Libertas was a pan-European
political party
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...
founded by
Declan Ganley that took part in the
2009 European Parliament election
The 2009 European Parliament election was held in the 27 member states of the European Union (EU) between 4 and 7 June 2009. A total of 736 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were elected to represent some 500 million Europeans, making th ...
in several member states of the European Union. It won one seat in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
.
History
Creation
In 2008, the
Libertas Institute Limited
The Libertas Institute is a lobby group that along with others successfully campaigned for a "no" vote in the 2008 referendum in Ireland on the Treaty of Lisbon.
Mission statement
Its mission statement was "...to initiate and provoke enlight ...
, a
lobby group
In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying, which ...
founded by Declan Ganley and others, advocated a "no" vote in Lisbon I, the
2008 referendum in
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
on the
Treaty of Lisbon
The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member sta ...
. Lisbon I failed. The
referendum
A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
was held on 12 June 2008
and defeated by 53.4% to 46.6%, with a turnout of 53.1%.
[
]
Libertas held a post-referendum celebration in the Burlington Hotel in Dublin on the night of Friday, 13 June 2008.
["Europe caught in our offside trap"](_blank)
Sunday Times, 15 June 2008 Attending that celebration was Danish Eurosceptic
["Lisbon treaty to bring more power to officials-critics in Prague"](_blank)
13 January 2009, ČeskéNoviny.cz and former President of the
EUDemocrats
Europeans United for Democracy – Alliance for a Europe of Democracies, formerly known as ''EUDemocrats'', was a Eurosceptic and self-described Eurorealist alliance of parties and movements from 15 European countries. It operated as a transna ...
["Bonde calls for Referendum in 2009"](_blank)
, EUDemocrats press release, 22 July 2008 and recently retired
MEP
Jens-Peter Bonde
Jens-Peter Rossen Bonde (27 March 1948 – 4 April 2021) was a Danish politician who served as Member of the European Parliament (MEP) with the June Movement. He resigned as an MEP in May 2008. Bonde was elected to the European Parliament in the ...
,
who had been a "no" campaigner during the referendum.
Bonde was later cited as one of the main architects of the upgrading of Libertas to a
political party at European level.
["Anti-Lisbon party obtains EU recognition and funding"](_blank)
EurActive.com, 3 February 2009["Libertas set to emerge as political party as candidates unveiled"](_blank)
, 2 February 2009
On 15 July 2008, ''
RTÉ News on Two
''RTÉ News on Two'' was a late night news programme that aired each Monday to Thursday on Irish public service broadcaster RTÉ Two. The transmission time of this programme varied each night. It generally aired between 10:45pm and 11:30pm. It ...
'' covered Ganley's comments at
The Heritage Foundation
The Heritage Foundation (abbreviated to Heritage) is an American conservative think tank based in Washington, D.C. that is primarily geared toward public policy. The foundation took a leading role in the conservative movement during the presiden ...
in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, where he stated that Libertas intended running as a political party at European level. The next day Ganley confirmed that Libertas was fundraising in order to run candidates throughout Europe in the 2009 European Parliament elections.
On 20 September 2008, ''
The Irish Times
''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...
'' reported
["Eurosceptics to help Ganley if he is MEP candidate"](_blank)
''The Irish Times'', 20 September 2008 that Bonde and Czech president
Václav Klaus
Václav Klaus (; born 19 June 1941) is a Czech economist and politician who served as the second president of the Czech Republic from 2003 to 2013. From July 1992 until the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in January 1993, he served as the secon ...
pledged to help Ganley to launch Libertas. The two were later amongst the guests at a dinner hosted by Ganley at the Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin on 11 November 2008.
["Ganley's dinner party was a meeting of minds"](_blank)
Irish Times, 13 November 2008
On 30 October 2008, Ganley registered a company based in Moyne Park,
Tuam, County Galway
called the ''Libertas Party Limited''.
["Ganley registers Libertas as a European political party" from the Irish Times, 1 November 2008](_blank)
/ref> ''The Irish Times'' reported that the new party was intended to "carry on the business of a European political party". The party was publicly announced in December 2008["Libertas to seek a Euro majority"](_blank)
The Sunday Times, 13 December 2008 with ambitions to field up to 400 candidates and win seats in all 27 EU member states.
