The Labour Party (french: Parti Travailliste, PTr) is a
centre-left
Centre-left politics lean to the left on the left–right political spectrum but are closer to the centre than other left-wing politics. Those on the centre-left believe in working within the established systems to improve social justice. The c ...
social-democratic
Social democracy is a Political philosophy, political, Social philosophy, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocati ...
political party in
Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...
. It is one of four main Mauritian political parties along, with the
Mauritian Militant Movement (MMM), the
Militant Socialist Movement (MSM) and the
Parti Mauricien Social Démocrate (PMSD). As a member of the Labour Party-
MMM alliance, it elected four Members of Parliament in the
general election of 2014. The party is led by
Navin Ramgoolam
Navinchandra Ramgoolam, GCSK, FRCP (born 14 July 1947) is a Mauritian politician who was former Prime Minister of Mauritius from 2005 to 2014 and leader of the Labour Party (Mauritius). He was Leader of the Opposition from 1991 to 1995. He ser ...
.
Founded in 1936, the Labour Party remains the oldest major political party in the Republic and was in power from 1948 to 1982, from 1995 to 2000 and from 2005 to 2014. From 1983 to 1990 it formed part of a coalition government as a minority partner.
History
The Mauritius Labour Party was founded in 1936. Its founding principles mirrored those of the
British Labour Party
The Labour Party is a List of political parties in the United Kingdom, political party in the United Kingdom that has been described as an alliance of Social democracy, social democrats, Democratic socialism, democratic socialists and trade u ...
: to protect workers' rights and freedoms and support a higher wage rate with paid leave. The movement was encouraged by fifty-five conferences held by the party leaders throughout the country. Among other goals were resolutions to obtain suffrage for working class representation in the Legislative Council, establish a Department of Labour, prohibit
capitalist
Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, price system, priva ...
exploitation of sugar plantations and implement
socialist
Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...
values among Mauritian government agencies.
The party founders were
Maurice Curé
Maurice Curé (1886-1977) was one of the founders of the Labour Party in Mauritius in 1936.
Early life
Jules Maurice Curé was born on 3 September 1886. He completed his secondary education at Royal College Curepipe where he was a "Laureate" in ...
, Jean Prosper, Mamode Assenjee, Hassenjee Jeetoo, Barthelemy Ohsan, Samuel Barbe,
Emmanuel Anquetil
Emmanuel Anquetil (1885-1946) was a Mauritian trade unionist, and the second leader of the Mauritius Labour Party.
Early life
Emmanuel (Jean Baptiste Caromi) Anquetil was born on 18 August 1885 at the Bassin Estate, Plaine Wilhems, to Jean Volmy a ...
, Godefroy Moutia and Pandit Sahadeo. Cure served as President of the Party until he was forced to resign in 1941, at which point Anquetil took over. Anquetil died in December 1946, and
Guy Rozemont
Guy Rozemont (1915–1956) was a Mauritian trade unionist and the third leader of the Mauritius Labour Party. He fought for workers' rights and voiced against the injustice done against them. He played a crucial role in shaping the government, ...
served as leader until his death in 1956 at age forty-one.
The arrival of
Seewoosagur Ramgoolam
Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam (in traditional Hindi: Shivsagar Ram Gulam) (18 September 1900 – 15 December 1985; often referred to as ''Chacha Ramgoolam'' or ''SSR'') was a Mauritian physician, politician, and statesman. He served as the island's o ...
in 1958 marked an important step. He was in favor of an independent Mauritius within the
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...
