Union of Progress Forces
Encyclopedia
The Union of the Forces of Progress (Union des Forces du Progrès, Ar
: ittihad quwa al-taqaddum, fl
:Dental Doole Demokaraasi, UFP) is a left leaning political party
in Mauritania
.
and 2008 coups
. They have called upon Mauritanian political leaders to negotiate a political consensus which would define the "rules of the game" for Mauritanian politics, which they view as divisive, ethnicly charged, and corrupt.
ish Arab
Mauritanians, although it was opposed to the prevailing racial and ethno-social discrimination, and subsumed an important faction of Black African opposition politicians inside its organization. After 1969, the party mended its relations with Ould Daddah after he took several steps to the left, nationalizing the mining industry MIFERMA (today's SNIM) in Zouérat
, loosening his strong ties with the former colonial power France
, and took other measures to strengthen Mauritania's international anticolonial profile. The PKM then divided between a group which agreed to join Ould Daddah's ruling party, the PPM, as a leftist intra-party opposition; and another group which was more reluctant to cooperate with the authorities, and reorganized in new opposition movements, primarily the Mouvement Nationale Démocratique (MND). When Mauritania invaded Western Sahara
in 1975 to establish a Greater Mauritania
, in collaboration with Morocco, the Kadihines again took a strong stance against the regime, and in favor of Sahrawi
self-determination
and the Polisario Front
(with which the UFP retains strong relations even today). After the 1978 coup d'état
, the movement lost much influence, as politics moved over into the military sphere.
The modern UFP began as a faction of the Union of Democratic Forces-New Era
(UFD). At an extraordinary party congress called by this faction in August 1998, it elected MND leader Mohamed Ould Maouloud as its president, and this caused a split in the party. The opposing faction, led by Ahmed Ould Daddah
, was dubbed the UFD/A, while Maouloud's faction was dubbed the UFD/B. The latter faction participated in the January 1999 local election, which was boycotted by the former. In late 2000, the UFD/A was dissolved by the government, and the UFD/B changed its own name in solidarity, now calling itself the Union of the Forces of Progress.
In the parliamentary election
held on 19 and 26 October 2001, the party won 3 out of 81 seats.
In the November-December 2006 parliamentary election
, the UFP participated in the Coalition of the Forces of Democratic Change. The UFP won eight seats (three in the first round and five in the second round), as well as two other seats together with the Rally of Democratic Forces
. On January 2, 2007, the party held a congress and designated its president, Maouloud, as its candidate for the March 2007 presidential election
. In the election, Maouloud took seventh place in the first round with 4.08% of the vote. Maouloud then backed Daddah in the second round. In the 21 January and 4 February 2007 Senate
elections
it joined the Rally of Democratic Forces
and won 1 seat.
On May 10, 2008, Maouloud announced the party's decision to participate in the government of Prime Minister Yahya Ould Ahmed El Waghef
; the party was accordingly one of two opposition parties to be included in Waghef's government, the composition of which was announced on May 11. This government only survived until July 2008, however.
Following the August 2008 coup, the UFP joined a four-party coalition, the National Front for the Defence of Democracy, which opposed the coup and demanded the restoration of President Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi
.
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
: ittihad quwa al-taqaddum, fl
Fula language
The Fula or Fulani language is a language of West Africa. It is spoken as a first language by the and related groups from Senegambia and Guinea to Cameroon and Sudan...
:Dental Doole Demokaraasi, UFP) is a left leaning political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
in Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
.
Programme
The UFP describes itself as a cross ethnic, Republican, social justice oriented party. It has made strong statements against the percecution of dark skinned Mauritanians, the continuation of slavery and unfair labor practices, and for guarantees of safety and resources for those refugees from the 1989 interethnic conflict who remain in Senegal. The UFP has also strongly condemned the involvement of the Mauritanian Army in politics, specifically the 20052005 Mauritanian coup d'état
The 2005 Mauritanian coup d'état took place on 3 August 2005. The long-serving dictator Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya was ousted by the military of Mauritania and replaced by the Military Council for Justice and Democracy while Taya was in Saudi Arabia attending the funeral of King Fahd bin Abdul...
and 2008 coups
2008 Mauritanian coup d'état
A coup d'état took place in Mauritania on 6 August 2008 when Mauritanian President Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdallahi was ousted from power by a group of high ranking generals he had dismissed from office earlier that day.-Background:...
