Progressive Party of Working People
Encyclopedia
The Progressive Party of Working People is a communist party
in Cyprus
. It supports an independent, demilitarized and non-aligned
Cyprus, and a federal solution
of the internal aspect of the Cyprus problem
. It places particular emphasis on rapprochement
with the Turkish Cypriots
. It supported entry into the European Union
with certain reservations. AKEL also supported the Annan Plan in 2004, but at the end they decided for a negative response, since they did not have time to formulate response to the plan. AKEL has successfully put into practise several socialist measures to support economic welfare of Cypriots during the late-2000s financial crisis such as increasing low pensions by 30% and strengthening the welfare benefits given to university students to €12 million per year. Generally, €1 billion 200 million were given as welfare benefits during the first three years of AKEL in power.
riot. In 1941, leading members of the underground communist party and others founded AKEL. In the first municipal elections in 1943 (before that mayors were appointed) AKEL candidates became mayors of Limassol
(Ploutis Servas
) and Famagusta
(Adam Adamantos).
List of general secretaries:
Unlike its predecessor, AKEL was not against Enosis
. Instead AKEL supported a gradual process, starting off with a constitution and self-government while Cyprus would remain a colony, leading to self-determination and Enosis. After the failure of the consultative assembly in 1949 to grant a constitution acceptable to the Cypriot members, AKEL changed line, supporting immediate Enosis with no intermediate stages.
During the late fifties, AKEL was opposed to the violent tactics followed by the anti-British resistance movement of EOKA
. EOKA
accused AKEL as collaborators of the British, even though AKEL was also illegal since 1955. Several AKEL members were assassinated by EOKA at the time as "traitors," including AKEL-supporter Savas Menikou who was stoned to death. AKEL denounced EOKA's leadership as being anti-communist, as its leader George Grivas
had fought against the communist side during the Greek Civil War
. Grivas later founded EOKA B
, which supported the 1974 coup d'état following his death.
About 1958, the Turkish Cypriot nationalist organization TMT
started forcing Turkish Cypriots
members of AKEL to leave. Editor of a workers newspaper Fazil Onder was killed and the head of the Turkish bureau of PEO (AKEL's trade union) Ahmet Sadi moved to the UK
to save his life.
In the first presidential elections for independent Cyprus, AKEL backed Ioannis Kliridis (father of Glafkos Klerides
) against Makarios III
. The last Turkish Cypriot to be a member of the central committee of AKEL, Derviş Ali Kavazoğlu
, was killed by TMT in 1965.
In the mid 1990s the U.S. State Department estimated the party membership to be approximately 10,000 (3.25% of the working age population).
, the party won 34.7% of the popular vote and 20 out of 56 seats. After this election, AKEL's General Secretary, Dimitris Christofias, was elected as President of the House of Representatives
and until 2006, for first time in the History of Republic of Cyprus
. Besides AKEL, he was supported by Movement for Social Democracy
(EDEK) and Democratic Party
(DIKO).
It is a member of the European United Left - Nordic Green Left in the European Parliament
and it is considered as moderately eurosceptic. Cyprus joined the EU in 2004. In the 2004 European election
, AKEL elected 2 members; Adamos Adamou
and Kyriacos Triantaphyllides
.
AKEL remained the largest political party on the island in the 2006 Cypriot legislative elections
, however the party lost two seats in the parliament winning 18 seats with 31.31% of the votes.
In the second round presidential election held on 24 February 2008, General Secretary of AKEL Dimitris Christofias
was elected President of the Republic of Cyprus. Official figures showed a win of 53.36% of the vote against his right-wing opponent Ioannis Kasoulidis' 46.64%.
On 21 January 2009, Andros Kyprianou was elected general secretary of the party with 54.3% in the central committee election.
In the last election for the European Parliament which took place in June 2009, AKEL managed to gain 34.9% of the votes and elected 2 out of the 6 members, Kyriacos Triantaphyllides
and Takis Hadjigeorgiou
.
On 22 May 2011, the Cypriot legislative election took place. AKEL gained 32.67% of the votes and elected 19 out of the 56 members of parliament.
