Left Ecology Freedom (Sinistra Ecologia Libertà , SEL; previously Left and Freedom, Sinistra e Libertà , SL) is a democratic socialist political party in Italy. The party's leader is Nichi Vendola.
According to party documents, SEL is the answer to "a dramatic vacuum at the left" and aims at building an alternative to modern capitalism and a left for the new century. "The "fundamental principles" of SEL are "peace and nonviolence, employment and social justice, knowledge and ecological reconversion of the economy and society".
According to official party figures, SEL had 125,074 registered members as of December 2012 making it the fourth-largest party in Italy. The majority of members are aged under 60.
Two independents close to SEL, Giuliano Pisapia and Marco Doria, are mayors of Milan and Genoa, respectively. Following 2013 general election, Laura Boldrini, a MP of SEL, was elected President of the Chamber of Deputies on 16 March 2013.
Read more about Left Ecology Freedom: Contents, Platform, Leadership, Symbols
Famous quotes containing the words left, ecology and/or freedom:
“It is the fate of heroines to be laughed at.”
—Jane O’Reilly, U.S. feminist and humorist. The Girl I Left Behind, ch. 7 (1980)
“... the fundamental principles of ecology govern our lives wherever we live, and ... we must wake up to this fact or be lost.”
—Karin Sheldon (b. c. 1945)
“In America a woman loses her independence for ever in the bonds of matrimony. While there is less constraint on girls there than anywhere else, a wife submits to stricter obligations. For the former, her father’s house is a home of freedom and pleasure; for the latter, her husband’s is almost a cloister.”
—Alexis de Tocqueville (1805–1859)