The Natural Law Party (NLP) was founded in the USA in 1992 by a group of educators, business leaders, and lawyers in Fairfield, IowaFairfield, Iowa
Fairfield is a city and the county seat of Jefferson County, Iowa, United States. The population was 9,464 in the 2010 census, a decline from 9,509 in the 2000 census. - History :...
, many of whom practiced the Transcendental Meditation technique. While Natural Law Party leaders denied formal connection with the Transcendental Meditation movement, Bob Roth, a spokesman at the party's headquarters in Fairfield reportedly said, "It's no secret this is the TM party."
Platform
Among other things, the Natural Law Party proposed to:- Establish a team of 1,000 yogic flyers. According to the party, such a group "dissolves collective stress, as indicated by significant reductions in crime, unemployment, sickness, and accidents, and improved economic indicators and quality of life". They would also would provide an "invincible defence".
- Introduce daily Transcendental Meditation for all school students
- Lower taxes, as yogic flyers will supposedly increase prosperity, allowing the government to collect the same amount of money with a lower tax rate
- Ban genetic engineeringGenetic engineeringGenetic engineering, also called genetic modification, is the direct human manipulation of an organism's genome using modern DNA technology. It involves the introduction of foreign DNA or synthetic genes into the organism of interest...
, and encourage organic farming
National branches
The Natural Law Party was reportedly active in 74 countries, including affiliates in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Israel, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and United Kingdom.Delegates from 60 countries attended an international convention of Natural Law Parties held in Bonn Germany in 1998.
In addition to national politicians, Benoît Frappé of France was the party's candidate for 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...
.
Australia
In 1993, Bevan MorrisBevan Morris
Bevan G. Morris is the president of Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa, President of the Global Country of World Peace, President of Maharishi Vedic Education Development Corporation, Prime Minister of the United States Peace Government, President of the Maharishi World Peace...
campaigned for a seat in a district in suburban Adelaide
Division of Boothby
The Division of Boothby is an Australian Electoral Division in South Australia. The division was created in 1903 and is named after William Boothby , the Returning Officer for the first election of Members of the House of Representatives in 1901....
for the Australian House of Representatives
Australian House of Representatives
The House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house; the upper house is the Senate. Members of Parliament serve for terms of approximately three years....
on the NLP ticket.
Canada
The Natural Law Party was active in Canadian federal and provincial elections.India
The Natural Law Party in India is known as the Ajeya Bharat Party (AJBP) or Invincible India party. It promotes a Vedic (spiritual) way of life. It was formed in late 1998 as the political wing of the Maharishi Vedic Vishwa Prashasan (MVVP (Maharishi global administration through natural law)), which had nominated 34 candidates in the February 1998 parliamentary election from Madhya PradeshMadhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....
. The Maharishi was said to be "keenly interested" in building a political base in his native province. The MVVP received 0.28% of the vote in its first election. Mukesh Nayak left the cabinet and the Congress Party to assume the leadership of the Madhya Pradesh MVVP. For the November 1998 election, the Ajeya Bharat had a list of 100 candidates for the Assembly. It received 0.5% of the vote and won one seat in the 320-member state assembly. The following year, that member switched parties, leaving the Ajeya Bharat with no representation. In 2008, Nayak left the party to rejoin the Congress Party. In 2009, the Ajeya Bharat party president, Ambati Krishnamurthy, filed a complaint against another party for using a flag similar to its own.
Ireland
The Natural Law Party became active in Republic of IrelandRepublic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
in 1994 and was based in Dublin.
Israel
The Natural Law Party of Israel was a minor political party in Israel. Its leader was Amihai Rokah. In the 1999 elections, the Natural Law Party won 2,924 votes (0.09%), below the 1.5% electoral threshold required to enter the KnessetKnesset
The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...
. It has not run in an election since.
Italy
The Natural Law Party in Italy (Partito della Legge Naturale, PLN) took place to several (both general and local) elections in the nineties. In the 1994 general electionsItalian general election, 1994
An early national general election was held in Italy on March 27, 1994 to elect members of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right alliance won handily the election for the Chamber and only narrowly lost that for the Senate....
it won 24,897 votes (0.06%) for the Chamber of Deputies
Italian Chamber of Deputies
The Italian Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Parliament of Italy. It has 630 seats, a plurality of which is controlled presently by liberal-conservative party People of Freedom. Twelve deputies represent Italian citizens outside of Italy. Deputies meet in the Palazzo Montecitorio. A...
and 86,588 votes (0.26%) for the Senate
Italian Senate
The Senate of the Republic is the upper house of the Italian Parliament. It was established in its current form on 8 May 1948, but previously existed during the Kingdom of Italy as Senato del Regno , itself a continuation of the Senato Subalpino of Sardinia-Piedmont established on 8 May 1848...