Communist party
A political party described as a Communist party includes those that advocate the application of the social principles of communism through a communist form of government...
in Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
. It supports an independent, demilitarized and non-aligned
Non-Aligned Movement
The Non-Aligned Movement is a group of states considering themselves not aligned formally with or against any major power bloc. As of 2011, the movement had 120 members and 17 observer countries...
Cyprus, and a federal solution
Federation
A federation , also known as a federal state, is a type of sovereign state characterized by a union of partially self-governing states or regions united by a central government...
of the internal aspect of the Cyprus problem
Cyprus dispute
The Cyprus dispute is the result of the ongoing conflict between the Republic of Cyprus and Turkey, over the Turkish occupied northern part of Cyprus....
. It places particular emphasis on rapprochement
Rapprochement
In international relations, a rapprochement, which comes from the French word rapprocher , is a re-establishment of cordial relations, as between two countries...
with the Turkish Cypriots
Turkish Cypriots
Turkish Cypriots are the ethnic Turks and members of the Turkish-speaking ethnolinguistic community of the Eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus. The term is used to refer explicitly to the indigenous Turkish Cypriots, whose Ottoman Turkish forbears colonised the island in 1571...
. It supported entry into the 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...
with certain reservations. AKEL also supported the Annan Plan in 2004, but at the end they decided for a negative response, since they did not have time to formulate response to the plan. AKEL has successfully put into practise several socialist measures to support economic welfare of Cypriots during the late-2000s financial crisis such as increasing low pensions by 30% and strengthening the welfare benefits given to university students to €12 million per year. Generally, €1 billion 200 million were given as welfare benefits during the first three years of AKEL in power.
History
It was founded in 1926 with the name Communist Party of Cyprus (CPC). The communist party set as its aim not only the struggle against what it viewed as exploitation but also the independence of Cyprus from British rule. The party became illegal in 1931 when the British colonial government imposed restrictions on civil rights following a nationalistNationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
riot. In 1941, leading members of the underground communist party and others founded AKEL. In the first municipal elections in 1943 (before that mayors were appointed) AKEL candidates became mayors of Limassol
Limassol
Limassol is the second-largest city in Cyprus, with a population of 228,000 . It is the largest city in geographical size, and the biggest municipality on the island. The city is located on Akrotiri Bay, on the island's southern coast and it is the capital of Limassol District.Limassol is the...
(Ploutis Servas
Ploutis Servas
Ploutis Servas , was a Cypriot former politician, reporter, and author. Servas was born Ploutarhos Loizou Savvidis and changed his surname to Servas while still a student in secondary education.Servas was born in Limassol, Cyprus in 1907. He studied social sciences in Moscow...
) and Famagusta
Famagusta
Famagusta is a city on the east coast of Cyprus and is capital of the Famagusta District. It is located east of Nicosia, and possesses the deepest harbour of the island.-Name:...
(Adam Adamantos).
List of general secretaries:
- 1936–1945 Ploutis ServasPloutis ServasPloutis Servas , was a Cypriot former politician, reporter, and author. Servas was born Ploutarhos Loizou Savvidis and changed his surname to Servas while still a student in secondary education.Servas was born in Limassol, Cyprus in 1907. He studied social sciences in Moscow...
- 1945–1949 Fifis IoannouFifis IoannouFifis Ioannou , was a Cypriot politician and editor.Ioannou was born in Nicosia, Cyprus in 1914. He succeeded Ploutis Servas in 1945 as the Secretary General of AKEL, a position he held until 1949....
- 1949–1988 Ezekias PapaioannouEzekias PapaioannouEzekias Papaioannou was a Greek Cypriot communist politician and Secretary General of the left wing political party of AKEL....
(a veteran of the Spanish Civil WarSpanish Civil WarThe Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
) - 1988–2009 Dimitris ChristofiasDimitris ChristofiasDimitris Christofias also Demetris is a left-wing Greek Cypriot politician and the current and sixth President of the Republic of Cyprus. Christofias was the General Secretary of AKEL and is Cyprus's first, and the European Union's first and so far only, communist head of state. He won the 2008...
- 2009–present Andros Kyprianou
Unlike its predecessor, AKEL was not against Enosis
Enosis
Enosis refers to the movement of the Greek-Cypriot population to incorporate the island of Cyprus into Greece.Similar movements had previously developed in other regions with ethnic Greek majorities such as the Ionian Islands, Crete and the Dodecanese. These regions were eventually incorporated...