In early 2009 Libertas applied to be recognised by the European Parliament as a political party at European level. The application was briefly successful but then suspended indefinitely amidst controversy.
Pan-European expansion
Ganley then travelled around Europe to set up Libertas lists and parties for the 2009 European Parliament election
The 2009 European Parliament election was held in the 27 member states of the European Union (EU) between 4 and 7 June 2009. A total of 736 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were elected to represent some 500 million Europeans, making th ...
. In November 2008 Libertas opened its Brussels office. Libertas launched in France on 12 February 2009, the Netherlands on 15 April, followed by several other European Union member states.[Libertas website](_blank)
On 1 May 2009, Libertas held its first pan-European party convention in Rome[Libertas Party Convention, Rome](_blank)
in time for the European Parliament elections in June, when it fielded hundreds of candidates for election.
Austria
In Austria, ''Libertas'' was rejected by both Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ) and Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZÖ) as well as by the independent Hans-Peter Martin Hans-Peter Martin (born 11 August 1957) is an Austrian author and journalist and former politician who has been a Member of the European Parliament between 1999 and 2014.
Journalist and author
Born in Bregenz, Austria, Martin graduated from the ...
. Martin announced after talks and serious considerations, that he would rather remain independent,["Martin stiffs Irish ´Libertas´"](_blank)
, 5 March 2009, from Austrian Times which he successfully did. FPÖ harshly rebuffed Ganley's advances associating his activism with an alleged American conspiracy. The initially noncommital BZÖ later also declined, preferring a loose cooperation in the European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
.
Bulgaria
An electoral list called "Libertas: Free Citizens" ( bg, Либертас: Свободните граждани) was formed by some 30 national and local Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...
s. Pavel Chernev's Freedom Party that had announced to join the list was repudiated by Libertas.
However, the submitted list was later rejected by the Bulgarian electoral commission. An appeal filed by Nikolay Bliznakov was turned down by Bulgaria's Supreme Administrative Court on the grounds that the list had not proven the required deposit had not given the names of its constituent parties.
In the meantime, Bulgarian businessman Hristo Atanassov
Hristo Ivanov Atanassov (born August 29, 1965) is Bulgarian politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws th ...
founded a party under the name Libertas Bulgaria
Libertas was a pan-European political party founded by Declan Ganley that took part in the 2009 European Parliament election in several member states of the European Union. It won one seat in France.
History
Creation
In 2008, the Libertas Ins ...
which has no connection to the pan-European Libertas network.
Czech Republic
Right after the preliminary rejection of the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
, Declan Ganley, founder of the European ''Libertas.eu'', was guest of Czech President Václav Klaus
Václav Klaus (; born 19 June 1941) is a Czech economist and politician who served as the second president of the Czech Republic from 2003 to 2013. From July 1992 until the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in January 1993, he served as the secon ...
[Irish receive Czech prize for rejection of Lisbon treaty]
" 6 November 2008, Prague Monitor The Czech eStat.cz civic group had ambitions to replicate Libertas's success[Think-tank: Lisbon Treaty brings new imperialism]
4 November 2008, Prague Monitor and awarded the Irish electorate the Michal Tošovský Prize, picked up by Ganley in Prague on 5 November 2008. During his stay in Ireland after a state visit, Klaus visited Ganley in a private capacity and later attended the Shelbourne Hotel dinner given by Ganley for leading Eurosceptics.["Klaus calls himself 'EU dissident'"](_blank)
, 11 November 2008, Prague Monitor
However, Ganley's Libertas was later rejected[New right wing party to be founded. 9 December 2008, ''Prague Monitor''.]
", ''The Irish Times'', Monday 12 January 2009 by the new Czech Eurosceptic party, Petr Mach's Party of Free Citizens
A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature ...
, which was endorsed by Klaus. Additionally, the Ganley-disavowed new Czech Eurosceptic party by Vladimír Železný usurped the Libertas brand by registering itself as ''Libertas.cz''. Ganley's Libertas later claimed Železný's Libertas as an affiliate.
