Centrist Democrat International
AbbreviationCDI (English), IDC (French, Spanish)
Formation30 July 1961 (1961-07-30)[1]
PurposeChristian democracy
Social conservatism
HeadquartersBrussels, Belgium
Region served
Worldwide
Membership
80 political parties
Official languages
  • French
  • English
  • Spanish
Chairman
Andrés Pastrana Arango
SubsidiariesYouth of the Centrist Democrat International
AffiliationsChristian Democrat Organization of America (ODCA)
European People's Party (EPP)
National Democratic Institute (NDI)
Websiteidc-cdi.com

The Centrist Democrat International (CDI; Spanish: Internacional Demócrata de Centro; IDC) is a Christian-democratic political international. Until 2001, it was known as the Christian Democrat International (CDI); before 1999, it was known as the Christian Democrat and People's Parties International. This earlier name is still sometimes used colloquially.

It is the primary international political group dedicated to promoting Christian democracy. Although it attracts parties from around the globe, its members are drawn principally from Europe and Latin America. Some are also members of the conservative International Democracy Union (IDU), although the CDI is closer to the European-conservative political centre and more communitarian than the IDU.

Overview

The CDI was formed in 1961 in Santiago, Chile, as the Christian Democrat World Union, building on the legacy of other Christian democrat internationals which were an alternative to the socialist internationals who tried to create a Christian-inspired third way. In 1999, it was renamed the Centrist Democrat International due to the participation of groups from other religions such as the Islamic National Awakening Party (PKB) of Indonesia.

The September 2001 leadership conference in Mexico City changed the organization's name to Centrist Democrat International, retaining its original CDI acronym. References to religion were not allowed in many Asian and African countries, and the CDI would not have been able to extend into Asia and Africa without a name change.[2]

The CDI's European division is the European People's Party, the largest European political party. Its American equivalent is the Christian Democrat Organization of America. The Democratic Party of the United States maintains links with the CDI through the National Democratic Institute.

Timeline

  • December 1925: The first international gathering of Catholic-Christian democratic parties takes place in Paris, establishing the Secrétariat International des Partis Démocratiques d'Inspiration Chrétienne (SIPDIC). Member parties were from Belgium, Germany, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Austria, Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Spain, Portugal, and Lithuania.
  • 1939 to 1945: World War II suspends the SIPDIC.
  • 23 April 1947: Political leaders from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay meet in Montevideo to create an international organization of Christian democratic parties. Representatives from Bolivia and Peru participate via diplomatic correspondence. The Declaration of Montevideo establishes the Organización Demócrata Cristiana de América (ODCA), although the name is not formalized until their second meeting in July 1949.
  • 3 June 1947: European Christian Democrats form the Nouvelles Équipes Internationales (NEI) in Chaudfontaine, Belgium, prompted by the Swiss a year before restarting the SIPDIC. The NEI, open to non-Catholic parties who subscribed to the principles of social democracy, sees European integration as the best way to prevent the spread of communism into western Europe and encourages exile groups from Bulgaria, Romania, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia to attend. The NEI plays a significant role in preparations for the Hague Congress and the establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community.
  • 26 July 1950: The Christian Democratic Union of Central Europe (CDUCE) is formed in New York City to assist Christian democratic parties in exile by organizing forces in opposition to communism. By 1955, it begins working with underground operatives in the Soviet bloc while trying to coordinate efforts between European and Latin American Christian Democratic parties.
  • May and July 1956: The ODCA, NEI, and CDUCE meet for the first time in Paris at a gathering of 33 delegations from 28 countries to discuss the creation of a global Christian democratic organization.
  • 1960: The three regional Christian democratic organizations establish the Christian Democratic International Information and Documentation Centre (CDI-IDC) in Rome to provide political analyses for Christian democratic parties around the world.
  • 1961: The World Union of Christian Democrats (WUCD) is established in Santiago.
  • 1982: The WUCD changes its name to the Christian Democrat International (CDI).
  • 1999: The CDI changes its name to the Centrist Democrat International due to the increasing membership of non-Christian political parties. Since October 2000, some have informally referred to the CDI as the Christian Democrat and People's Parties International.

CDI member parties are generally members of the ODCA or the European People's Party (EPP, the successor of NEI).

Executive committee

The CDI executive committee consists of the president, executive secretary, and vice-presidents. The president is Andrés Pastrana Arango of Colombia and the executive secretary is MEP Antonio López-Istúriz of Spain.