. Following the victory of the
Independence Party
Independence Party may refer to:
Active parties Outside United States
* Independence Party (Egypt)
* Estonian Independence Party
* Independence Party (Finland)
* Independence Party (Iceland)
* Independence Party (Mauritius)
* Independence Part ...
in the
general election of 1967, a constitutional agreement was made in
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
following conferences in
Lancaster and
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. The coalition government, including the Labour Party, and the
IFB and
CAM
Calmodulin (CaM) (an abbreviation for calcium-modulated protein) is a multifunctional intermediate calcium-binding messenger protein expressed in all eukaryotic cells. It is an intracellular target of the secondary messenger Ca2+, and the bin ...
sealed the pact for Independence. The Labour Party, led by Ramgoolam, along with
Veerasamy Ringadoo
Sir Veerasamy Ringadoo, GCMG, GCSK, QC, (born Vīracāmi Riṅkāṭu; 20 October 1920 – 9 September 2000) was a Mauritian politician, minister, the sixth and last governor-general of Mauritius from 1986 to 1992, and then the first presid ...
,
Satcam Boolell
Sir Satcam Boolell GCSK, MP, QC, Kt (September 11, 1920 – March 23, 2006) was a Mauritian politician who served as member of the Legislative Assembly in Mauritius. He died on March 23, 2006 in Curepipe. He was also known as "Somduth" by his ...
and Harold Walter, in coalition with the
CAM
Calmodulin (CaM) (an abbreviation for calcium-modulated protein) is a multifunctional intermediate calcium-binding messenger protein expressed in all eukaryotic cells. It is an intracellular target of the secondary messenger Ca2+, and the bin ...
led by
Abdool Razack Mohamed
Sir Abdool Razack Mohamed ( ur, عبد الرزاق محمد; 1 August 1906 – 8 May 1978) was an Indian-born former senior Mauritian Minister in the pre and post-independence cabinet of Mauritius.
Early life and family
Abdool Razack Mohamed w ...
and the
IFB led by
Sookdeo Bissoondoyal
Sookdeo Bissoondoyal (25 December 1908 – 18 August 1977) was a Mauritian politician and one of the leading figures in the independence movement.
Early life
Sookdeo Bissoondoyal was born in Tyack in 1908. He had two brothers Basdeo and Soogr ...
, pushed a motion in the Legislative Council to provide for an independent country to be declared on 12 March 1968.
The Labour Party joined forces with
PMSD of
Gaetan Duval in 1969 to form a coalition government. In December 1976, Labour won only 28 seats out of 70, as opposed to 34 for the
Bérenger's MMM Boodhoo's PSM, but remained in power by forming another alliance with the PMSD. In 1982, however, the MMM won outright, and Ramgoolam even lost his parliamentary seat.
Anerood Jugnauth
Sir Anerood Jugnauth, GCSK, PV, (29 March 1930 – 3 June 2021) was a Mauritian politician and barrister who served both as President and Prime Minister of Mauritius. He was Member of Parliament for Piton & Riviere Du Rempart.
A central fi ...
of the
MSM became
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
. From 1983 through 1995, the Labour Party attracted little electoral support; and in 1984,
Satcam Boolell
Sir Satcam Boolell GCSK, MP, QC, Kt (September 11, 1920 – March 23, 2006) was a Mauritian politician who served as member of the Legislative Assembly in Mauritius. He died on March 23, 2006 in Curepipe. He was also known as "Somduth" by his ...
, who had replaced Ramgoolam as party leader, agreed to an electoral alliance with the
Militant Socialist Movement
The Militant Socialist Movement (french: Mouvement Socialiste Militant; abbreviated MSM) is a centre-left political party in Mauritius. It is the largest single political party in the National Assembly of Mauritius, winning 42 of the 69 seats in ...
, which had broken away from the MMM.
In 1995 Labour returned to power with MMM's support.
Navin Ramgoolam
Navinchandra Ramgoolam, GCSK, FRCP (born 14 July 1947) is a Mauritian politician who was former Prime Minister of Mauritius from 2005 to 2014 and leader of the Labour Party (Mauritius). He was Leader of the Opposition from 1991 to 1995. He ser ...
, who had taken over the party leadership in 1991, became Prime Minister. It lost the subsequent
legislative election in 2000, however: its coalition with the
Mauritian Party of Xavier-Luc Duval
The Parti Mauricien Xavier-Luc Duval (PMXD) () was a Mauritian political party which was created in 1998 but was dissolved in 2009.