Greece
After Manolis Kalligiannis Manolis ( el, Μανώλης, Μανόλης) is a Greek masculine given name, which is sometimes a contraction of Emmanouil. It may refer to:
*Manolis Anagnostakis (1925–2005), Greek poet and critic at the forefront of the Marxist and existentia ...
( el, Μανώλης Καλλιγιάννης), President of the Greek Liberal Party had attended Libertas.eu's Rome convention on 1 May 2009. Manolis Kalligiannis (Μανώλης Καλλιγιάννης, sometimes rendered in English as Emmanuel Kalligiannis), Liberal Party run for the 2009 European parliament election
The 2009 European Parliament election was held in the 27 member states of the European Union (EU) between 4 and 7 June 2009. A total of 736 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were elected to represent some 500 million Europeans, making th ...
under a Libertas-affiliated list with the name "Κόμμα Φιλελευθέρων – Libertas.eu".
Hungary
In Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
, Libertas.eu searched for candidates in an Internet ad and Károly Lóránt
Károly is a very common Hungarian male given name. It is also sometimes found as a Hungarian surname. The origin of this name is the Turkic Karul, which means hawk. Nowadays Károly is considered the equivalent of English Karl or Charles (because ...
was appointed the Hungarian representative. However, as Hungarian concerns that a disorganized EU would only serve Russian strategic interests could not be dissipated, no list was fielded on behalf of Libertas.
Italy
Libertas.eu announced talks with the Pole of Autonomy The Autonomy ( it, L'Autonomia) was a heterogeneous electoral coalition of political parties in Italy, formed in the run-up to the 2009 European Parliament election in order to overcome the 4% threshold introduced in the electoral law in February 20 ...
coalition on 30 April 2009, the day before its Rome convention,["Libertas.eu and l’Autonomia in discussions to run together for European elections in Italy: Announcement to be made at the first Libertas Convention in Rome"](_blank)
undated which were confirmed the next day by Teodoro Buontempo, the president of The Right. However, in the final candidate lists submitted in May, no candidates were fielded by Libertas.eu, neither did the Pole of Autonomy list refer to Libertas.
Lithuania
Ganley arrived in Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
on Tuesday 3 March 2009 to discuss terms with prospective candidates, and explore whether to establish a new Libertas party in Lithuania or change the name of an existing Lithuanian party.["Party agitating against Lisbon Treaty seeks candidates for European Parliament elections in Lithuania"](_blank)
, 4 March 2009, fro
www.euro.lt
/ref> He did so again on Monday 24 March 2009 at a lecture at Vilnius University's Institute of International Relations and Political Science (IIRPS, or VU Tarptautinių Santykių ir Politikos Mokslų Institutas, VU TSPMI).["Į Vilnių vėl atvyksta paneuropinės partijos „Libertas“ vadovas"](_blank)
2009.03.27 18:24
balsas.lt
English translation her
/ref>
On 31 March 2008, Libertas Lithuania gave a press conference.[Libertas announces election plans for Lithuania.](_blank)
From Libertas.eu, 31 March 2009. Retrieved 31 March 2009. ["Paneuropinės partijos „Libertas“ EP rinkimų sąraše – Bielinis (papildyta)"](_blank)
31 March 2009 14:35
alfa.lt
English translation her
/ref>["Prezidento patarėjas šturmuos Europarlamentą su A.Valinsko partija (dar atnaujinta)"](_blank)
, 31 March 2009
politika.atn.lt
, English translation her
/ref> Attendees at the press conference were Ganley, lawyer , political analyst and Lithuanian presidential advisor Lauras Bielinis
Lauras Bielinis (born June 30, 1957 in Vilnius) is a Lithuanian political scientist and a professor at Vytautas Magnus University. His research topics include analysis of political text, election technologies, and political communication.
Biogr ...
, and Tautos Prisikėlimo Partija representative .
In that press conference it was announced that the Libertas Lithuanian list would be headed by Sutkiene and would include Bielinis, and that candidates from the Tautos Prisikėlimo Partija would stand with them under a common list, although Ganley and Stoma disagreed whether other parties would join them under that list. When asked if he had read the Lisbon Treaty, Bielinis demurred. When asked about Libertas Lithuania's funding, Ganley demurred.
