Anguilla United Front - About Our Party

ROOTS OF THE AUF

1.

The Anguilla National Alliance

The Anguilla National Alliance (ANA) was created in 1980 by the Hon. Sir Emile Gumbs

and colleagues - the late Hon. Albena Lake-Hodge and late Hon. Idahlia Gumbs – along

with the Hon. Eric Reid and others to contest the 1980 General Elections. The party grew

out of the Peoples’ Progressive Party of the Hon. James Ronald Webster, for which Sir

Emile Gumbs, Hon Albena Lake-Hodge and Hon Idahlia Gumbs won seats in a landslide

victory for the Party in the 1976 elections, following the coming into effect of the 1976

Constitution that introduced ministerial government to Anguilla for the first time since the

1967 Anguilla Revolution. They were appointed government ministers in the first

ministerial government formed by the Hon. James Ronald Webster. A dispute in the PPP

Government led to the successful passing of a no confidence vote against the PPP

Government in 1977. A new government led by the Hon. Sir Emile Gumbs was formed

without a return to the polls and completed the remaining period (1977 – 1980) of the four

year term of office (1976 – 1980) permitted under the 1976 Constitution. The ANA was

soundly defeated in the 1980 elections by the Anguilla United Movement of the Hon.

James Ronald Webster, with only Sir Emile Gumbs retaining his seat out of four that the

party held in the seven seat House of Assembly going into the 1980 General Elections.

The ANA continued to organize and built up its base of support. It again fared poorly in

the 1981 General Elections, but improved its presence in the House of Assembly by

winning two seats. The ANA seized the opportunity of a floundering economy in 1984 and

a snap election and engineered a solid victory over the Anguilla United Movement (AUM)

to take over the reins of the Anguilla Government. The ANA, through various alliances

with independent candidates, most notably with the Hon. Osbourne Fleming from 1985,

ensured its continuation in office for two five year terms 1984 – 1989 and 1989 – 1994,

during which the Angullian community and economy continued to make progress along

the path of economic development.

2.

Anguilla Democratic Party

The Anguilla Democratic Party (ADP) has common roots with the ANA in that like the ANA

it originated out of and as on offshoot of a political party created by the Hon. James

Ronald Webster, in this case the Anguilla United Movement. The Hon. Victor Banks

founded the ADP in the mid 1980’s along with other members and supports of the AUM

who became dissatisfied with the functionality of the AUM and decided to launch out on

their own. The ADP’s first electoral contest was at the 1989 General Elections in which

the Party’s showing was modest, winning one House of Assembly seat. In the 1994

elections the ADP’s popular support had grown and they won two seats at the polls.

Together with the AUM led at this time by the Hon. Hubert Hughes in 1994, which won two

seats, the ADP formed the Government, with the Hon. Hubert Hughes as Chief Minister.

The AUM and ADP coalition formed the Government after the 1999 General Elections.

Internal tensions resulted in the coalition collapsing within six months and the ADP

withdrawing from the Government.

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CREATION OF THE ANGUILLA UNITED FRONT

The collapse of the AUM-ADP 1999 Government created a governance crisis. With the

withdrawal of the ADP from the coalition, the government led by the Hon. Hubert Hughes

became a minority government. In the resulting political uncertainty and instability the

leaders of the ADP and the ANA reached out to each other. They began a series of

principled discussions which culminated in the creation of the Anguilla United Front in

January 2000.

The ADP and ANA, during the period 2000 – 2005 continued discussions to determine

whether there was a basis to move forward from a political and electoral partnership to

the merger of the two pwrties to form a single party. The outcome of those discussions

was that there was a basis for merging the parties and that it was feasible to do so. As a

result, by 2005 the decisions were taken by both the ADP and the ANA to merge and

create the Anguilla United Front as a new political party born out of the two parties. The

ANA and the ADP ceased to exist and the AUF came into being from the 2005 General

Elections.

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AUF MISSION

•“To promote and build a more caring, peaceful and harmonious society, with justice and

equity for all.

•“To provide universal and equitable access to a basic package of quality social and

community services”.

•“To manage the environment to achieve long term sustainability, for the benefit of present

and future generations”.

•“To stimulate and Facilitate the achievement of robust and sustainable economic

development by and for the benefit of the people of Anguilla, as the foundation for the

social development of the community”.

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AUF’S KEY GUIDING PRINCIPLES

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Respect for human rights.

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Transparent, accountable, open government.

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Participatory democracy.

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Political self-determination.

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The rule of law and equity before the law.

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National unity and patriotism

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Regional cooperation.

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Responsible management of the environment.

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Economic empowerment of the people of Anguilla.

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Economic and social justice.

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Social harmony and peace.

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The pursuit of excellence.

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Self-reliance

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THE ANGUILLA UNITED FRONT GOVERNMENT’S RECORD

The Anguilla United Front (AUF) came to power in February 2000, following victory in the

general elections of that year. Anguilla’s economy was in recession. In 2001 the

economy suffered a further major setback as a result of the September 11, attack on the

World Trade Centre, in New York City, USA. This was evidenced by an over 40% decline

in imports in the four months, September to December 2001 and by a significant decline

in tourist arrivals during the 2001/2002 tourist season. In the three years 2002 – 2004 the

AUF Government dramatically turned around Anguilla’s economy from the economic

doldrums. It regenerated high economic growth exceeding 15% in 2004, driven by new

and unprecedented investment in the development of luxury tourism resorts by foreign

investors. Unemployment was eradicated, personal incomes began to rise and the other

economic sectors, especially construction, banking and finance, government services,

retail and wholesale trade also began to expand significantly adding to the overall growth

of the economy and the expansion of opportunity for the people of Anguilla.

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