. Instead AKEL supported a gradual process, starting off with a constitution and self-government while Cyprus would remain a colony, leading to self-determination and Enosis. After the failure of the consultative assembly in 1949 to grant a constitution acceptable to the Cypriot members, AKEL changed line, supporting immediate Enosis with no intermediate stages.
During the late fifties, AKEL was opposed to the violent tactics followed by the anti-British resistance movement of EOKA
EOKA
EOKA was an anticolonial, antiimperialist nationalist organisation with the ultimate goal of "The liberation of Cyprus from the British yoke". Although not stated in its initial declaration of existence which was printed and distributed on the 1st of April 1955, EOKA also had a target of achieving...
. EOKA
EOKA
EOKA was an anticolonial, antiimperialist nationalist organisation with the ultimate goal of "The liberation of Cyprus from the British yoke". Although not stated in its initial declaration of existence which was printed and distributed on the 1st of April 1955, EOKA also had a target of achieving...
accused AKEL as collaborators of the British, even though AKEL was also illegal since 1955. Several AKEL members were assassinated by EOKA at the time as "traitors," including AKEL-supporter Savas Menikou who was stoned to death. AKEL denounced EOKA's leadership as being anti-communist, as its leader George Grivas
George Grivas
Georgios Grivas , also known by his nom de guerre Digenis , which he adopted while in EOKA, was a Cyprus-born general in the Greek Army, leader of the EOKA guerrilla organization and EOKA B paramilitary organisation.-Early life:Georgios Grivas was born on July 5, 1898 in Trikomo, Famagusta...
had fought against the communist side during the Greek Civil War
Greek Civil War
The Greek Civil War was fought from 1946 to 1949 between the Greek governmental army, backed by the United Kingdom and United States, and the Democratic Army of Greece , the military branch of the Greek Communist Party , backed by Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Albania...
. Grivas later founded EOKA B
EOKA B
EOKA-B was a Greek Cypriot paramilitary organisation formed in 1971. It followed a right-wing nationalistic ideology and had the ultimate goal of achieving the enosis of Cyprus with Greece...
, which supported the 1974 coup d'état following his death.
About 1958, the Turkish Cypriot nationalist organization TMT
Turkish Resistance Organization
The Turkish Resistance Organisation was a Turkish Cypriot pro-taksim paramilitary organisation formed by Rauf Denktaş and Turkish military officer Rıza Vuruşkan in 1958 as a defence organisation to counter the Greek Cypriot Fighter's Organisation EOKA....
started forcing Turkish Cypriots
Turkish Cypriots
Turkish Cypriots are the ethnic Turks and members of the Turkish-speaking ethnolinguistic community of the Eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus. The term is used to refer explicitly to the indigenous Turkish Cypriots, whose Ottoman Turkish forbears colonised the island in 1571...
members of AKEL to leave. Editor of a workers newspaper Fazil Onder was killed and the head of the Turkish bureau of PEO (AKEL's trade union) Ahmet Sadi moved to the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
to save his life.
In the first presidential elections for independent Cyprus, AKEL backed Ioannis Kliridis (father of Glafkos Klerides
Glafkos Klerides
Glafcos Ioannou Clerides is a Greek-Cypriot politician and the fourth President of the Republic of Cyprus.Clerides was the eldest son of the lawyer and statesman Ioannis Clerides....
) against Makarios III
Makarios III
Makarios III , born Andreas Christodolou Mouskos , was the archbishop and primate of the autocephalous Cypriot Orthodox Church and the first President of the Republic of Cyprus ....
. The last Turkish Cypriot to be a member of the central committee of AKEL, Derviş Ali Kavazoğlu
Dervis Ali Kavazoglou
Derviş Ali Kavazoğlu , was a Turkish Cypriot member of the left wing AKEL party who was killed in 1965 by Turkish Cypriot paramilitary group TMT.-Life:...
, was killed by TMT in 1965.
In the mid 1990s the U.S. State Department estimated the party membership to be approximately 10,000 (3.25% of the working age population).
