MINSK, 14 April (BelTA) – More than 300 proposals regarding amendments to the electoral system and the conduct of referendums were submitted by the general public, Deputy Chairperson of the Constitutional Court, member of the Constitutional Commission Natalya Karpovich told reporters, BelTA has learned.
“At the session of the Constitutional Commission I spoke about proposals from individuals, organizations, public associations, and some political parties regarding amendments to Section III of the Constitution “The Electoral System. Referendum”. The public supports by and large the principles of the electoral system laid down in our Constitution, namely universal, equal and direct suffrage and secret ballot. Nevertheless, people put forward a number of proposals seeking to clarify and expand these principles in constitutional norms. More than 300 proposals of this kind were received,” Natalya Karpovich said.
In particular, these proposals dealt with changing age requirements and introducing age limits for taking part in elections and holding elective offices, so that voters make their political decisions more consciously. “There were proposals to drop certain constitutional restrictions for persons suspected of committing crimes. Restrictions were eased for persons recognized by the court as incapable. Thus, the right to elect and be elected is to be restricted only for those incapacitated persons who cannot make a decision due to their mental state,” the member of the Constitutional Commission said.
In addition, citizens deem it necessary to formalize broader social representation in constitutional provisions. First of all, this pertains to political parties. In this regard, antithetic proposals were received. Some people propose to preserve the majoritarian voting system, in which all deputies are elected by people, and each voter casts their ballot for a specific candidate. Others propose to introduce elements of proportional representation, that is, representation by political parties.
“Some people suggest amending and specifying electoral funding procedures and allowing candidates to use private funds. The Constitutional Commission will consider these matters in detail. Yet, the principle of equal opportunities for candidates and transparency of funding will remain unchanged,” Natalya Karpovich emphasized.
Some people want to ease procedures for recalling elected officials who did not measure up to voters' expectations. At the same time, others want to disallow this. “The Constitution allows recalling deputies, members of the Council of the Republic, and today this measure is actually not applied anywhere in the world, since it is believed that although a candidate was elected by a specific constituency, he/she already represents Belarus as a whole and still has a nationwide mandate, should vote in the parliament and work on the basis of that nationwide representation. Therefore, there was a proposal to remove this provision from the Constitution. Yet, some people want quite the opposite – a possibility to recall elected officials who did not measure up. It was proposed to be done through signature collection,” the member of the Constitutional Commission said.
The next set of questions had to do with the chapter of the Constitution that deals with the conduct of nationwide referendums. There were proposals to expand the circle of subjects who can initiate a referendum, to clarify the legal efficacy of a referendum and the decisions taken at it. “One of proposals concerns the possibility of preliminary verification of issues submitted to nationwide referendums, since this requires organizational efforts and financial resources. People suggest authorizing, for example, the Constitutional Court or another state body to scrutinize, issue an opinion or decide on the advisability of raising the issue at a referendum in this form,” Natalya Karpovich said.
According to her, all proposals will be studied by the Constitutional Commission taking into account international approaches and country-specific peculiarities.
The Constitutional Commission convened for a second meeting on 14 April to examine the proposals to change the constitutional provisions on the electoral system. The first meeting was held on 31 March. The commission will hold two meetings per month.
