Members of the Montenegrin parliament submitted to the parliamentary procedure the proposal for a decision on the establishment of the Committee for Comprehensive Electoral Reform, which, by the end of next year, should prepare draft laws and other acts, with the aim of establishing full public confidence in the electoral process.
The formation of the Committee was proposed by members of the parliamentary majority and the opposition.
As stated in the Proposal for the Decision on the Formation of the Committee, the task of that working body is a comprehensive reform and amendment of the electoral legislation, which implies the implementation of recommendations from the European Commission's progress report and the report of the OSCE/ODIHR mission.
The committee should define proposals for laws on the election of councilors and deputies, on the voter list, on the financing of political entities and election campaigns, and laws on residence and residency registers.
Among the tasks of that parliamentary body is the analysis of the application of the law on the identity card, on Montenegrin citizenship and on political parties, with the possible preparation of proposals for amendments to the law if they turn out to be useful and necessary for the realization of the set goals.
"Next, strengthening the overall capacities, professionalism and transparency of bodies important for election processes, including the State Election Commission and the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption, whose goal, among other things, is to strengthen the public's trust in their work," states the Draft Decision.
The task of the Committee is still to update and change the general ambient conditions for conducting elections, which includes defining the proposal of the Code of Ethics in election campaigns, defining the decision on the way to hold local elections in all local self-government units in one day.
The proposed decision on the establishment of the Committee stipulates that this temporary parliamentary body will have 14 members, that is, seven representatives each of the parliamentary majority and the opposition, with the co-chairman mode of presiding.
"The composition of the Board, including the co-presidents, is constituted in such a way that each group of deputies has at least one member of the Board, and the remaining part is proportional to the number of deputies in the club," it is written in the Draft Decision.
Exceptionally, as stated, a group of deputies that is represented in the Committee by two or more members has the right to cede the right to one more member in the Committee to another group of deputies.
"Co-presidents and members of the Board are elected by the Assembly, on the proposal of the working body responsible for election and appointment", it is emphasized in the Draft Decision.
Representatives of the non-governmental sector (up to three members) and the academic community - University (up to two members) can also participate in the work of the Board in the status of an associate member, without decision-making rights.
As stated in the Draft Decision, expert associates in MP clubs can also attend the Board sessions, without the right to active participation.
"Representatives of the Government, ministries and other state bodies, civil society, international organizations and institutions, as well as experts, consultants, scientific and professional workers in the field of the Board's work, can participate in the work of the Board, by invitation, without the right to decide," he adds in document.
The document states that the Board decides by consensus.
"Exceptionally, in the event that the principle of consensual decision-making cannot be achieved, and there is support from the members of the Board that guarantees the achievement of the necessary majority in the plenum, such a proposal can be established regardless of the lack of consensus," the Draft Decision states.
The board is obliged to prepare and submit to the Assembly for adoption by December 31 of the following year a draft law and other acts related to the purpose and tasks of that working body.
The proposed decision on the establishment of the Committee for Comprehensive Electoral Reform is on the agenda of the Assembly session that begins on Thursday.
The Legislature and the Committee for the Political System, Judiciary and Administration will first comment on the Proposal.
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