. They have called upon Mauritanian political leaders to negotiate a political consensus which would define the "rules of the game" for Mauritanian politics, which they view as divisive, ethnicly charged, and corrupt.
History
The party has its roots in the Kadihine (Arabic: "toiler", "worker") movement of the Mauritanian 1960s and 1970s, with its organization, the Parti Kadihine Mauritanien (PKM) working as a clandestine socialist and anti-colonial oppositional group against the single-party rule of Mokhtar Ould Daddah. The party was composed mostly of MoorMoors
The description Moors has referred to several historic and modern populations of the Maghreb region who are predominately of Berber and Arab descent. They came to conquer and rule the Iberian Peninsula for nearly 800 years. At that time they were Muslim, although earlier the people had followed...
ish Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
Mauritanians, although it was opposed to the prevailing racial and ethno-social discrimination, and subsumed an important faction of Black African opposition politicians inside its organization. After 1969, the party mended its relations with Ould Daddah after he took several steps to the left, nationalizing the mining industry MIFERMA (today's SNIM) in Zouérat
Zouérat
Zouérat is the largest town in northern Mauritania and is the capital of Tiris Zemmour with an approximate population of 38,000 . It lies at the eastern end of the Mauritania Railway to Nouadhibou.- Overview :...
, loosening his strong ties with the former colonial power France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and took other measures to strengthen Mauritania's international anticolonial profile. The PKM then divided between a group which agreed to join Ould Daddah's ruling party, the PPM, as a leftist intra-party opposition; and another group which was more reluctant to cooperate with the authorities, and reorganized in new opposition movements, primarily the Mouvement Nationale Démocratique (MND). When Mauritania invaded Western Sahara
Western Sahara
Western Sahara is a disputed territory in North Africa, bordered by Morocco to the north, Algeria to the northeast, Mauritania to the east and south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Its surface area amounts to . It is one of the most sparsely populated territories in the world, mainly...
in 1975 to establish a Greater Mauritania
Greater Mauritania
"Greater Mauritania" is a term for the Mauritanian irredentist claim to Western Sahara, and possibly other Moorish or Sahrawi-populated areas of the western Sahara desert.-Background:...
, in collaboration with Morocco, the Kadihines again took a strong stance against the regime, and in favor of Sahrawi
Western Sahara
Western Sahara is a disputed territory in North Africa, bordered by Morocco to the north, Algeria to the northeast, Mauritania to the east and south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Its surface area amounts to . It is one of the most sparsely populated territories in the world, mainly...
self-determination
Self-determination
Self-determination is the principle in international law that nations have the right to freely choose their sovereignty and international political status with no external compulsion or external interference...
and the Polisario Front
Polisario Front
The POLISARIO, Polisario Front, or Frente Polisario, from the Spanish abbreviation of Frente Popular de Liberación de Saguía el Hamra y Río de Oro is a Sahrawi rebel national liberation movement working for the independence of Western Sahara from Morocco...
(with which the UFP retains strong relations even today). After the 1978 coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
, the movement lost much influence, as politics moved over into the military sphere.
The modern UFP began as a faction of the Union of Democratic Forces-New Era
Union of Democratic Forces (Mauritania)
The Union of Democratic Forces-New Era was a political party in Mauritania, founded in 1991. The secretary-general of the party was Ahmed Ould Daddah...
(UFD). At an extraordinary party congress called by this faction in August 1998, it elected MND leader Mohamed Ould Maouloud as its president, and this caused a split in the party. The opposing faction, led by Ahmed Ould Daddah
Ahmed Ould Daddah
Ahmed Ould Daddah is a Mauritanian economist, politician and civil servant. He is a half-brother of Moktar Ould Daddah, the first President of Mauritania, and belongs to the Marabout Ouled Birri tribe...
