The Association for the Advancement of Civil Rights (AACR) was a political party in

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

History

The AACR was established in 1942 by Joshua Hassan and

Albert Risso Albert J. Risso, GMH was a Gibraltarian trade unionist and politician. He was the first president of the Association for the Advancement of Civil Rights (AACR) in Gibraltar.Constantine, p. 346 Career Albert Risso was one of the first political ...

, and sought to protect the interests of families evacuated during World War II.Vincent E McHale (1983) ''Political parties of Europe'', Greenwood Press, p323 At the time, most of the Gibraltar population had been evacuated and only a small number of Gibraltarians remained on The Rock. Consequently, the colony was crowded with British soldiers, sailors and airmen. They received wide support from the Governor, General Mason-MacFarlane (later a Labour MP in the United Kingdom), who allowed them to fulfil the representative role that the Committee of the Exchange and the Commercial Library used to fill. The Governor also left the AACR with the responsibility of managing the leave scheme that allowed the Gibraltarians who remained on the Rock to visit their families in Britain. They also took a leading role in the repatriation of the Gibraltarian evacuees. In 1945 the AACR became a political party, advocating improved pay and working conditions and the introduction of a democratic constitution. In August 1945, the first City Council elections since the war were held and the AACR won all the elected seats in the Council, with Hassan became its chairman. In the first elections to the new legislature in 1950, it won three of the five seats and was able to form a government.McHale, pp326–327 The party won successive elections in

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito i ...

and

1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim ...

. The 1959 elections saw it win only three of the seven seats, but with the other four held by independents, it was able to continue in government. This was repeated after the 1964 elections, but the results of the 1969 elections (when it added "Gibraltar Labour Party" to its name) saw two new parties, the Integration with Britain Party and

Isola Group The Isola Group was a right-wing political faction in Gibraltar in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It was led by brothers Peter Isola and William Isola, and was deemed to represent the business community.Vincent E McHale (1983) ''Political part ...

win eight of the 15 seats between them, allowing them to form a government. After a member of the Isola Group defected in 1972, early elections were called, which saw the AACR win eight of the 15 seats and return to government. The party won subsequent elections in

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

and

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – ...

. After victory in the

1984 elections The following elections occurred in the year 1984. Africa * 1984 Beninese parliamentary election * 1984 Botswana general election * 1984 Burundian presidential election * 1984 Cameroonian presidential election * 1984 Comorian presidential electi ...

Hassan resigned without completing his term as Chief Minister in 1987 after an

agreement Agreement may refer to: Agreements between people and organizations * Gentlemen's agreement, not enforceable by law * Trade agreement, between countries * Consensus, a decision-making process * Contract, enforceable in a court of law ** Meeting o ...

on the shared use of Gibraltar Airport was signed by Spain and the United Kingdom, citing personal reasons. He was succeeded by the then Deputy Chief Minister,

Adolfo Canepa Adolfo John Canepa, CMG, OBE, GMH (born 17 December 1940) is a Gibraltarian politician. He has dedicated most of his life to politics and the development of Gibraltar, having served both as Leader of the Opposition and as Chief Minister of Gib ...

. However, Canepa lost the 1988 election to

Joe Bossano Sir Joseph John Bossano (born 10 June 1939) is a Gibraltarian politician who served as Chief Minister of Gibraltar from 1988 to 1996 and Leader of the Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party from 1978 to 2011. He served as Leader of the Opposition ...

of the

Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party The Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party (GSLP) is a social-democratic political party in Gibraltar. The GSLP is the oldest surviving active political party in Gibraltar. Its roots are based in the trade union movement, as its founder and former lea ...

(GSLP), winning only seven seats and forming the opposition in 1988. In

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

they failed to return to power and were effectively dissolved thereafter. The last election with an AACR candidate was the 1998 by-election following the death of

Robert Mor The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

of the GLSP. The AACR candidate

John Piris John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

received only 337 votes and was defeated by Joseph Garcia of the Liberal Party of Gibraltar (LPG), backed by the GSLP.

Ideology

Until the 1960s the party was linked with the

Gibraltar Confederation of Labour The Gibraltar Confederation of Labour was a trade union established in the British and at the time Crown colony of Gibraltar in 1947, and promoted by the Association for the Advancement of Civil Rights (AACR). Its first president was Albert Risso ...

, which it had founded. However, the links with unions began to weaken thereafter. The party had a pragmatic and progressive policy platform, and aimed to strengthen relations with Britain, but also give the territory freedom. This was reflected in its campaign slogan "With Britain, but not under Britain".McHale, p324 Like all other major Gibraltar political parties, it opposed transfer of sovereignty over Gibraltar from the United Kingdom to Spain.

Gibraltar Award

On 10 December 2007 the

Self Determination for Gibraltar Group The self is an individual as the object of that individual’s own reflective consciousness. Since the ''self'' is a reference by a subject to the same subject, this reference is necessarily subjective. The sense of having a self—or ''selfhood ...

awarded the founding fathers of the AACR with the

Gibraltar Award ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song = "Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gibra ...

in recognition of their contribution to the political development, democratisation and emancipation of Gibraltar. The award was presented to

, the last AACR Chief Minister to hold office, in

John Mackintosh Square John Mackintosh Square (colloquially The Piazza) is a main square in the British overseas territory of Gibraltar. It has been the centre of city life since the 14th century and takes its name from John Mackintosh, a local philanthropist. Notab ...

on the 59th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.The Gibraltar Chronicle - Fourth SDGG Gibraltar Award for the Founding Fathers of the AACR
/ref>

References

External links

* {{Gibraltar political parties Civic nationalism Gibraltarian nationalism Defunct political parties in Gibraltar Political parties established in 1942 1942 establishments in Gibraltar