Union for South Tyrol
Encyclopedia
The Citizens' Union is a separatist
, nationalist
and conservative
political party active in South Tyrol
committed to the German-speaking minority
and its right to self-determination
. Its current leader is Andreas Pöder.
The BU, once a member of the European Free Alliance
, was expelled from that organization in 2008 after it refused to condemn islamophobia
and insisted upon the defense of "European Christian values".
of Eva Klotz (2.3% in the 1988 provincial election
), the liberal-conservative
Freedom Party of South Tyrol
led by Gerold Meraner and right-wing splinters from the South Tyrolean People's Party
led by Alfons Benedikter
.
In the 1993 provincial election
the party won 4.8% of the vote and gained 2 seats in the Provincial Council, one for Klotz and one for Benedikter. In the 1996 general election
the party had its best result ever (7.7% for party list and 19.2% in single-seat constituencies), because the South Tyrolean People's Party
had formed an alliance with some Italian parties.
In the 1998 provincial election
the UfS won 5.5% and Andreas Pöder, party secretary since 1994, was elected for the first time to the Council, along with Klotz. This was a turning point for the party as Pöder started to gain influence and power within the party, which was unofficially led by Klotz.
In the 2003 provincial election, the UfS won 6.8% of the vote and gained 2 seats in the Provincial Council. After a power struggle, especially with Pöder, who was elected party president with 76 votes in favour and 70 against in a party congress, in May 2007 the historic party leader Klotz left the party and founded a new strict separatist
movement named South Tyrolean Freedom
(STF).
In the 2008 general election
, severely damaged by the split and by the competition of The Libertarians
(9.4%), the UfS gained only 4.2% of the vote in the Province. In the 2008 provincial election the party got only 2.3% of the vote and one elect in the Provincial Council, while STF and The Libertarians won the 14.3% and the 4.9% of the vote, respectively.
It renamed itself from UfS to BU on 12 May 2011.
.
If The Libertarians
have for a long-time a pact with the Freedom Party of Austria
, although the relations between the two parties have become much more colder in the last years, Union for South Tyrol has formed an alliance with the Alliance for the Future of Austria
.
Separatism
Separatism is the advocacy of a state of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, governmental or gender separation from the larger group. While it often refers to full political secession, separatist groups may seek nothing more than greater autonomy...
, nationalist
Nationalism
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...
and conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
political party active in South Tyrol
South Tyrol
South Tyrol , also known by its Italian name Alto Adige, is an autonomous province in northern Italy. It is one of the two autonomous provinces that make up the autonomous region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. The province has an area of and a total population of more than 500,000 inhabitants...
committed to the German-speaking minority
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
and its right to self-determination
Self-determination
Self-determination is the principle in international law that nations have the right to freely choose their sovereignty and international political status with no external compulsion or external interference...
. Its current leader is Andreas Pöder.
The BU, once a member of the European Free Alliance
European Free Alliance
The European Free Alliance is a European political party. It consists of various national-level political parties in Europe which advocate either full political independence , or some form of devolution or self-governance for their country or region...
, was expelled from that organization in 2008 after it refused to condemn islamophobia
Islamophobia
Islamophobia describes prejudice against, hatred or irrational fear of Islam or MuslimsThe term dates back to the late 1980s or early 1990s, but came into common usage after the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States....
and insisted upon the defense of "European Christian values".
History
The UfS was founded on 2 October 1989 by the merger of the nationalist South Tyrolean Homeland FederationSouth Tyrolean Homeland Federation
The South Tyrolean Homeland Federation was a nationalist political party active in South Tyrol.It was launched in 1983 as Election Association of Homeland Federation and won 4.2% in the 1983 general election and 2.6% in the 1983 provincial election, enough for granting Eva Klotz a seat in the...
of Eva Klotz (2.3% in the 1988 provincial election
Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol regional election, 1988
The Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol regional election of 1988 took place on 20 November 1988.-Regional totals:Source: -Trentino:Source: -South Tyrol:Source:...
), the liberal-conservative
Liberal conservatism
Liberal conservatism also known as progressive conservatism is a variant of political conservatism which incorporates liberal elements. As "conservatism" and "liberalism" have had different meanings over time and across countries, the term "liberal conservatism" has been used in quite different...
Freedom Party of South Tyrol
Freedom Party of South Tyrol
The Freedom Party of South Tyrol was a regionalist liberal-conservative and national-liberal political party active in South Tyrol.It was launched in 1988 as the continuation of the Party of Independents by Gerold Meraner. In the 1988 provincial election FPS took 1.4% and got Meraner elected to...
led by Gerold Meraner and right-wing splinters from the South Tyrolean People's Party
South Tyrolean People's Party
The South Tyrolean People's Party is a regionalist Christian democratic political party active in the Italian province of South Tyrol.Founded in 1945, the SVP represents the German-speaking population of the province, as well as Ladin speakers. Since the first election of the Provincial Council in...
led by Alfons Benedikter
Alfons Benedikter
Alfons Benedikter was one of the most renowned politicians in South Tyrol. For 50 years he has been a member of the provincial parliament and for 40 years he acted as a member of the regional government of the region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol and later the provincial government of South Tyrol...
.