Recent
At the legislative elections on 27 May 2001Cypriot legislative election, 2001
Parliamentary elections were held in Cyprus on 27 May 2001. The result was a victory for AKEL, which won 20 of the 56 seats. Voter turnout was 91.8%.-Results:...
, the party won 34.7% of the popular vote and 20 out of 56 seats. After this election, AKEL's General Secretary, Dimitris Christofias, was elected as President of the House of Representatives
House of Representatives of Cyprus
The House of Representatives is the parliament of Cyprus. It has 59 members elected for a five year term, 56 members by proportional representation and 3 observer members representing the Maronite, Latin and Armenian minorities...
and until 2006, for first time in the History of Republic of Cyprus
Modern history of Cyprus
This article covers the modern history of Cyprus, from 1878 to the present.-Cyprus as a Protectorate:In 1878 as a result of the Cyprus Convention, the United Kingdom received as a protectorate, the island of Cyprus from the Ottoman Empire in exchange for United Kingdoms military support to the...
. Besides AKEL, he was supported by Movement for Social Democracy
Movement for Social Democracy
The Movement for Social Democracy EDEK is a Social Democratic party in Cyprus. It was originally founded by Dr Vasos Lyssaridis in 1969 as the United Democratic Union of Centre, EDEK and it was socialist party. It has gradually evolved into a social-democratic political party...
(EDEK) and Democratic Party
Democratic Party (Cyprus)
The Democratic Party is a centrist political party in Cyprus, founded in 1976 by Spyros Kyprianou. As it is reported in its founding statement , the Democratic Party proposes to the Cypriot society the political philosophy of "social centrism", which constitutes “a total of attributes and values...
(DIKO).
It is a member of the European United Left - Nordic Green Left 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...
and it is considered as moderately eurosceptic. Cyprus joined the EU in 2004. In the 2004 European election
European Parliament election, 2004 (Cyprus)
The European Parliament election of 2004 in Cyprus was the election of MEP representing Cyprus constituency for the 2004-2009 term of the European Parliament. It was part of the wider 2004 European election...
, AKEL elected 2 members; Adamos Adamou
Adamos Adamou
Adamos Adamou is a Cypriot politician and former Member of the European Parliament for the Progressive Party of Working People, sitting with the European United Left–Nordic Green Left group from 2004 to 2009. He sat on the European Parliament's Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food...
and Kyriacos Triantaphyllides
Kyriacos Triantaphyllides
Kyriacos Triantaphyllides is a Cypriot politician and Member of the European Parliament for the Progressive Party of Working People, sitting with the European United Left–Nordic Green Left group, on the European Parliament's Committee on Regional Development.He is member of the Committee on...
.
AKEL remained the largest political party on the island in the 2006 Cypriot legislative elections
Cypriot legislative election, 2006
Parliamentary elections were held in Cyprus on 21 May 2006. AKEL and the Democratic Rally both won 18 of the 56 seats. Voter turnout was 89.0%.-Results:...
, however the party lost two seats in the parliament winning 18 seats with 31.31% of the votes.
In the second round presidential election held on 24 February 2008, General Secretary of AKEL Dimitris Christofias
Dimitris Christofias
Dimitris Christofias also Demetris is a left-wing Greek Cypriot politician and the current and sixth President of the Republic of Cyprus. Christofias was the General Secretary of AKEL and is Cyprus's first, and the European Union's first and so far only, communist head of state. He won the 2008...
was elected President of the Republic of Cyprus. Official figures showed a win of 53.36% of the vote against his right-wing opponent Ioannis Kasoulidis' 46.64%.
On 21 January 2009, Andros Kyprianou was elected general secretary of the party with 54.3% in the central committee election.
In the last election for the European Parliament which took place in June 2009, AKEL managed to gain 34.9% of the votes and elected 2 out of the 6 members, Kyriacos Triantaphyllides
Kyriacos Triantaphyllides
Kyriacos Triantaphyllides is a Cypriot politician and Member of the European Parliament for the Progressive Party of Working People, sitting with the European United Left–Nordic Green Left group, on the European Parliament's Committee on Regional Development.He is member of the Committee on...
and Takis Hadjigeorgiou
Takis Hadjigeorgiou
Takis is a Cypriot politician and Member of the European Parliament for the Progressive Party of Working People, sitting with the European United Left–Nordic Green Left group, on the European Parliament's Committee of Foreign Affairs....
