United Left (East Germany)
Encyclopedia
The United Left was an alliance of several leftist opposition groupings in the German Democratic Republic
. Among them were Christian Socialists, Trotskyists
, adherents of the Titoistic
system of self-management
and some SED
-members, who were critical of their party's policy. It was founded on October 2, 1989, only a few weeks before the fall of the Berlin Wall
. The United Left demanded a reformation of socialism
. Its goal was to create a free and democratic GDR. At the end of the year 1989 the party had 1500 members with focal points in Berlin
and Halle
. In contrast to other East German opposition groups, the United Left was less supported by Western governments and parties. There were also organizational problems and internal controversies between the different ideological tendencies within the United Left. Those are the main reasons the party never gained much attention in politics.
At the first free elections in the GDR in March 1990 the United Left started together with "Die Nelken" ("The Carnations"), a Marxist party. The electoral alliance with the name "Aktionsbündnis Vereinigte Linke" gained 0.18% of the votes and one seat in the Volkskammer
. The United Left fell apart in the years after German reunification
, but some members were elected into the Bundestag
through a party-list by the PDS or The Greens.
German Democratic Republic
The German Democratic Republic , informally called East Germany by West Germany and other countries, was a socialist state established in 1949 in the Soviet zone of occupied Germany, including East Berlin of the Allied-occupied capital city...
. Among them were Christian Socialists, Trotskyists
Trotskyism
Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. Trotsky considered himself an orthodox Marxist and Bolshevik-Leninist, arguing for the establishment of a vanguard party of the working-class...
, adherents of the Titoistic
Titoism
Titoism is a variant of Marxism–Leninism named after Josip Broz Tito, leader of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, primarily used to describe the specific socialist system built in Yugoslavia after its refusal of the 1948 Resolution of the Cominform, when the Communist Party of...
system of self-management
Workers' self-management
Worker self-management is a form of workplace decision-making in which the workers themselves agree on choices instead of an owner or traditional supervisor telling workers what to do, how to do it and where to do it...
and some SED
Socialist Unity Party of Germany
The Socialist Unity Party of Germany was the governing party of the German Democratic Republic from its formation on 7 October 1949 until the elections of March 1990. The SED was a communist political party with a Marxist-Leninist ideology...
-members, who were critical of their party's policy. It was founded on October 2, 1989, only a few weeks before the fall of the Berlin Wall
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin...
. The United Left demanded a reformation of socialism
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
. Its goal was to create a free and democratic GDR. At the end of the year 1989 the party had 1500 members with focal points in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
and Halle
Halle, Saxony-Anhalt
Halle is the largest city in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is also called Halle an der Saale in order to distinguish it from the town of Halle in North Rhine-Westphalia...
. In contrast to other East German opposition groups, the United Left was less supported by Western governments and parties. There were also organizational problems and internal controversies between the different ideological tendencies within the United Left. Those are the main reasons the party never gained much attention in politics.
At the first free elections in the GDR in March 1990 the United Left started together with "Die Nelken" ("The Carnations"), a Marxist party. The electoral alliance with the name "Aktionsbündnis Vereinigte Linke" gained 0.18% of the votes and one seat in the Volkskammer
Volkskammer
The People's Chamber was the unicameral legislature of the German Democratic Republic . From its founding in 1949 until the first free elections on 18 March 1990, all members of the Volkskammer were elected on a slate controlled by the Socialist Unity Party of Germany , called the National Front...
. The United Left fell apart in the years after German reunification
German reunification
German reunification was the process in 1990 in which the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany , and when Berlin reunited into a single city, as provided by its then Grundgesetz constitution Article 23. The start of this process is commonly referred by Germans as die...
, but some members were elected into the Bundestag
Bundestag
The Bundestag is a federal legislative body in Germany. In practice Germany is governed by a bicameral legislature, of which the Bundestag serves as the lower house and the Bundesrat the upper house. The Bundestag is established by the German Basic Law of 1949, as the successor to the earlier...
through a party-list by the PDS or The Greens.