Alliance for the Democratization of the Army

Alliance for the Democratization of the Army

The Alliance for the Democratization of the Army (in Dutch: "Verbond tot Democratisering der Weermacht", VDB) was a Dutch military-interest political party. The VDW played only a marginal role in Dutch politics.

Party History

The VDW was founded as a political arm of the officers' union "Ons Belang" (Our Interest). The 1918 elections were the first election in the Netherlands which used a system of proportional representation. With only 7000 votes (0.5% of the votes) the VDW one seat, as did several other one or two person parties. After the elections the election law became more restrictive. Between 1918 and 1921 the VDW cooperated in the neutral parliamentary party, with other four one or two seat parties, namely the Peasants' League, the Economic League, the Middle Class Party and the Neutral Party. The parliamentary party was led by former minister Willem Treub. The alliance ended in 1921 when the Economic League, the Middle Class Party and the Neutral Party all merged into the Liberal State Party, together with two larger liberal parties. The VDW did not take part in the 1922 election.

Ideology & Issues

The VDW was a typical special interest party. Its main goal was to represent the interests of officers and petty officers. It favoured the implementation of a conscripted army in which men would serve as soldiers and women as nurses. It wanted schools to teach more physical education and youth to do more sports and shooting exercises. It advocated free education and free healthcare for students. It wanted a stronger army and fleet. It favoured a more democratic army, with a stronger role for military unions, better salaries and pensions for officers.

Leadership & Support

In this table the election results of the VDW in Tweede Kamer and Eerste Kamer elections is represented, as well as the party's political leadership: the fractievoorzitter, is the chair of the parliamentary party and the lijsttrekker is the party's top candidate in the general election, these posts are normally taken by the party's leader.

Electorate

The party drew most its support from officers, under officer and petty officers.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • National Alliance (Netherlands) — The National Alliance (Dutch: Nationale Alliantie, abbr. NA or N.A.) was a Dutch nationalist political party. The party was disbanded in 2007. National Alliance Nationale Alliantie …   Wikipedia

  • List of political parties in the Netherlands — Members of the four parties with parliamentary representation since 1980 and participation in government: PvdA, D66, CDA and VVD (from the left). Ulft, shortly before the municipal elections of 2010. This article lists political parties in the… …   Wikipedia

  • National Socialist Movement in the Netherlands — Nationaal Socialistische Beweging in Nederland Leader Anton Mussert (1931 1945) …   Wikipedia

  • Communist Party of the Netherlands — Communistische Partij Nederland Leader David Wijnkoop (1909 1925) Lou de Visser (1925 1945) Paul de Groot (1945 1967) Marcus Bakker (1967 1982) Ina Brouwer (1982 1991) Founded 1909 Dissolved …   Wikipedia

  • Middle Party for City and Country — Netherlands This article is part of the series: Politics and government of the Netherlands …   Wikipedia

  • History of the United States (1980–1991) — The history of the United States (1980 1991) includes the last year of the Jimmy Carter presidency, eight years of the Ronald Reagan administration, and the first two years of the George H. W. Bush presidency, up to the collapse of the Soviet… …   Wikipedia

  • History of the Portuguese Communist Party — The History of the Portuguese Communist Party (Portuguese: Partido Comunista Português , pron. IPA2|pɐɾ. ti.ðu ku.mu. niʃ.tɐ puɾ.tu. ɣeʃ or PCP), spans a period of more than 85 years, since its foundation in 1921 as the Portuguese section of the… …   Wikipedia

  • History of the Kurdistan Workers Party — The history of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) began in 1974 as a Marxist Leninist organization under the leadership of Abdullah Öcalan. Kurdistan Workers Party . F.A.S. 2004.] In 1978 the organization adapted the name Kurdistan Workers Party… …   Wikipedia

  • History of the Republic of China — This article is about the history of the state which currently governs Taiwan Area. For the history of Taiwan, see History of Taiwan For the history of China / Mainland China, see History of China and History of People s Republic of China. A Rand …   Wikipedia

  • Democracy in the Middle East — According to the Democracy Index (published by the Economist, a British journal), the country in the Middle East with the highest Democracy Index score is Israel, with a score of 7.48, corresponding to the status of flawed democracy ; the only… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”