· Main Political Issues of German Greens

The Green movement as an electoral force is young. The first ecological and alternative political groups emerged in the 1960's, but most European Green parties were not created until a decade or more later.

The very first ecology party in Europe emerged in Britain in 1973. The European elections of 1989 were a spectacular success for the UK Greens, who scored 15 % of the votes. Due to the first-past-the-post electoral system, however, the 2.5 million votes did not translate into one single seat in the European Parliament.

In Belgium the French speaking Ecolo was formed in 1980 and gained 5% of the votes and five deputies in 1981. Their Flemish speaking sister party AGALEV had their breakthrough in the local elections of 1982, obtaining 50 local council members. In Italy, the first Greens entered Parliament in 1987, when the list of the ecological movement - Lista Verdi - got 13 MP's and two senators. The Georgia Greens have had a substantial following from thei

The Greens advocate a comprehensive concept of global security, which cannot be defined solely in military terms. Therefore, Green policies concentrate on the prevention of armed conflicts, on removing the causes of war and on developing ways to peaceful conflict resolution. Efforts to combat racism, for mutual understanding and respect for other cultures and, above all else, to end global poverty, would be Europe's strongest and most effective security plan.

Nuclear disarmament and a comprehensive Test Ban Treaty are urgent priorities. The Greens want all exports of European military and nuclear technology controlled, reduced and eventually eliminated. The UN should be given extended possibilities to strengthen peace and development, and be more efficient in peacekeeping activities.

Since the midnineties, the paradigm of sustainability has become a common denominator for many policies of the party. Ending devastation and exploitation of the environment, fighting social in justice, defending civil liberties and enhancing gender democracy and individual freedom, as well as supporting the development of democracy and the rule of law world-wide and a policy for non violence remain the fundamental orientation of the party.

Here are the Guiding Principles, adopted by the member parties of the European Federation of Greens:

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