Socialism and Freedom Party

Partido Socialismo e Liberdade (P -SOL, Party of Socialism and Freedom) is a left socialist party in Brazil.

Foundation

The P -SOL was founded in June 2004, after four left-wing politicians had been excluded because of their rejection of the constitutional amendment to their view, neoliberal pension reform in December 2003 from the Partido dos Trabalhadores ( PT) of President Lula. The four excluded is Heloísa Helena ( Senator, Alagoas ), Babá ( MP, Pará ), João Fontes ( Member, Sergipe, in the meantime, the party has left again) and Luciana Genro ( MP, Rio Grande do Sul ), which since the accession of Lula and the PT whose policies were criticized as neo-liberal, anti-socialist and as a capitulation to the right and the IMF. The excluded MPs joined a minority of the left PT- wing, so the currents Movimento Esquerda Socialista (MES ) Corrente Socialista dos Trabalhadores ( CST) and Liberdade e Revolução, independent left-wing organizations such as the Movimento Terra, Trabalho e Liberdade ( MTL), known left-wing intellectuals like Milton Fighting Temeraire, Carlos Nelson Coutinho, João Machado, and Francisco de Oliveira, a number of former members of other left-wing parties like the PCdoB and PSTU and previously unorganized to.

The P -SOL accuses Lula and the PT to have betrayed their previous socialist principles and set up in capitalism, instead of trying to overcome this.

At the local elections in the fall of 2004, the P -SOL could not participate because they had not yet collected at this time the necessary 438,000 signatures of support ( this goal has now been reached). Furthermore, the P -SOL has a not inconsiderable influence in the trade union confederation CUT - there especially among the teachers of the landless organization and MST in the intellectual life of Brazil. In the political debate, the P -SOL is, however, attacked from the press, the PT and in parts of the PT left as ultra- left and irresponsible by some other radical left such as the PSTU as opportunistic election party.

In March 2005, Geraldo Mesquita ( Senator, Acre ), the PSB previously belonged, the P -SOL followed, in September 2005 joined five other former PT deputies of the P -SOL at Ivan Valente and Orlando Fantazzini (both São Paulo ), Chico Alencar (Rio de Janeiro ), Maria José Maninha (DF ) and João Alfredo (Ceará ), at the same time also included the previously remaining in the PT flow Ação Popular Socialista, the P- SOL. For the 2006 presidential elections, the P -SOL with the PSTU and the PCB to the Frente de Esquerda ( " Left Front " ) has joined forces with the candidate of the Alliance for the presidency or vice presidency Heloísa Helena and the economist César Benjamin were elected.

In the presidential election of 2006 Heloísa Helena reached 6.85 percent of the vote, the result of the party at the same time held parliamentary elections fell 1.2 percent and three seats in the Chamber of Deputies more modest.

In the presidential elections of 2010, the P -SOL was represented by Plinio de Arruda political activist Sampaio, but reached only 0.9 percent of the vote. In the concurrent election to the Senate, the party won a mandate added ( now two), in the Chamber of Deputies remained their number of seats with three constant.