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Vanuatu Labour Party Vanuatu Leba Pati | |
|---|---|
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| Abbreviation | VLP |
| Leader | Joshua Kalsakau |
| Founder | Ephraim Kalsakau |
| Founded | 3 June 1987 (1987-06-03) |
| Ideology | Democratic socialism Labourism |
| Political position | Left-wing |
| National affiliation | Vanuatu National Workers Union |
| Parliament | 0 / 52 |
| Website | |
| Facebook page | |
TheVanuatu Labour Party (Bislama:Vanuatu Leba Pati;French:Parti Travailliste du Vanuatu) is apolitical party inVanuatu. The party was established on 3 June 1987. It was founded on the initiative of varioustrade union organizations in order to contest the1987 parliamentary election. The proposal to found the party was first presented byEphraim Kalsakau, a leader of theVanuatu Municipal Workers Union.[1]
In the 1987 polls, it presented four candidates; George Kalsakau inPort Vila, Willy Romain inTanna, Thomas Reynold inLuganville and Kenneth Satungia ofEfate.[1] All four candidates were trade union leaders.[2] Ephraim Kalsakau later claimed that the electoral participation was mainly intended as an awareness-raising effort, and that the party hadn't expected to win any of the seats.[3]
The party did not present candidates in the1991 parliamentary election.[2]
The party gained parliamentary representation in 2005 asJoshua Kalsakau, then the Minister for Ni-Vanuatu Business and an MP from Efate representing theNational Community Association Party, joined the party.[1]
Joshua Kalsakau is the president of the party whilst Lui Kaltonga is its general secretary.[4]
The party is connected to theVanuatu Council of Trade Unions and theVanuatu National Workers Union. The main stronghold of the party in the capital Port Vila.[1]
Joshua Kalsakau was reelected from his seat in the2008 parliamentary election.[5][6] In Luganville, the party had launched Pierre Malamlaen as its candidate. Malamlaen was however not elected.[5] After the elections, Joshua Kalsakau was named as the new Minister of Justice in the cabinet ofEdward Natapei.[7] In the2012 general election, Kalsakau narrowly lost his seat, by a margin of just twelve votes (out of more than 15,000), leaving Labour without representation in Parliament.[8]
