Movement for Social Democracy

The Movement for Social Democracy EDEK (Greek: Κίνημα Σοσιαλδημοκρατών ΕΔΕΚ — Kinima Sosialdimokraton EDEK) is a Greek Cypriot nationalist and social-democraticpolitical party in Cyprus.

The party was originally founded by Vasos Lyssaridis in 1969 as the United Democratic Union of Centre, EDEK (Greek: Ενιαία Δημοκρατική Ένωση Κέντρου, ΕΔΕΚ). It was originally a strongly anti-imperialist Third World socialist party with roots in the struggle against British colonial rule, influenced by the philosophies of Baathism, Muammar Gaddafi and Nasserism, as well as the 1968 movement. Since the early 1980s, EDEK has gradually evolved into a European-style social-democratic party. It has however not given up its nationalist orientations. The party changed its name to "Movement for Social Democracy" in 2000.

EDEK is currently led by Marinos Sizopoulos and is a member of the Party of European Socialists and Socialist International.

History

Members were drawn from the committee for re-establishment of democracy in Greece, and fighters from Lyssaridis's group during the 1964 clashes between Greek and Turkish Cypriots. Lyssaridis was the personal physician of Archbishop Makarios III, the first president of independent Cyprus, whom the party supported. The party's name was inspired by Greek's Centre Union (EK) of Georgios Papandreou. It positioned itself in "the space inbetween" (neither left nor right). EDEK had links to the international Non-Aligned Movement and was opposed to the right-wing Colonels' regime in Greece. Many of the party's members were part of the armed resistance to the 15 July 1974 coup against Makarios. The leader of the youth section of the party, Doros Loizou, was shot and killed in an attempt to murder Lyssaridis himself in August 1974.