MIAK / United Liberal National Party of Armenia

WHO WE ARE

The United Liberal National Party (MIAK - the Armenian acronym for the United Liberal National Party - Miatsyal Azatakan Azgayin Kusaktsutyun) is a new generation political force in Armenia. A party to unify Armenian citizens who have liberal and national IDeaS and who are ready to work and fight for these ideals. MIAK is a political party, which is national in terms of Armenia's internal and foreign policy, liberal - in terms of view of Armenia's economy and public life, and democratic - in terms of its internal structure. MIAK concentrates all its efforts and capacity on the development of the Republic of Armenia, in the short-run, as a democratic, advanced, developed, and competitive state.

HISTORY

Founded in 2007 by a group of young Armenian professionals, from various organizations, MIAK entered the fight for Parliamentary elections held in May of that year.

Having announced the goal to present a political presence and form a new political agenda through the election process, MIAK has conducted a well-organized and dynamic pre-election campaign by throwing into the political arena a fundamental reforms program based on which the Armenia Second Generation Reforms agenda was formed. This agenda subsequently found its place both in the Government's program and in President Serzh Sargsyan`s pre-election program.

Even though in its first election campaign MIAK did not collect the number of votes necessary to appear in the National Assembly, the party and its young members were able to present a serious political presence. As a result the then Prime Minister and now President Serzh Sargsyan involved a number of young professionals from MIAK in the public administration system of Armenia. Furthermore MIAK was very ACTIVE during the Presidential election campaign of 2008 and implemented an unprecedented program called 'Door to Door'. This entailed 300 MIAK activists visiting more than 240,000 apartments in the capital Yerevan and presenting 10 reasons for electing Serzh Sargsyan as the new President along with 10 expectations that MIAK had from the new President.

After the 2008 presidential election MIAK started an active party development process to enroll a large number of new members together with founding party local subdivisions in Yerevan and all the regions of Armenia.

YOUTH

Being a party composed mainly of young people MIAK actively cooperates with and supports numerous youth and student organizations in implementing different projects, initiatives, and ideas. This encourages young people in the development of their political, social, economic and educational activities. Through this cooperation was created the MIASIN (Together) youth movement. MIASIN is an independent social organization which supports the implementation of the comprehensive political and economic reforms by the President Serzh Sargsyan.

MIAK PECULIARITIES

Internal Democracy We are proud that MIAK is a unique organization in Armenia which stands out for its internal democracy not only on paper but also in real life activities.

All issues and decisions in MIAK are discussed in a democratic manner with equal participation of the membership. All the MIAK bodies and their chairmen are elected in free and transparent elections for a fixed term. The management of the party is realized through collegiate work in the atmosphere of open debate and equal rights and responsibilities. That atmosphere reigns both within the governing bodies of the party and local subdivisions as well as The Primary organizations. The meetings of all party bodies are open to its members and supporters as well as in many cases to all interested citizens.

We believe that democratic reforms in Armenia are not possible to implement without ensuring internal democracy in the activities of the political parties and other organizations. We are also positive that it is thanks to this policy that MIAK activities are effective and competitive in the political field.

Personnel Rotation One of the important benchmarks of MIAK is the rotation of party personnel of all levels which started as early as the second Congress of the party in December 2007. Based on internal democracy and personnel rotation principles the MIAK acting Board and Secretary General submitted their resignations and a new Board and Secretary General were elected. According to the established tradition personnel rotation was also exercised during the third party Congress, which took place in March 2009. The rotation principle provides all MIAK members with the opportunity to satisfy their ambitions and have a chance to participate in the process of governing the party and resolving issues.

Ideology MIAK has always stood firm with its ideology. This can be seen by the activities of the party during the 2007 parliamentary (Second Generation Reforms Program) and the 2008 presidential (10 reasons-10 expectations) elections, as well as during subsequent activities. MIAK is a liberal national party and its activities are aimed at moving this ideology forward and supporting the further implementation of liberal reforms in Armenia.

Personnel Potential MIAK has a strong list of members, which includes many young professionals who have serious scientific and educational experience with professional successes in Armenia and overseas. These professionals are ready to contribute their skills and knowledge to the process of Armenia’s development and competitiveness.

Liberal Environment MIAK is also unique for its internal liberal spirit. It encourages even the most daring initiatives of members and creates an atmosphere of constant internal debate. The absence of a line between the party governing bodies and its rank-and-file members contributes to the development of a party spirit which combines together a large scope of opportunities for young people, whether members or not, in participating in various MIAK programs.

Electronic Member Enrollment Opportunities Amongst other innovations should be highlighted the opportunity for electronic enrollment of members. Any person who wants to become a party member can fill out the electronic version of Membership Application form on the MIAK web site.

Role of Women Finally one of the most important fundamentals of MIAK (which makes it special even beyond the borders of Armenia) is the number of women in the party.

The majority of MIAK members are women. Not only is this a matter of pride for MIAK, but it also proves the real presence of our democratic strengths. If MIAK had not exercised the principles of internal democracy, equality of members, rotation of personnel, internal debate and liberal spirit not many young women would have wanted to become members of our organization and get actively involved in its work. We are sure that women, especially the representatives of the new generation, have to actively participate in the socio-political life and future development of Armenia.

MIAK leads it by its own example.

GOVERNING OF THE PARTY

The strategic decisions in MIAK are made by the Congress of the party which is the supreme body of MIAK that meets at least once a year.

The day-to-day activities of the party are governed by the MIAK Board elected annually by the Congress. The Board is composed of the permanent Secretariat and ordinary Board members. The Board and the Secretariat are chaired by the Secretary General of the party, who is elected by the Board from among the members of the Secretariat for usually not more than one year.

In MIAK there are also the Statutory and Supervisory Committees.

The party Statutory Committee examines the compliance of decisions made by other party structures with the party Program or Charter. In case these decisions with the exception of Congress decisions contradict to the party Program or Charter, they will be suspended by the Statutory Committee. The latter is authorized to make comments and clarifications as to the separate provisions in the Charter and Program.

The MIAK Supervisory Committee is the body implementing supervision over the usage of material and financial resources of the party.

In the regions of Armenia the party activities are governed by territorial subdivisions of MIAK which incorporate the primary organizations of every local community.

MEMBERSHIP

Any Armenian citizen 18 years old or more who accepts the MIAK Charter can voluntarily become a MIAK member. MIAK member cannot be a member of any other Party.

To become a MIAK member one needs to fill out the MIAK Membership Application which can be obtained from any MIAK office or downloaded from MIAK website.

All MIAK members have to be registered in one of MIAK`s territorial subdivisions.

Any individual who have Armenian voting rights can become a member of MIAK with a limitation of not being able to become elected to MIAK governing and supervisory bodies.

After completing the Membership Form you will be contacted by a representative of MIAK headquarters or regional office of your place of residence and provided with full support on all issues related to MIAK membership.