The Parliamentary Committee for Comprehensive Electoral Reform will submit to the Ministry of Justice proposals from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) for amendments to the Criminal Code (CC) of Montenegro in the section on electoral rights, which, among other things, provide for stricter penalties for giving and receiving bribes, bribing MPs and councilors, forging voter signatures, financing from abroad...
This was announced to "Vijesti" by the co-chairman of the Committee Nikola Rakočević (Democratic Party of Socialists), stating that the Ministry of Justice is responsible for amendments to that regulation, which, he claims, are planned for the last quarter of this year.
He said that he would send an urgent request to the justice department, because the Criminal Code is not within the jurisdiction of the Committee, which deals with the reform of electoral laws.
"... We will urgently request that the aforementioned suggestions from the non-governmental sector, which are a natural elaboration of the Law on Financing Political Entities and Election Campaigns, be included in the proposed amendments to the Criminal Code," said Rakočević.
"Vijesti" announced yesterday that the Center for Democratic Transition (CDT) proposed the introduction of four new provisions of the Criminal Code, as well as the amendment of one existing article of this regulation, suggesting that the new provisions should cover giving and receiving bribes for voting, bribing MPs or councilors, forging voters' signatures to determine the voter list, and concealing contributions and benefits, and they proposed amending Article 193v, accepting contributions from prohibited sources, i.e. from abroad.
Rakočević said that, at the initiative of the opposition, the CDT and the Center for Monitoring and Research (CEMI) have sent a set of "necessary amendments" to the Criminal Code, in order to "adequately and criminally sanction any violations by political parties in campaigns and regular work."
Words confirmed in practice
Executive Director of CDT Dragan Koprivica He told "Vijesti" that all political entities in Montenegro, who verbally advocate against election fraud, now have the opportunity to confirm this in practice.
"I don't see a single reason why anyone could be against combating electoral crime, which we have been witnessing for 25 years. All political entities in Montenegro, at least verbally, advocate against vote buying, money injecting from other countries, hiding donations, forging signatures for elections and buying MPs and councilors. Now they have the opportunity to advocate and confirm this in practice," he said.
He stated that the CDT's proposals are not directed against a specific political entity, regardless of whether it belongs to the government or the opposition, but that their "target" is lawbreakers.
"Those who believe that elections in Montenegro should continue to be won through criminal, illegal and dishonest actions. It is important to say that the European Union (EU) rightly draws attention to the inadequate framework for sanctioning illegal financing of political entities and election campaigns. 'The legal framework is not aligned with the recommendations of GRECO and ODIHR... it does not provide for effective safeguards and penalties for circumventing the rules,' the European Commission's non-paper states," Koprivica pointed out.
He stated that comprehensive electoral reform means “improvement in all areas, including this one.” He added that their key goal is to create the mechanisms required by the EU.
"... On the one hand, to be a means of deterring these acts, and if they do occur, to enable the police and prosecutors to act more effectively against those who want to change the will of citizens through crime. Without such protection, the very essence of democracy is threatened, leading to the erosion of trust in institutions and the deprivation of citizens' right to vote," the interlocutor assesses.
He said that they believe that "everyone is fed up with the talk" that there is no legal basis for prosecuting these acts, that there are no convictions and that "even though illegal acts have been proven."
"... Perpetrators most often get away with it even though they tried to strike at the very core of democracy - the will of citizens," said Koprivica.
He pointed out that during the discussion at the Committee on the Law on Financing of Political Entities, the CDT drew attention to the fact that there is no adequate framework for sanctions for criminal offenses in the area of electoral rights.
"We were asked for a proposal and it was forwarded to the Board and the public. We have carefully prepared the solutions in cooperation with experts in the field and we want them to serve as the beginning of a conversation about this very important part of the reform," he said.