Bielinis planned to remain in his presidential advisory post until 7 May 2009 and take unpaid leave thereafter. Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus disagreed and announced Bielinis' resignation the next day, 1 April 2009.["Л. Белинис – уже не советник президента"](_blank)
1 April 2009, fro
news.penki.lt
, English translation her
/ref>
When the lists were published, neither Bielinis nor Sutkiene were on Tautos Prisikėlimo Partija's list.["Kandidatų sąrašai"](_blank)
, fro
http://vilnius.adagio4.eu/
/ref>
, from ttp://www.vrk.lt/ http://www.vrk.lt//ref> When Libertas named their finalised candidates in May 2009, they did not include any candidates in Lithuania,["Libertas.eu :: Candidates"](_blank)
and the Tautos Prisikėlimo Partija website contained no pledge of allegiance to Libertas.
Portugal
In April 2009, the Portuguese ecologist
Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...
Earth Party
The Earth Party ( pt, Partido da Terra, ), previously called The Earth Party Movement (, abbreviated MPT, hence called ''MPT – Partido da Terra''), is a green-conservative political party in Portugal, founded on 12 August 1993. Its main poli ...
(MPT) announced in a joint press conference with Ganley that it would run for the 2009 European Parliament election
The 2009 European Parliament election was held in the 27 member states of the European Union (EU) between 4 and 7 June 2009. A total of 736 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were elected to represent some 500 million Europeans, making th ...
with an open electoral list under the banner of ''Libertas.eu''.
Slovakia
While the vice-president of the EUDemocrats
Europeans United for Democracy – Alliance for a Europe of Democracies, formerly known as ''EUDemocrats'', was a Eurosceptic and self-described Eurorealist alliance of parties and movements from 15 European countries. It operated as a transna ...
, Peter Kopecký Peter Kopecký is a Slovak romanist and politician.
Previously the Slovak Ambassador to Romania and Moldova and Rector of Comenius University in Bratislava, he is now Assistant Director of the Institute of European Studies and International Relat ...
had already announced the foundation of a ''Libertas Slovensko'' branch, he changed his mind in late February and decided to head the list of the small, but already established Agrarian and Countryside Party Agrarian Party of the Countryside, sk, Agrárna strana vidieka or ASV is a political party in Slovakia.
In 2009, the party ran for the 2009 European Parliament elections with an electoral list headed by Peter Kopecký.[Bratislava
Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approxim ...]
with leaders of the conservative parties KDS and OKS, and with Richard Sulík
Richard Sulík (; born 12 January 1968) is a Slovak politician, economist and businessman. He is the leader of the political party Freedom and Solidarity and served as Deputy Prime Minister for Economy and Minister of Economy in Government of Sl ...
, the founder of the new (Sloboda a Solidarita
Freedom and Solidarity ( sk, Sloboda a solidarita, SaS) is a liberal political party in Slovakia. Established in 2009, SaS is led by its founder and economist Richard Sulík, who designed Slovakia's flat tax system. It generally holds libertar ...
).
While Sulík, whom Ganley had already contacted before, still didn't show much interest, Vladimír Palko
Vladimír Palko (born 20 May 1957 in Čuňovo) is a Slovak politician. He is a member of the National Council of the Slovak Republic and former interior minister of Slovakia. On 12 March 2008 he established a new party called Conservative Demo ...
(KDS) agreed to bring in their joint list with OKS into the European network.
However, as the two partys didn't want to give up their distinct identities, they used ''Libertas'' only as supplementary brand.
Endgame
Libertas fielded over 600 candidates (including substitutes), but only one was elected: Phillippe de Villiers. Although Ganley himself polled a respectable number of votes, it was not enough for him to take a seat in his constituency. Ganley requested a recount of his personal vote but still lost.["Libertas leader threw toys out of election pram"](_blank)
fro
http://www.independent.ie/
/ref> Having made the promise to do so before the election, Ganley retired from politics following his defeat on 8 June 2009: the fate of the party he founded, chaired, owned and governed was left to others. However, the affiliated Libertas Institute did emerge again in the Republic of Ireland when the Irish government launched its re-run of the Lisbon Treaty, despite its defeat the previous year. The Libertas party, along with the other minority political groupings, such as the Socialist Party
Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...
and Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Gri ...
