NGOs of Vinnytsia expressed their concern for the future Ukrainian electoral legislation. In Vinnytsia was held a roundtable initiated by the Agency for Legislative Initiatives, Committee of Voters of Ukraine, Ukrainian Center for Independent Political Research and Civic network OPORA, where experts, representatives of political parties, NGOs, active members of election commissions and journalists discussed possible amendments to the law on parliamentary elections.
According to the coordinator of CN OPORA Oleh Levchenko, discussions in the widest possible circle will help to form public position on the legislative amendments. If this position will be well-grounded, it will be more difficult for lawmakers to ignore it.
Participants of the discussion agreed, that Ukraine from the foreigners’ view is one of the biggest experimenters in conducting elections. We have tried every second system, not to mention the smallest nuances of the voting process, which are changing before every “fateful” election.
Between the most popular electoral systems in the world of democracy Ukrainians haven’t tried only one – proportional with open regional lists. And, apparently, they will not try it the next year: the government, as well as the opposition doesn’t have enough time to prepare to the next experiment. However, everybody discuss it already for a long time.
The other thing are already approved proportional and majority principles of legislature formation. Together with all its advantages, disadvantages, and opportunities for manipulation. It’s not a secret, that this opportunities are in fact usually discussed among the authors of the election laws.
There were nearly ten of them introduced, but only the document by the presidential working group seems to be left. Oppositionists say, that they refuse to participate the discussion until their opinions are not taken into consideration. Until that, they agreed to wait with open lists and start discussing the mixed system. In other words, will they give the government a green light? We’ll understand that on Thursday, when the Verkhovna Rada, according to its chairman Volodymyr Lytvyn, will start consideration of amendments to the election legislation.
By the way, by the eloquent coincidence, on the very Thursday will be held a meeting of the European Commission, where a final position on the further negotiations with Ukraine for signing the Association Agreement is going to be developed. And Ukrainian law on elections - is a litmus test for European aspirations of Ukraine along with resonant criminal prosecution of the opposition. Besides that, Ukrainian officials are trying to outwit Europe. All this was stated by the coordinator of electoral programs of the Civic Network OPORA Olha Aivazovska.
In June to the Venice commission was submitted the draft law on elections, developed by the Ministry of Justice, which had no legal status. Despite this, the Commission reviewed the project and its conclusions, sent in October, were quite stringent. For example, unprecedented fact that the Venice Commission for the first time in its practice tactfully recommended Ukraine to switch to a proportional system with open regional lists. Meanwhile, a bill by Yefremov and a group of people's deputies was registered in Parliament on October 10. It was almost the same document, analyzed by the Venice Commission, except for some articles that fundamentally differ from articles considered by the working group and, accordingly, does not reflect the position of the international community. In particular, the right of district commissions to withdraw majoritarian deputies from the registration on their own and without a clear list of reasons. There is also a problem in the territorial organization of elections: 10% difference in a number of votes between different districts, for example, gives possibility to delimit districts in such a way, that there will be more deputies from the East than from the West. This bill also contains norms which were recognized by the Constitutional court as unconstitutional. What means, that in case it will be approved, the European confidence in Ukraine will be definitely lost.
Deputy Director of the Institute for Global Transformation Oleksandr Koziar was talking about the way Ukraine will be seen on the international scene in case certain decisions will be taken by the legislators. He said that there are no perfect electoral systems, but there is different attitude to dutiful law enforcement.
It's important, that after conduction of elections, they were recognized in the world and in Ukraine as fare and democratic. It’s is easier to provide this than it seems to be. We need to adopt a clear, comprehensible law. The mechanism of it’
s implementation also should be clear, - stressed O.Koziar.
Experts, experienced in organization of local elections, know well the mechanism of its conduction and all those small details, which are almost not mentioned in the law, but still are highly important. Valerii Diakiv, who was the head of Regional election commission from 2006 to 2010, says that the worst things in the law are omissions or unclear prescriptions.
Formation of election commissions by this bill is not very different from previous elections. Parliament parties definitely will get a representation, and all others that intent to participate elections, are chosen by sortition. So, parties are put in unequal conditions again. The draft law provides obligatory trainings for executive staff of commissions, but who will conduct trainings and, what is most important - for whom, if the executive staff is not chosen yet, the draft law doesn’t specify. It’s also not specified who will work in election commissions, if a term for conduction elections will not be reasonably coordinated with capabilities of commission members under the conditions in our country. For example, in financing of work. Not even mentioning the wages of commission executives. Besides that, unofficial reward from political parties may be automatically considered as bribery of commission members.
A regulation of this bill, where is prescribed that district commissions which register majoritarian deputies, are formed in 60 days before elections, when parties are already allowed to agitate, is a violation of basic equal rights of candidates. Experts believe, that balanced representation of candidates in precinct election commissions is not possible in the present context.
Concerning financial aspect of organization and conduction of elections, the presidential bill also doesn’t eliminate possible machinations, - thinks the deputy of Vinnytsia city council Oleksandr Parvadov.
- I participated in all election campaigns since independence. Hence, I got the impression that since 2006 the qualitative composition of all participants of electoral process dramatically changed. Most people see elections as possible income: usually as agitators and observers in commissions work students, pensioners and unemployed. What kind of law knowledge there is, if I witnessed the voting of one election commission for a decision that directly contradicted the law? I remember from last elections a person who was a head of PEC from the Party of Regions, worked as an agitator in “Fatherland” headquarters and as an observer from one other political force.
The proposed draft law, according to O.Parvadov, doesn’t solve the problem of shadow campaign financing. Besides that, it abolishes broadcasting time and space in printed mass media at the state expense, what again puts contestants in unequal conditions.
By the way, before the roundtable organizers conducted a poll among activists of civic and political associations, election experts and journalists that proved almost complete solidarity of the public sector with the European institutions.
For example, 38% of inquired supported changing electoral system into proportional with open lists. Two thirds of respondents (most of them worked in commissions and are aware of practical use of election legislation) supported the extension of campaigning term to 120 days. Opinions on expediency of unification political parties in the blocks were equally divided. To compromise, was proposed rising a threshold for blocs to some extent. 55% of respondents propose to determine principles of territorial organization of the election process exceptionally by the law.
The majority also think that candidates must publish all information of public interest.
European and Ukrainian experts also agreed: changing rules before elections is definitely not a feature of democratic society. It’s rather an attempt to rewrite the law for, so to say, an advantage for yourself. Judging from the fact that the election code is not even discussed, the current attempt is not the last. Alas…