1913 2013
12 | Centenary of the international municipal movement · Centenaire du mouvement municipal international · Centenario del movimiento municipal internacional
The Second Break The second break in the life of IULA came with the Second World War, which totally ended all efforts towards democracy and peace building. The IULA was once more exiled, this time to London where Prof.H.Laski, esteemed British intellectual and one of the key figures of the Labour Party served as its ambassador. Following the Second World War and after the demise of Nazi and Fascist regimes (with the exceptions of Spain and Portugal) in Europe, certain initiatives were introduced for a sustainable democratic and peaceful life in different geographies of the world. ▲ IULA Family in 1948
In parallel to these initiatives, IULA’s 1947 Paris and 1949 Geneva Congresses’ main focal points were the contribution to global peace processes between the localities and cities of different nations. From the 1950s onwards IULA, as the premier international local government organisation, continued its efforts to promote democracy and peace, and to strengthen local governments and serve as the voice of the local / municipal world throughout the globe. In this context, IULA represented the interests of local governments on a variety of national and international platforms, including the United Nations and its various bodies, the European Council and the European Union. It undertook important Training and Development roles. IULA had members in a great number of countries spanning the continents. IULA had decentralized itself by the 1980s by setting up autonomous regional sections all over the world. The legendary H.V.Putten, the Secretary-General of IULA contributed immensly to these efforts.