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What is UCP
United Civil Party (UCP) is a leading liberal conservative party in the Republic of Belarus. It was established on October 1, 1995 as a result of merger of two like-minded parties - United Democratic Party (formed in 1990) and Civil Party (formed in 1994). We stand for an independent sovereign Belarus that pursues domestic and foreign policy according to its national interests. The UCP's fundamental values are human rights and freedoms, democracy, supremacy of law, private property and free market economy. It opposes authoritarianism and putting the state above the individual. The United Civil Party stands for self-government, substitution of the system of Soviets with municipalities. We support cardinal reform of the army and its transformation into the professional one. One of the most important party's activities is to ensure freedom of expression, association and information which means breaking up the state's monopoly over mass media. The UCP is a firm advocate of systemic economic transformation of centrally planned economy to free unhampered market. Building market economy means carrying out a consistent programme of stabilization, liberalization and institutional changes. The institute of private property on all forms of capital including land is the basis of successful socially oriented economic reforms. We are against discrimination against form of property, origin or size of the economic entity. The UCP supports entrepreneurship as the main engine of economic reforms. The role of the state is to protect the citizen as a producer, consumer and taxpayer from arbitrary decisions and whims of the bureaucrat. The UCP worked out a Program of economic reforms and is ready to carry it out. Members of the party are the leading intellectual force in working out the conceptual document "Strategy for Belarus". The Party takes an active part in the work of the National Executive Committee (Shadow Cabinet) which is in strong opposition to Lukashenko's regime. 7 persons are shadow ministers. In 1995 parliamentary elections, the United Civil Party, along with its allies, won 22 out of 198 places in the Supreme Council, and formed the Civil Action parliamentary fraction. Together with by-election that was held in 1996 the party got over 1 min. votes. Its member, Gennady Karpenko, was elected deputy speaker of the Parliament. The UCP parliamentary fraction was the only one in the parliament which consistently supported democracy and market reform and opposed the authoritarian tendencies of President Lukashenko. The Civil Action drafted most of the market reform legislation and became the intellectual "think tank" of the parliament. When President Lukashenko started his attempt to dissolve the parliament and to push his authoritarian constitution through referendum, all Civil Action members supported the notion to impeach the president. After the coup d'etat none of the Civil Action members agreed to join the handpicked legislature created by Lukashenko to replace the Supreme Council. The UCP joined the hard-line opposition against the dictatorial regime in Belarus. Members of the UCP take an active part in all opposition actions and events. Two of the Civil Action members Vladimir Kudinov and Andrei Klimov are jailed by Lukashenko under pretext of embezzlement. The UCP has about 4000 members. It was represented in various regional and local Councils and the Supreme Soviet of Belarus. The party has its youth wing which has a status of autonomous political organization. The woman organization "Female response" was formed in spring 2000. It is becoming an important element of the UCP work. UCP closely cooperates with Freedom Union (Poland, Chairman Leszek Balcerowicz), Homeland Union - Lithuanian Conservatives (Lithuania, leader Vitautas Landsbergis), Party "Reforms and Order" (Ukraine, leader Viktor Pinzennik, Union of Right Wing Forces (Russia, B. Nemtsov, Y. Gaidar), Isamaaliit Party (Estonia, headed by Prime Minister Maart Laar), Conservative Party of Great Britain, European Democratic Union (an umbrella for right-wing and center-right parties of Europe) and other organizations. UCP also cooperates with the International Republican Institute and National Endowment for Democracy. Chairman of the Party - Anatoly Lebedko, Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Council of Belarus, deputy of 12th and 13th Supreme Council, one of the most active leaders of the Belarusian opposition. Honorable Chairman of the Party - Stanislav Bogdankevich, Professor, Ex-Chairman of the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus, Deputy of the Supreme Council, Leader of the parliamentary fraction "Civil Action". Vice Chairmen of the Party:
Status of the Party, social and professional structure:
55% of members are university graduates. Over 100 members have
PhD and Doctor degrees. Structure of the party:
Local and regional Party Structures:
Address of the UCP: e-mail: info@ucpb.info Website: www.ucpb.org, www.ucpb.info |