.
On 22 May 2011, the Cypriot legislative election took place. AKEL gained 32.67% of the votes and elected 19 out of the 56 members of parliament.
AKEL MPs
- 2011-Ongoing Adamos AdamouAdamos AdamouAdamos Adamou is a Cypriot politician and former Member of the European Parliament for the Progressive Party of Working People, sitting with the European United Left–Nordic Green Left group from 2004 to 2009. He sat on the European Parliament's Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food...
- 2007-2011 Dina Akkelidou
- 2006-2011 Aristos Aristotelous
- 2011-Ongoing Irere Charalambides
- 1991-2008 Dimitris ChristofiasDimitris ChristofiasDimitris Christofias also Demetris is a left-wing Greek Cypriot politician and the current and sixth President of the Republic of Cyprus. Christofias was the General Secretary of AKEL and is Cyprus's first, and the European Union's first and so far only, communist head of state. He won the 2008...
- 2011-Ongoing Aristos Damianou
- 2004-Ongoing Stella Demetriou Misiaouli
- 2001-Ongoing Stavros Evagorou
- 2006-Ongoing Andreas Fakontis
- 2008-Ongoing Yiannakis Gavriel
- 1991-2011 Aristophanes Georgiou
- 2011-Ongoing Giorgos K. Georgiou
- 1996-2009 Takis HadjigeorgiouTakis HadjigeorgiouTakis is a Cypriot politician and Member of the European Parliament for the Progressive Party of Working People, sitting with the European United Left–Nordic Green Left group, on the European Parliament's Committee of Foreign Affairs....
- 2003-2011 Dinos Hadjinicolas
- 2011-Ongoing Christakis Jovanis
- 1991-Ongoing Nicos Katsourides
- 2011-Ongoing Andreas Kavkalias
- 2011-Ongoing Kostas Kosta
- 2008-Ongoing Skevi Koukouma Koutra
- 2001-Ongoing Andros Kyprianou
- 2006-2011 Pambis Kiritsis
- 2001-Ongoing Yiannos Lamaris
- 1996-2003 Giorgos Lillikas
- 2011-Ongoing Giorgos Loucaides
- 2008-2011 Klavdios Mavrohannas
- 2001-2006 Eleni MavrouEleni MavrouEleni Mavrou is the mayor of Nicosia, Cyprus. She was elected in December 2006 becoming the first female mayor of Cyprus's capital. Born in Kyrenia in 1961, her family was forced to leave their house in 1974 due to the Turkish invasion of Cyprus and since then has been residing in Nicosia.-...
- 2011-Ongoing Christos Mesis
- 2006-2011 Andreas Mouskalis
- 2011-Ongoing Pambos Papageorgiou
- 1960-1988 Ezekias PapaioannouEzekias PapaioannouEzekias Papaioannou was a Greek Cypriot communist politician and Secretary General of the left wing political party of AKEL....
- 1970-1991 Georgios Savvides
- 2006-Ongoing Panikkos Stavrianos
- 1996-2011 Yannakis Thoma
AKEL MEPs
- 2004–2009 Adamos AdamouAdamos AdamouAdamos Adamou is a Cypriot politician and former Member of the European Parliament for the Progressive Party of Working People, sitting with the European United Left–Nordic Green Left group from 2004 to 2009. He sat on the European Parliament's Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food...
- 2009–Ongoing Takis HadjigeorgiouTakis HadjigeorgiouTakis is a Cypriot politician and Member of the European Parliament for the Progressive Party of Working People, sitting with the European United Left–Nordic Green Left group, on the European Parliament's Committee of Foreign Affairs....
- 2004–Ongoing Kyriacos TriantaphyllidesKyriacos TriantaphyllidesKyriacos Triantaphyllides is a Cypriot politician and Member of the European Parliament for the Progressive Party of Working People, sitting with the European United Left–Nordic Green Left group, on the European Parliament's Committee on Regional Development.He is member of the Committee on...
External links
- AKEL's website in English (Greek, English and Turkish)