, which opposed the European Constitutional Amending Bill, were outspent and outperformed by the political proponents of the bill who won
Won may refer to:
*The Korean won from 1902–1910
*South Korean won, the currency of the Republic of Korea
*North Korean won, the currency of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea
* Won (Korean surname)
* Won (Korean given name)
* Won Buddhis ...
by a substantial majority. Declan Ganley went on to praise the Irish Prime Minister, or Taoiseach, on 'what was, politically, a masterful campaign...from a masterful politician who has made glove puppets out of the opposition' although Ganley also cited recent economic turmoil in the country as a major deciding factor in the vote.
Staff
Structure
Libertas's intended structure evolved with time. It was originally intended to be an alliance of national parties, but it was later envisaged as a single pan-European party with candidates running as individual members of Libertas. By the end of April 2009, Libertas's structure had settled into a loose association of national ''member parties'' (either new or pre-existing), with each member party adhering to a set of core principles (see below) but retaining its independence and adding on additional policies as it felt appropriate.["Libertas Eesti Erakond kinnitas Europarlamendi valimisnimekirja"](_blank)
undated page o
http://www.libertas.eu/
/ref>
For the purposes of contending the 2009 European Parliament elections, Libertas candidates ran under ''lists'' (the lists of candidates presented to voters in a European election) branded with the Libertas identity, as exemplified by the French approach. Each list was made up of some combination of the following:
*''members of member parties''
*''members of affiliate parties'' (parties that were not members of Libertas.eu but cooperated with it electorally)
*''individual members'' (people who chose to join Libertas.eu as individuals).
New national member parties established by Libertas had names in the "Libertas X" format, e.g. "Libertas Sweden
Libertas Sweden ( sv, Libertas Sverige) is a political party in Sweden. It intended to contend the 2009 European Parliament elections under a common banner with Declan Ganley's Libertas.eu.
History
On 26 February 2009, Libertas announced that it ...
"["Hjälp Libertas bli ett registrerat parti"](_blank)
26 February 2009 from th
Libertas website
/ref> (except in the UK).[The UK could not adopt a "Libertas X" format name because that name had already been registered with the Electoral Commission. The Libertas.eu member parties in the UK are "Pro-Democracy: Libertas.eu" and "Libertas Northern Ireland"] Pre-existing national member parties were asked to change their names to include the word "Libertas" in the title. Members of member parties were members of Libertas automatically unless they chose otherwise.
Affiliate parties retained their original names.
7 January 2009, from ttp://www.tvp.info/ www.tvp.info English translation her
/ref>["Nytt nejparti ställer upp i EU-valet"](_blank)
, 3 March 2009, fro
dn.se
English translation her
/ref> Members of affiliate parties were not members of Libertas unless they chose to join as individuals.
Position
Ganley stated that following a group conference in Rome in March 2009, (later postponed to 1 May 2009)["Nowa partia nie będzie mieć polskiego prezesa"](_blank)
ONET.pl, 20 March 2009, English translation her
/ref> Libertas would publish a policy document or party manifesto. covering areas such as democracy, the economy, small businesses, the recession, and EU institution accountability.["Ganley: Germany has 'enormous potential' for Libertas"](_blank)
EurActiv.com, 11 February 2009
No formal manifesto was published at the political convention, convention.["Flags and slogans mark Libertas congress in Rome"](_blank)
HONOR MAHONY, 1 May 2009
http://euobserver.com/
/ref> Instead, Libertas's core principles were displayed on its website["Libertas.eu policies"](_blank)
fro
http://www.libertas.eu/
/ref> and reiterated at its convention, namely accountability, transparency, democracy and rejection of the Lisbon Treaty. Each member party and individual member was obliged to adhere to these core principles, although they could add additional policies as they felt appropriate. Affiliate parties were not obliged to so adhere.