. The list was on ballot in a few constituencies only. In the 1996 general elections
Italian general election, 1996
An early national general election was held in Italy on 21 April, 1996 to elect members of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic...
the Natural Law Party ran candidates only in the Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol region, who won 8,298 votes for the Chamber of Deputies and 5,842 for the Senate (about 1% on a regional basis, 0.2% in the whole country).
New Zealand
The Natural Law Party of New Zealand was formed in 1995. The Natural Law Party never won any seats in Parliament, and was removed from the register of official political parties in February 2001.Trinidad and Tobago
The Natural Law PartyNatural Law Party (Trinidad and Tobago)
The National Law Party was a political party in Trinidad and Tobago. It contested the 1995 general elections, but received just 0.3% of the national vote and failed to win a seat. The party did not contest any further elections....
in Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
contested the 1995 general elections
Trinidad and Tobago general election, 1995
Early general elections were held in Trinidad and Tobago on 6 November 1995, after the ruling People's National Movement had seen its majority reduced to a single seat due to a defection and a lost by-election. The results saw the PNM and the United National Congress both won 17 seats...
. It received 1,590 votes, but failed to win a seat.
United Kingdom
The Natural Law Party was founded in the United Kingdom in March 1992. Geoffrey Clements was its Party Leader.The UK manifesto, as published on its website was founded on assertions that included:
- that the development of consciousness, in particular through the practice of the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programs including Yogic Flying, can enhance society's ability to resolve problems
- that the group practice of these techniques by a critical mass of the population, can result in overall improvements in societySocietyA society, or a human society, is a group of people related to each other through persistent relations, or a large social grouping sharing the same geographical or virtual territory, subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations...
, including reduced crime, accidents and hospital admissions, and increased prosperity, national security and over all quality of life. The party quoted peer-reviewed published scientific research for many of its assertions.
The UK manifesto also asserted that Natural Law governs the universe, including the lives of the citizens of the UK, and that the Natural Law party had "the scientific knowledge as efficient and nourishing as the government of Nature."
In the 1992 general election, held on 9 April, 310 candidates stood for the NLP in the UK, garnering 0.19% of the vote, with every candidate losing their deposit for failing to receive at least 5% of the vote. The group announced that they had budgeted nearly 1 million pounds for the campaign. A significant number of constituencies were contested by nationals of countries outside the UK, including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and India, as British electoral law allows any member of a Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
country to stand for Parliament. Among them was Canadian-born magician Doug Henning
Doug Henning
Douglas James Henning was a Canadian magician, illusionist, escape artist and politician.-Early life:...
.
George Harrison
George Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
performed a fund-raising concert at the Royal Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
in London for the NLP on 6 April 1992, his first full concert in the UK since 1969. A week before the general election, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi , born Mahesh Prasad Varma , developed the Transcendental Meditation technique and was the leader and guru of the TM movement, characterised as a new religious movement and also as non-religious...
suggested to Harrison that he, Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
and Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
stand for election as MPs for Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
as NLP candidates, but they declined.
In the 1997 general election, the NLP ran 197 candidates for Parliament in the UK, garnering 0.10% of the vote, with every candidate losing their deposit.
The NLP ran 16 candidates in the 20 by-elections held between 1992 and 1997, with every candidate losing their deposit.
The NLP ran 8 candidates for the 16 by-elections held between 1997 and 2001, averaging 0.10% of the vote, with every candidate losing their deposit.
The NLP did not run any candidates for Parliament in the 2001 general election or in the succeeding by-elections.
The party, along with its Northern Ireland wing, voluntarily deregistered with the Electoral Commission
Electoral Commission (United Kingdom)
The Electoral Commission is an independent body set up by the UK Parliament. It regulates party and election finance and sets standards for well-run elections...
at the end of 2003.
United States
The Natural Law Party (United States) ran John HagelinJohn Hagelin
John Samuel Hagelin is an American particle physicist, three-time candidate of the Natural Law Party for President of the United States , and the director of the Transcendental Meditation movement for the US....
as its presidential candidate in 1992, 1996, and 2000. He was on ballots in 48 states and received 0.12% of the vote in 1996. The party also ran congressional and local candidates. In California, psychiatrist Harold H. Bloomfield ran as candidate for Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
in 1998. It attempted to merge with the Reform Party
Reform Party of the United States of America
The Reform Party of the United States of America is a political party in the United States, founded in 1995 by Ross Perot...
in 2000. The NLP in the United States was largely disbanded in 2004. However, some state affiliates, such as Michigan, have kept their ballot positions and have allied with other small parties.
See also
- Political parties of the world
- List of political parties in the United States
- Parti de la loi naturelle (natural law party of France; article in French Wikipedia)
- Naturgesetz Partei (natural law party of Germany; article in German Wikipedia)
- Österreichische Naturgesetzpartei (natural law party of Austria (ÖNP); article in German Wikipedia)
- Luonnonlain puolue (Law of Nature Party of Finland (LLP); article in Finnish Wikipedia)