Members of the executive committee are:

Member parties

Country Party Abbr Government Lower Chamber Upper Chamber Period of membership
 Albania Democratic Party of Albania PD Opposition
46 / 140 (33%)
 Algeria National Rally for Democracy RND Junior party in coalition
58 / 407 (14%)
21 / 144 (15%)
 Angola National Union for the Total Independence of Angola UNITA Opposition
90 / 220 (41%)
 Argentina Christian Democratic Party PDC extraparliamentary opposition
0 / 257 (0%)
0 / 72 (0%)
 Armenia Rule of Law OEK extraparliamentary opposition
0 / 107 (0%)
Republican Party of Armenia RPA Opposition
4 / 107 (4%)
 Aruba Aruban People's Party AVP/PPA Opposition
7 / 21 (33%)
 Belgium Christian Democratic and Flemish CD&V Junior party in coalition
12 / 150 (8%)
5 / 60 (8%)
 Botswana Botswana National Front BNF Opposition
2 / 65 (3%)
 Brazil Brazilian Social Democracy Party PSDB Opposition
13 / 513 (3%)
3 / 81 (4%)
 Bulgaria GERB GERB Government
67 / 240 (28%)
Union of Democratic Forces SDS Government
2 / 240 (0.8%)
 Burkina Faso Union for the Republic UR Opposition
0 / 127 (0%)
 Cambodia National United Front for an Independent, Neutral, Peaceful, and Cooperative Cambodia FUNCINPEC neither government nor opposition
5 / 125 (4%)
2 / 62 (3%)
Cambodian People's Party CPP Government
120 / 125 (96%)
58 / 62 (94%)
 Cape Verde Movement for Democracy MPD Government
38 / 72 (53%)
 Chile Christian Democratic Party PDC neither government nor opposition
8 / 155 (5%)
3 / 43 (7%)
National Renewal RN Opposition
23 / 155 (15%)
11 / 50 (22%)
 Republic of China Chinese Nationalist Party KMT Opposition
38 / 113 (34%)
 Colombia Colombian Conservative Party PCC Government
25 / 188 (13%)
15 / 108 (14%)
Democratic Center CD Opposition
15 / 188 (8%)
13 / 108 (12%)
 Democratic Republic of the Congo Movement for the Liberation of the Congo MLC Opposition
22 / 500 (4%)
14 / 108 (13%)
 Costa Rica Social Christian Unity Party PUSC Opposition
9 / 57 (16%)
 Croatia Croatian Democratic Union HDZ Government
62 / 151 (41%)
 Cuba Christian Liberation Movement MCL extraparliamentary opposition
0 / 470 (0%)
Christian Democratic Party of Cuba PDCC extraparliamentary opposition
0 / 470 (0%)
 Curaçao National People's Party NVP/PNP Opposition
4 / 21 (19%)
 Cyprus Democratic Rally DISY Government
17 / 56 (30%)
 Czech Republic KDU-ČSL KDU–ČSL Junior party in coalition
22 / 200 (11%)
12 / 81 (15%)
 Denmark Christian Democrats KD extraparliamentary opposition
0 / 179 (0%)
 Dominican Republic Social Christian Reformist Party PRSC Opposition
5 / 190 (3%)
5 / 32 (16%)
 El Salvador Christian Democratic Party PDC Opposition
1 / 84 (1%)
 France The Republicans LR Opposition
61 / 577 (11%)
148 / 348 (43%)
 Gabon Gabonese Democratic Party PDG Opposition
98 / 143 (69%)
 Germany Christian Democratic Union CDU Opposition
152 / 736 (21%)
22 / 69 (32%)
 Greece New Democracy ND Government
158 / 300 (53%)
 Guinea-Bissau Party for Social Renewal PRS Opposition
12 / 102 (12%)
 Equatorial Guinea Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea APGE extraparliamentary opposition
0 / 100 (0%)
0 / 70 (0%)
 Hungary Fidesz – Hungarian Civic Alliance FIDESZ Government
116 / 199 (58%)
Christian Democratic People's Party KDNP Government
19 / 199 (10%)
 Indonesia National Awakening Party[3] PKB Government
58 / 575 (10%)
 Italy Union of the Centre UdC support to the government in the Senate
1 / 400 (0.3%)
1 / 200 (0.5%)
 Ivory Coast Rally of the Republicans[4] RDR Government
127 / 255 (50%)
 Kenya Wiper Democratic Movement – Kenya WDM-K Opposition
25 / 349 (7%)
3 / 67 (4%)
 Lebanon Lebanese Forces LF - Chrisitan Resistance Opposition