The core principles were given concrete form when Libertas published the following policies on its website:["Libertas.eu: Policies"](_blank)
fro
http://libertas.eu/
* The powers of legislative initiative, inspection and decision should be reserved to elected officials.
* Expenses of the European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
and European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...
to be published.
* European Commission to identify €10 billion in savings for financial year
A fiscal year (or financial year, or sometimes budget year) is used in government accounting, which varies between countries, and for budget purposes. It is also used for financial reporting by businesses and other organizations. Laws in many j ...
2010/11.
* Any given Constitution Treaty to be ratified by referendums in each member state.
* Meetings in Brussels[Whether the term "Brussels" was used here to refer to the seat of the European Commission in Brussels, or to the seat of the European Parliament in Brussels, or to the seat of the Council of the European Union in Brussels, or to all of these, was not specified.] to be reduced by 50%.
Membership
Member parties
Member parties were members of Libertas.eu. Members of member parties were automatically members of Libertas.eu unless they chose otherwise.
:*Libertas Estonia
Libertas Estonia ( et, Libertas Eesti Erakond, LEE) was a political party in Estonia. It intended to contend the 2009 European Parliament elections under a common banner with Libertas.eu.
Estonian Blue Party (1994–2001)
The Estonian Blue Party ...
:*Libertas Germany
Libertas Germany (german: Libertas Partei Deutschland) is a eurosceptic German political party founded in 2009. It is a member of the pan-European movement Libertas.eu established to impede the Lisbon Treaty.
In March 2009 the foundation of ''Libe ...
:*Libertas Ireland
Libertas Ireland was a political party in Ireland. It contended the 2009 European Parliament elections in Ireland under a common banner with Declan Ganley's Libertas.eu. It shared a headquarters with Libertas.euThCRO entry for the Libertas P ...
:*Libertas Malta
Libertas Malta was a political party in Malta set up to contest the 2009 European Parliament elections under a common banner with Libertas.eu. Its only candidate Mary Gauci failed to be elected and the party has been inactive since.
History
Plans ...
:*Libertas Netherlands
Libertas Netherlands ( nl, Libertas Nederland) is a political party in the Netherlands. It contended the 2009 European Parliament elections under a common banner with Libertas Party Limited, the organization founded by Declan Ganley.
History
Ganl ...
:*Libertas Poland
Libertas Poland (''Libertas Polska'', LP) was a political party in Poland. It contended the 2009 European Parliament elections under a common banner with Libertas Party Limited, the organization founded by Declan Ganley.
Pawlowiec's Lewica i ...
:*Libertas Sweden
Libertas Sweden ( sv, Libertas Sverige) is a political party in Sweden. It intended to contend the 2009 European Parliament elections under a common banner with Declan Ganley's Libertas.eu.
History
On 26 February 2009, Libertas announced that it ...
:*Libertas United Kingdom Libertas UK may refer to three political parties in the United Kingdom: two are regional affiliates of Declan Ganley's Libertas Party Limited, one of which, Pro-Democracy: Libertas.eu, contended the 2009 European Parliament elections under a common ...
:*Libertas Latvia
Libertas (Latin for 'liberty' or 'freedom', ) is the Roman goddess and personification of liberty. She became a politicised figure in the Late Republic, featured on coins supporting the populares faction, and later those of the assassins of Jul ...
Affiliate parties
Affiliate parties were not members of Libertas.eu but cooperated with it electorally under Libertas lists. Members of affiliate parties were not members of Libertas.eu unless they chose to join as individuals.
:* Svoboda (''Свобода'', SVOBODA)
:*Libertas.cz
Libertas.cz is a eurosceptic party in the Czech Republic that was founded in 2009 by the former media entrepreneur and MEP Vladimír Železný. After some controversies it became an associate of Declan Ganley's pan-European alliance Libertas.eu.
...