Amendments to be in accordance with the Constitution
CIVIS MP and member of the Committee for Comprehensive Electoral Reform Maja Vučelić She told Vijesti that she expects the Committee to "carefully consider" all recommendations that are in the function of fighting corruption. She stated that the fight against political corruption must remain a priority for institutions, but on the condition that "any legal change is based on respect for constitutional rights and the principle of legal certainty."
"The CDT recommendations represent a contribution to the public debate on political corruption and its sanctioning mechanisms. I welcome any initiative aimed at strengthening the legislative framework in this area," she stressed.
However, the interviewee points out, it is extremely important to "protect fundamental democratic principles, including the right of elected officials to hold political positions without fear of criminal prosecution."
"Political affiliation and political stance cannot and must not be the basis for initiating investigations, without clear and proven indications of the commission of a criminal offense. That is why I believe it is necessary to set a clear line between legitimate political affiliation, depending on the context that is changing rapidly today, and political corruption. We must avoid solutions that could lead to dangerous abuses of the law for political purposes," said Vučelić.
She assessed that sanctioning political corruption, including influence peddling, vote buying, and misuse of public resources must be clearly defined and resolutely pursued, but that the fight against corruption must not be allowed to "become a means of settling scores with political dissenters."
"It is therefore important that any amendment to the Criminal Code is in line with the Constitution of Montenegro, international standards and European practice. The Committee has a responsibility to ensure that the law does not become an instrument of political pressure, but a mechanism for protecting the integrity of the electoral process," she said.
The co-chairs of the Committee did not respond to questions from "Vijesti" about whether the CDT recommendations are acceptable to them and their party, and whether they expect them to be adopted. Vasilije Carapić (Europe Now Movement), as well as members Ana Novaković Đurović (GP URA), Adrian Vuksanovic (Croatian Civic Initiative), Jelena Kljajević (Democratic People's Party) i Jovan Vučurović (New Serbian Democracy). Nikola Zirojevic (Social Democrats), Nikola Rovčanin (Democrats) and Nikola Camaj (Albanian Forum) could not answer the questions due to private reasons.
Criminal liability
Member of the Board Admir Adrović (Bosniak Party) told the newspaper that the CDT recommendations were acceptable to him.
"As far as I am concerned, I accept the recommendations of the CDT regarding amendments to the Criminal Code in terms of recognizing criminal offenses related to the electoral process. I believe that only if some offenses that occur during elections and are related to electoral activities were criminally prosecuted, as opposed to being considered misdemeanors, could we reach a zone where this would no longer happen or would happen to a significantly lesser extent," he said.
He said that "criminal acts" during election processes can only be prevented if a system is created in which breaking the law does not pay.
"I am aware that not everything can be standardized and predicted, but this would be significant from the standpoint of greater fairness in the electoral process," he added.
Asked whether he expected the Committee to adopt the recommendations, Adrović replied that he would advocate for this to happen, "at least in some optimal variant", but that he was not sure "whether it would happen in the Committee".
"I think that in general a compromise should be found at a higher political level for these changes," he said.
CEMI: Punish foreign funding, accepting prohibited contributions...
Fines and prison sentences for illegal financing of political entities from abroad, illegal financing by exceeding the legally permitted amount of contributions, accepting contributions from prohibited sources...
This is stated, among other things, in the recommendations that CEMI sent to the Committee for Comprehensive Electoral Reform, which "Vijesti" had access to.
For illegal financing of political entities from abroad, whether it comes from foreign countries, organizations, companies, anonymous donors, public institutions, companies with state capital, religious communities, the NGO sector, casinos, betting shops or the tobacco industry, CEMI proposes a fine or imprisonment of up to five years.
If a person within a political entity or legal entity is responsible for the violation, a penalty of one to three years is provided, with the possibility of a ban on performing activities.
For exceeding the legally permitted amounts of contributions, a penalty of six months to three years has been proposed, and for those responsible, including the media and agencies, a prison sentence of one to three years.
Contributions from prohibited sources will be confiscated, and if the responsible person knew that they came from such sources, especially from criminal activity, he faces a sentence of six months to five years in prison.
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