History
Xavier-Luc Duval was the founder and leader of the party. He formed the PMXD soon after his expulsion from ...
secured only 36.6% of the popular vote and eight of seventy seats.
Labour returned to power in the
2005 elections as part of the
Alliance Sociale
Alliance Sociale was a left-wing political coalition in Mauritius. It consisted of the Mauritian Labour Party, Mauritian Party of Xavier-Luc Duval, The Greens, Republican Movement and the Mauritian Militant Socialist Movement.
The Alliance won ...
, which won 42 of the 70 seats. In the
general election of 2010, the party formed the majority of L'Alliance de L'Avenir, which regrouped the Mauritius Labour Party, the MSM and the PMSD. The Alliance de L'Avenir won the
2010 general election with forty-one seats against eighteen seats for the MMM-led L'Alliance du Coeur, with one seat taken by the FSM. However, on 6 August 2011 the Alliance broke down, leaving only the Mauritius Labour Party, the PMSD and the
Republican Movement (MR) in the government. The
2014 general elections saw the victory of a MSM-PMSD-ML coalition (known as "L'alliance Lepep"). Labour Party lost and voters rejected government plans to expand presidential powers. In November
2019 elections, Mauritius’ ruling Militant Socialist Movement (MSM) won more than half of the seats and Labour Party lost again, securing incumbent Prime Minister
Pravind Kumar Jugnauth a new five-year term.
Past leaders
* 1936-1941
Maurice Curé
Maurice Curé (1886-1977) was one of the founders of the Labour Party in Mauritius in 1936.
Early life
Jules Maurice Curé was born on 3 September 1886. He completed his secondary education at Royal College Curepipe where he was a "Laureate" in ...
* 1941-1946
Emmanuel Anquetil
Emmanuel Anquetil (1885-1946) was a Mauritian trade unionist, and the second leader of the Mauritius Labour Party.
Early life
Emmanuel (Jean Baptiste Caromi) Anquetil was born on 18 August 1885 at the Bassin Estate, Plaine Wilhems, to Jean Volmy a ...
* 1946-1956
Guy Rozemont
Guy Rozemont (1915–1956) was a Mauritian trade unionist and the third leader of the Mauritius Labour Party. He fought for workers' rights and voiced against the injustice done against them. He played a crucial role in shaping the government, ...
* 1956-1959
Renganaden Seeneevassen
Renganaden Seeneevassen (11 April 1910 – 18 June 1958) was a Mauritian politician and government minister.
Early life
Seeneevassen was born in Port Louis, Mauritius at a house located at the corner of Bourbon Street and Léoville L'Homme Stree ...
* 1959-1984
Seewoosagur Ramgoolam
Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam (in traditional Hindi: Shivsagar Ram Gulam) (18 September 1900 – 15 December 1985; often referred to as ''Chacha Ramgoolam'' or ''SSR'') was a Mauritian physician, politician, and statesman. He served as the island's o ...
* 1984-1991
Satcam Boolell
Sir Satcam Boolell GCSK, MP, QC, Kt (September 11, 1920 – March 23, 2006) was a Mauritian politician who served as member of the Legislative Assembly in Mauritius. He died on March 23, 2006 in Curepipe. He was also known as "Somduth" by his ...
* 1991–present
Navin Ramgoolam
Navinchandra Ramgoolam, GCSK, FRCP (born 14 July 1947) is a Mauritian politician who was former Prime Minister of Mauritius from 2005 to 2014 and leader of the Labour Party (Mauritius). He was Leader of the Opposition from 1991 to 1995. He ser ...
Parliament results
See also
*
References
{{Authority control
Labour parties
Political parties in Mauritius
Full member parties of the Socialist International
Social democratic parties in Africa
Socialist parties in Mauritius
*Main
Political parties established in 1936
1936 establishments in Mauritius