["MPs who voted against Czech government join Libertas list for European Parliament elections"](_blank)
1 April 2009
libertas.eu
/ref>
:* Independent Democrats[ Jmenné seznamy a přehledy > Kandidáti dle politické příslušnosti > Strana Libertas"">"Volby.cz Evropský parlament 2009 > Jmenné seznamy a přehledy > Kandidáti dle politické příslušnosti > Strana Libertas"](_blank)
fro
http://volby.cz/
/ref> (''Nezávislí demokraté'', NEZDEM)
:* Movement for France["Européennes : Frédéric Nihous et Philippe de Villiers feront campagne commune"](_blank)
La Tribune, 4 March 2009, English translation her
/ref>["Villiers et Nihous pour un «protectionnisme européen»"](_blank)
Le Figaro
9 March 2009 (''Mouvement pour la France'', MPF)
:*Hunting, Fishing, Nature, Tradition
The Rurality Movement (, LMR), formerly Hunting, Fishing, Nature and Traditions (french: Chasse, pêche, nature et traditions; ; CPNT, ) is an agrarianist political party in France that aims to defend the traditional values of rural France. It ...
(''Chasse, Pêche, Nature, Traditions'', CPNT)
:* Party of Work, Nature and Family - Christians for Germany["Wahlbewerber AUF"](_blank)
fro
http://www.bundeswahlleiter.de
/ref>["AUF-Partei und Libertas schließen Bündnis für EU-Wahlen im Juni"](_blank)
, 12 May 2009, fro
http://www.auf-partei.de/
["Germany: AUF party and Libertas form alliance for the EU elections"](_blank)
fro
http://www.libertas.eu
/ref> (''Partei für Arbeit, Umwelt und Familie – Christen für Deutschland'', AUF)
:* Liberal Party["ΣΤΙΣ ΕΥΡΩΕΚΛΟΓΕΣ ΤΗΣ 7 ΙΟΥΝΗ 2009"](_blank)
, fro
Liberal Party
(''Komma Fileleftheron'', KF)
:*Forward Poland
Polish Social Movement Forward, more usually rendered as Forward Poland (''Naprzód Polsko'', NP) was a national-conservative and Eurosceptic political party in Poland. It contended the 2009 European Parliament elections under a common banner w ...
["Libertas allies with fringe right wing in Poland"](_blank)
fro
http://www.polskieradio.pl
(''Naprzód Polsko'', NP)
:* Polish People's Party "Piast" (''Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe "Piast"'', PSL Piast)
:*Party of Regions
The Party of Regions ( uk, Партія регіонів, Partiia rehioniv, ; russian: Партия регионов, Partiya regionov) was a pro-Russian political party in Ukraine formed in late 1997 that then grew to be the biggest party of Uk ...
["Lubelszczyzna - desant o. Rydzyka"](_blank)
Gazeta Wyborcza, 26 March 2009, English translation her
/ref>["Borysiuk otworzy listę Libertas na Lubelszczyźnie?"](_blank)
2009-03-28
http://www.radio.lublin.pl/
/ref>
undated (18 April 2009?)
http://wiadomosci.wp.pl/
/ref> (''Partia Regionów'', PR)
:*League of Polish Families
The League of Polish Families (Polish: ''Liga Polskich Rodzin'', LPR) is a conservative political party in Poland, with many far-right elements in the past. The party's original ideology was that of the National Democracy movement which was heade ...
["Do PE startują Libertas, LPR, UPR, Prawica i PDP"](_blank)
29 March 2009
newsweek.pl
English translation her
/ref> (''Liga Polskich Rodzin'', LPR)
:* :pl:Organizacja Narodu Polskiego - Liga Polska, Organization of the Polish Nation - League of Poland["LIBERTAS - największe oszustwo wyborcze w wyborach do Parlamentu Europejskiego 2009 r."](_blank)
["Wojciech Wierzejski komentuje rejestrację list: Hasłem naszym Wolność będzie i Ojczyzna nasza!"](_blank)
(''Organizacja Narodu Polskiego - Liga Polska'', ONP-LP)
:* Christian-National Union["Libertas list candidates in constituency number 8"](_blank)
(''Zjednoczenie Chrześcijańsko-Narodowe'', ZChN)
:*Earth Party
The Earth Party ( pt, Partido da Terra, ), previously called The Earth Party Movement (, abbreviated MPT, hence called ''MPT – Partido da Terra''), is a green-conservative political party in Portugal, founded on 12 August 1993. Its main poli ...