19 / 128 (15%)
Kataeb Phalange Opposition
4 / 128 (3%)
 Madagascar MMM - Malagasy Miara-Miainga MMM Opposition
 Malawi Malawi Congress Party MCP Government
55 / 193 (28%)
 Mali Union for the Republic and Democracy URD Opposition
19 / 147 (13%)
 Malta Nationalist Party PN Opposition
35 / 79 (44%)
 Mauritania Union for Democracy and Progress UDP junior party in coalition
10 / 176 (6%)
Equity Party El Insaf in government
107 / 176 (61%)
 Mexico National Action Party PAN Opposition
114 / 500 (23%)
18 / 128 (14%)
 Morocco Istiqlal Party Junior party in coalition
81 / 395 (21%)
24 / 120 (20%)
 Mozambique Democratic Movement of Mozambique MDM Opposition
6 / 250 (2%)
 Netherlands Christian Democratic Appeal CDA junior party in coalition
5 / 150 (3%)
6 / 75 (8%)
 Panama People's Party PP extraparliamentary opposition
0 / 71 (0%)
 Paraguay Christian Democratic Party PDC Opposition
0 / 80 (0%)
0 / 45 (0%)
 Peru Christian People's Party PPC extraparliamentary opposition
0 / 130 (0%)
 Philippines Fight of Democratic Filipinos LDP Junior party in coalition
1 / 316 (0.3%)
1 / 24 (4%)
Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats Lakas senior party in coalition
92 / 316 (29%)
1 / 24 (4%)
 Portugal Social Democratic Party PSD Opposition
77 / 230 (33%)
 Romania Christian Democratic National Peasants' Party PNȚ-CD Extra-parliamentary
0 / 330 (0%)
0 / 136 (0%)
National Liberal Party PNL senior party in coalition
79 / 330 (24%)
36 / 136 (26%)
People's Movement Party PMP Extraparliamentary support
0 / 330 (0%)
0 / 136 (0%)
Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania RMDSZ Junior party in coalition
20 / 330 (6%)
9 / 136 (7%)
 Since 2018[5]
 San Marino Sammarinese Christian Democratic Party PDCS Opposition
21 / 60 (35%)
 São Tomé and Príncipe Independent Democratic Action ADI Government
30 / 55 (55%)
 Senegal Centrist Union of Senegal UCS Junior party in government
Bloc des centristes Gaïndé BCG Opposition
 Slovenia New Slovenia NSi Opposition
8 / 90 (9%)
Slovenian Democratic Party SDS Opposition
27 / 90 (30%)
 Spain People's Party PP Opposition
137 / 350 (39%)
140 / 266 (53%)
 Sweden Christian Democrats KD Government
19 / 349 (5%)
 Ukraine Christian Democratic Union KhDS Extra-parliamentary
0 / 450 (0%)
 Uruguay National Party PN Government
30 / 99 (30%)
10 / 30 (33%)
 Venezuela Christian Social Party 'Copei' COPEI Opposition
1 / 277 (0.4%)
Justice First PJ Extra-parliamentary
0 / 277 (0%)

Former members

Observer parties

The CDI has 9 observers, including:

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Durand, Jean-Dominique, ed. (2015-01-01). Christian Democrat Internationalism. Peter Lang. p. 71. doi:10.3726/978-3-0352-6492-0. ISBN 978-3-0352-9924-3.
  2. ↑ Wilfried Martens (2008). Europe: I Struggle, I Overcome. Springer / Centre for European Studies. p. 220. ISBN 9783540892892.
  3. ↑ Safitri, Eva. "PKB Resmi Jadi Anggota Koalisi Partai Demokratis Internasional". detiknews.
  4. ↑ Parties, Centrist Democrat International, idc-cdi.com, retrieved 31 August 2016.
  5. ↑ "Conference of Centrist Democrat International held in Budapest". Daily News Hungary. 2018-02-17. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
  6. ↑ "The Heritage Party Has Become an Observer Member of Centrist Democrat International". www.heritage.am. Archived from the original on 2019-08-06. Retrieved 2019-08-06.
  7. ↑ "parties". IDC-CDI. Retrieved 15 August 2020.

Further reading

  • Papini, Roberto (1997). The Christian Democrat International. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
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