In the 1993 provincial election
Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol regional election, 1993
The Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol regional election of 1993 took place on 21 November 1993.The South Tyrolean People's Party and Christian Democracy resulted the two most voted parties at the regional level. However while thje SVP retained its outright majority in South Tyrol, the DC was the real...
the party won 4.8% of the vote and gained 2 seats in the Provincial Council, one for Klotz and one for Benedikter. In the 1996 general election
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 party had its best result ever (7.7% for party list and 19.2% in single-seat constituencies), because the South Tyrolean People's Party
South Tyrolean People's Party
The South Tyrolean People's Party is a regionalist Christian democratic political party active in the Italian province of South Tyrol.Founded in 1945, the SVP represents the German-speaking population of the province, as well as Ladin speakers. Since the first election of the Provincial Council in...
had formed an alliance with some Italian parties.
In the 1998 provincial election
Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol regional election, 1998
The Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol regional election of 1998 took place on 22 November 1998.The South Tyrolean People's Party and the Daisy Civic List resulted the two most voted parties at the regional level. The SVP retained its outright majority in South Tyrol, while the Civica became the...
the UfS won 5.5% and Andreas Pöder, party secretary since 1994, was elected for the first time to the Council, along with Klotz. This was a turning point for the party as Pöder started to gain influence and power within the party, which was unofficially led by Klotz.
In the 2003 provincial election, the UfS won 6.8% of the vote and gained 2 seats in the Provincial Council. After a power struggle, especially with Pöder, who was elected party president with 76 votes in favour and 70 against in a party congress, in May 2007 the historic party leader Klotz left the party and founded a new strict separatist
Separatism
Separatism is the advocacy of a state of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, governmental or gender separation from the larger group. While it often refers to full political secession, separatist groups may seek nothing more than greater autonomy...
movement named South Tyrolean Freedom
South Tyrolean Freedom
The South Tyrolean Freedom is a separatist German-speaking political party active in South Tyrol committed to the reunification of South Tyrol with the state of Tyrol within Austria....
(STF).
In the 2008 general election
Italian general election, 2008 (Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol)
The Italian general election of 2008 took place on 13 -14 April 2008.In the province of Trentino the centre-right came first thanks to the strong showing of Lega Nord, while in South Tyrol the South Tyrolean People's Party was confirmed as the largest party, but lost many votes to its right-wing...
, severely damaged by the split and by the competition of The Libertarians
The Libertarians
The Libertarians is a liberal and nationalist political party in the Italian province of South Tyrol committed to the German-speaking minority....
(9.4%), the UfS gained only 4.2% of the vote in the Province. In the 2008 provincial election the party got only 2.3% of the vote and one elect in the Provincial Council, while STF and The Libertarians won the 14.3% and the 4.9% of the vote, respectively.
It renamed itself from UfS to BU on 12 May 2011.
Ideology
Since the exit of Eva Klotz, the UfS has tried to renew its image and to present itself as a centrist-conservative party. The party program includes defense of family values, protection of the environment and a moderately liberal economic policy, anlong with the historic goal of separating South Tyrol from Italy in order to re-unify it with the Austrian state of TyrolTyrol (state)
Tyrol is a state or Bundesland, located in the west of Austria. It comprises the Austrian part of the historical region of Tyrol.The state is split into two parts–called North Tyrol and East Tyrol–by a -wide strip of land where the state of Salzburg borders directly on the Italian province of...
.
If The Libertarians
The Libertarians
The Libertarians is a liberal and nationalist political party in the Italian province of South Tyrol committed to the German-speaking minority....
have for a long-time a pact with the Freedom Party of Austria
Freedom Party of Austria
The Freedom Party of Austria is a political party in Austria. Ideologically, the party is a direct descendant of the German national liberal camp, which dates back to the 1848 revolutions. The FPÖ itself was founded in 1956 as the successor to the short-lived Federation of Independents , which had...
, although the relations between the two parties have become much more colder in the last years, Union for South Tyrol has formed an alliance with the Alliance for the Future of Austria
Alliance for the Future of Austria
The Alliance for the Future of Austria , abbreviated to BZÖ, is a conservative liberal political party in Austria. The party has sixteen seats in the National Council....
.
Popular support
The electoral results of the UfS in the Province of Bolzano since 1992 are shown in the table below.| 1992 general | 1993 provinc. | 1994 general | 1994 European | 1996 general | 1998 provinc. | 1999 European | 2001 general | 2003 provinc. | 2004 European | 2006 general | 2008 general | 2008 provinc. | 2009 European |
| 3.7 | 4.8 | ||||||||||||
| 4.6 | 7.7 | 5.5 | 6.4 | ||||||||||
| 6.8 | 6.3 | ||||||||||||
| 4.2 | 2.3 | ||||||||||||
Leadership
- President/Secretary: Alfons BenedikterAlfons BenedikterAlfons Benedikter was one of the most renowned politicians in South Tyrol. For 50 years he has been a member of the provincial parliament and for 40 years he acted as a member of the regional government of the region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol and later the provincial government of South Tyrol...
(1989–1991), Martin Wenter (1991–1993), Karl Augusten (1993–1994), Andreas Pöder (1994–present)