The Timeline
Parti Seselwa was formed as an underground movement. The movement later became first new party to register under the new legislation with Wavel Ramkalawan as leader. Parti Seselwa contested the first free elections in Seychelles since 1974. This was to select representatives to a Constitutional Commission which was to draft a constitution for the Third Republic. The party polled only 4% of the vote coming out third, but not attaining the minimum 5% required for participation in the drafting process. With the SPPF in majority, Constitutional talks stall. The SPPF concludes a Draft of a new Constitution on its own and calls for its approval in a referendum. Parti Seselwa and the other parties including The DP oppose and the Draft is rejected. Constitutional talks stall. The SPPF concludes a Draft of a new Constitution on its own and calls for its approval in a referendum. The DP and the other parties oppose and the Draft is rejected. Parti Seselwa joined the National Alliance Party (NAP) and the Seychellois National Movement (SNM) and formed The United Opposition (UO) to contest the first general elections under the new constitution, scoring 9% of the total polls and winning one proportionally-elected seat of the National Assembly. Annette Georges was elected the leader of UO. Wavel Ramkalawan was elected the new UO leader to replace Annette Georges.
The UO came out as the second largest party behind the SPPF in the 1998 general elections, by substantially increasing
its share of the vote to 27%. Ramkalawan gave UO it’s first directly elected seat by winning St Louis and he was elected Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly. The party’s representation was increased to three seats in the National Assembly. The party contested the presidential elections as the Seychelles National Party (SNP) and increased its share of the vote to 44%.
SNP candidates won 7 seats directly, on the first-past-the-post system in the National Assembly elections and with 43% of
the vote, the party got another 4 seats on the proportional basis. SNP leader Wavel Ramkalawan running again with Mrs Annette Georges as Vice-Presidential nominee, defeated the SPPF’s Jj team in nine electoral districts but lost the presidential elections by 54% to 46%. October: On the 3rd of this month, Opposition Leader Hon Ramkalawan and other party leaders are assaulted on the steps of the National Assembly building by a force of the Special Support Unit, a paramilitary branch of the police force. The incident resulted with the SNP boycotting the National Assembly sessions for three Months and also the setting up of the Reilly inquiry. May: SNP joined the DP in an alliance after Mr James Michel called for early National Assembly election. Winning 44% of the votes, SNP again won 7 seats directly on the first-past-the-post system including for the first time in Mont Fleuri and Anse Etoile. The party gets another 4 seats on the proportional basis. October: The SNP National Assembly appointed Gervais Henrie as its new proportionally elected member, following the split SNP-DP election pact, replacing the DP member. November: The party’s constitution was amended during its annual convention adding two new posts of Deputy-Secretary Generals. David Pierre and Jean-Francois Ferrari were elected in the post respectively. A new executive committee was also elected, whilst Annette George did not stand for re-election for the first time in the party’s history. Content 12
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THE STORY OF SNP Although only some fifteen years old, the movement which is today the Seychelles National Party has had an interesting and varied history. The party started as an underground movement in the waning days of the one-party government of Albert Rene in 1991. Then known as Parti Seselwa, the clandestine, and illegal, movement published a newsletter which was surreptitiously circulated and avidly read by the population. It printed items of local news which the government-controlled media did not air and called for an end to the abuses, both financial and human-rights, of the one-party era. Along with a number of other newly-formed parties, the renamed Democratic Party (DP) of James Mancham, banned during the one-party Second Republic, and the Seychelles Peoples Progressive Front (SPPF) of the incumbent president Albert Rene, Parti Seselwa in 1992 contested the first free elections which the country had had since 1974. This was to select representatives to a constituent assembly which was to draft a constitution for the Third Republic. Parti Seselwa came third in these elections, but polled only 4% of the vote, not attaining the minimum 5% required for participation in the drafting process. At the first general elections under the new constitution, promulgated in June 2003, Parti Seselwa joined two other small parties with similar agendas to it, the National Alliance Party and the Seychellois National Movement, to form The United Opposition (UO). Because the law precluded the committee members of the three parties from serving on the committee of the new entity, Annette Georges was appointed leader of the UO. The other three parties retained their identities and committees. The UO polled 9% of the national vote in the 1993 general elections, but failed to win any constituencies. Under the system of parliamentary representation in force, however, its results enabled it to nominate one proportionally-elected (Picture right: UO rally)member of the National Assembly. Wavel Ramkalawan was chosen to fill the seat. In due course, the other parties faded and the UO remained as the third political force. In 1994, Annette Georges stood down as leader and Ramkalawan was elected leader. The UO went to the polls again in the 1998 general elections, substantially increasing its share of the vote to 27% and coming out as the second largest party behind the SPPF. Ramkalawan won the St Louis seat he contested and the right to nominate two further proportionally-elected members. He was elected Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly. The DP was relegated to third place with one member of the Assembly. The party adopted the name it currently holds. Presidential elections were held early, in 2001, and for the first time in the Third Republic separately from those for the National Assembly. The party contested the presidential elections as the SNP and again increased its share of the vote to 45%. The DP did not field a candidate and the SPPF took the balance, 54%. In the National Assembly elections the following year the SNP won 7 directly-elected seats and the right to nominate another 4 proportionally elected. The party is governed by a constitution. As of 2007 every three years the members elect an executive committee which comprises five office-bearers (designated Leader, Secretary-General, Party Treasurer and two Deputy Secretary General) and twelve further members. The party holds an annual convention for its members. At the time of writing the party has 3000 registered members. It maintains a district organization under a party representative in all twenty-five electoral areas of the country. (Picture right: SNP march) |
With the proclamation of the return to multi-party politics in 1991, Parti Seselwa, with Wavel Ramkalawan (picture left) as leader, was the first new party to register under the new legislation.
(Picture:A Georges at UO registration)