(''Partido da Terra'', PT), formerly the Movement the Earth Party (''Movimento Partido da Terra'', MPT)
:*KDS-OKS coalition["Libertas announces alliance in Slovakia"](_blank)
fro
http://www.libertas.eu/
/ref>
::*Civic Conservative Party
The Civic Conservative Party ( sk, Občianska konzervatívna strana, OKS) is a centre-right liberal conservative political party in Slovakia. It has two seats in the National Council, following the 2020 election. It has also representation at ...
(''Občianska Konzervatívna Strana'', OKS)
::* Conservative Democrats of Slovakia (''Konzervatívni Demokrati Slovenska'', KDS)
:*Agrarian and Countryside Party Agrarian Party of the Countryside, sk, Agrárna strana vidieka or ASV is a political party in Slovakia.
In 2009, the party ran for the 2009 European Parliament elections with an electoral list headed by Peter Kopecký.[Citizens – Party of the Citizenry
Citizens ( es, link=no, Ciudadanos ; ca, link=no, Ciutadans ; eu, link=no, Hiritarrak; gl, link=no, Cidadáns; shortened as Cs—C's until January 2017), officially Citizens–Party of the Citizenry (''Ciudadanos–Partido de la Ciudadanía'') ...]
["Miguel Durán, cabeza de lista de la coalición Ciudadanos-Libertas"](_blank)
15 April 2009, http://www.libertaddigital.com, English translation her
/ref> (''Ciudadanos-Partido de la Ciudadanía'', C)
:* Social Democratic Party (Spain), Social Democratic Party (''Partido Social Demócrata'', PSD)
:* People's Union of Salamanca["La elección de Miguel Durán como candidato desata una nueva crisis en C´s"](_blank)
20 April 2009 22:10, http://www.elconfidencial.com, English translation her
/ref> (''Unión del Pueblo Salmantino'', UPSa)
Individual members
Individual members were people who chose to join Libertas.eu as individuals. People with no national party membership who were running under a Libertas list were automatically individual members.
2009 European Parliament elections
''Libertas'' didn't manage to present electoral lists in Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
, Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
, Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
, Cyprus
Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...
, Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
, Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
, Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
, Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, Luxembourg
Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
, Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
, Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
and Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
. In the other European countries, the candidates on ''Libertas.eus lists were either members of member parties, members of affiliate parties, or individual members.
Commonality with other organizations
Libertas was registered at Moyne Park, Tuam, County Galway along with other organisations associated with Libertas and/or Declan Ganley.["Self Serving US Military Agenda of Messrs Ganley and McEvaddy"](_blank)
FineGael.ie Press Release, 25 April 2008
Irish Independent, 7 June 2008["Opening of September II plenary session: Minute of silence for victim of ETA bombing / Funding of the No campaign in Ireland"](_blank)
European Parliament press release, 22 September 2008
Jamie Smyth, ''The Irish Times'', 23 September 2008
Washington Post, 12 June 2008
''The Irish Times'', 31 May 2008 A list of organizations associated with Libertas.eu and/or Declan Ganley is given here
Here is an adverb that means "in, on, or at this place". It may also refer to:
Software
* Here Technologies, a mapping company
* Here WeGo (formerly Here Maps), a mobile app and map website by Here
Television
* Here TV (formerly "here!"), a TV ...
.
See also
*Jens-Peter Bonde
Jens-Peter Rossen Bonde (27 March 1948 – 4 April 2021) was a Danish politician who served as Member of the European Parliament (MEP) with the June Movement. He resigned as an MEP in May 2008. Bonde was elected to the European Parliament in the ...
* Declan Ganley
*2009 European Parliament election
The 2009 European Parliament election was held in the 27 member states of the European Union (EU) between 4 and 7 June 2009. A total of 736 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were elected to represent some 500 million Europeans, making th ...
*Treaty of Lisbon
The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member sta ...
Notes
References
External links
Libertas.eu (official website)
Libertas.eu (official YouTube channel)
Libertas.eu (Facebook)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Libertas.Eu
Political parties established in 2008
Eurosceptic parties
Political parties disestablished in 2010
Defunct political parties in Europe
2008 establishments in the European Union
2010 disestablishments in the European Union