, was dubbed the UFD/A, while Maouloud's faction was dubbed the UFD/B. The latter faction participated in the January 1999 local election, which was boycotted by the former. In late 2000, the UFD/A was dissolved by the government, and the UFD/B changed its own name in solidarity, now calling itself the Union of the Forces of Progress.
In the parliamentary election
Mauritanian parliamentary election, 2001
Parliamentary elections were held in Mauritania on 19 and 26 October, 2001. The result was a landslide victory for President Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya's Republican Party for Democracy and Renewal, who took 64 of the 81 seats....
held on 19 and 26 October 2001, the party won 3 out of 81 seats.
In the November-December 2006 parliamentary election
Mauritanian parliamentary election, 2006
Parliamentary and municipal elections in Mauritania occurred on 19 November and 3 December 2006. At least 28 political parties competed to comprise the lower house of parliament, the National Assembly; Islamist parties were banned, but many Islamists ran as independent candidates...
, the UFP participated in the Coalition of the Forces of Democratic Change. The UFP won eight seats (three in the first round and five in the second round), as well as two other seats together with the Rally of Democratic Forces
Rally of Democratic Forces
The Rally of Democratic Forces is a political party in Mauritania. It is led by Ahmed Ould Daddah.In October 2000, the Union of Democratic Forces-New Era, which was led by Daddah, was dissolved by the government for allegedly inciting violence and harming the country's interests...
. On January 2, 2007, the party held a congress and designated its president, Maouloud, as its candidate for the March 2007 presidential election
Mauritanian presidential election, 2007
A Mauritanian presidential election occurred on 11 March 2007. Since no candidate received a majority of the votes, a second round was held on 25 March between the top two candidates, Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi and Ahmed Ould Daddah...
. In the election, Maouloud took seventh place in the first round with 4.08% of the vote. Maouloud then backed Daddah in the second round. In the 21 January and 4 February 2007 Senate
Senate of Mauritania
The Parliament has two chambers. The upper house is the Senate . The Senate has 56 members, 53 members elected for a six year term by municipal councillors with one third renewed every two years and 3 members elected by Mauritanians abroad.-See also:*List of Presidents of the Senate of Mauritania...
elections
Mauritanian Senate election, 2007
Senatorial elections were held in Mauritania on 21 January 2007 and on 4 February 2007. There are 56 seats in the Senate. The senators were elected by 3,688 municipal councillors, except for three who were chosen by the elected senators.The period for the deposit of candidacies ran from 12...
it joined the Rally of Democratic Forces
Rally of Democratic Forces
The Rally of Democratic Forces is a political party in Mauritania. It is led by Ahmed Ould Daddah.In October 2000, the Union of Democratic Forces-New Era, which was led by Daddah, was dissolved by the government for allegedly inciting violence and harming the country's interests...
and won 1 seat.
On May 10, 2008, Maouloud announced the party's decision to participate in the government of Prime Minister Yahya Ould Ahmed El Waghef
Yahya Ould Ahmed El Waghef
Yahya Ould Ahmed El Waghef is a Mauritanian politician. He was appointed as Prime Minister of Mauritania on May 6, 2008, serving until the August 2008 coup d'état. Waghef is also President of the National Pact for Democracy and Development , and he was Minister Secretary-General of the Presidency...
; the party was accordingly one of two opposition parties to be included in Waghef's government, the composition of which was announced on May 11. This government only survived until July 2008, however.
Following the August 2008 coup, the UFP joined a four-party coalition, the National Front for the Defence of Democracy, which opposed the coup and demanded the restoration of President Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi
Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi
Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdallahi is a Mauritanian politician. He served in the government during the 1970s, and after a long period of absence from politics he won the March 2007 presidential election, taking office on 19 April 2007...
.