C Explanatory memorandum by Ms de Pourbaix-Lundin,
rapporteur for opinion
1 Introduction
1 I would like to congratulate
the rapporteur of the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy,
Mr Jean-Charles Gardetto, on his thorough and comprehensive report.
2 As a member of the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy,
I had the opportunity to take part in the discussions that led to
the adoption of Mr Gardetto’s report. I am pleased to say that many
issues falling under the remit of the Committee on Equality and
Non-Discrimination were incorporated in Mr Gardetto’s report, including
women’s representation and the political participation of minorities.
3 In the present opinion, I will limit myself to highlighting
some issues of special concern for the Committee on Equality and
Non-Discrimination. I would also like to mention that some of my
concerns have been adequately addressed by my colleague Ms Maria
Stavrositu (Romania, EPP/CD) in her report on “Political parties
and women’s political representation”.
Note I would also like to recall the
relevance of the recent Conference of Speakers and Presidents of
Parliament of Council of Europe member States (Strasbourg, 20-21
September 2012) which examined, in one of its sessions, the state
of health of representative democracy.
Note
2 Representative
democracy is not in a crisis but can be improved
4 When speakers and presidents
of parliaments, gathered in Strasbourg last week, were asked whether representative
democracy was in a crisis, opinions were divided. Some acknowledged
the existence of a crisis while others rejected it outright. In
any case, the audience was unanimous in recognising the validity
of the model of representative democracy and that there is scope
for improving its practical implementation.
5 I agree with the general line held by the Committee on Political
Affairs and Democracy, which puts representativeness at the core
of the democratic character of elections. However, I would like
to propose an amendment to highlight that:
- aptitude to reflect the gender composition of the electorate
should be an essential element to be taken into account in the design
of electoral systems, immediately after the need to reflect political
views;
- in civic States, in which the fundamental criterion for
participation in politics is citizenship, ‘ethnicity’ per se should
not be an element to be taken into account in the design of electoral
systems. On the contrary, the presence of national or language minorities
should be an element to be taken into account, as recommended at
paragraph 8.1.7.
6 In the light of these considerations, I would like to propose
Amendment B.
3 Women’s unbalanced
representation in politics
7 The unbalanced representation
of women and men in elected bodies – at national, regional and local level
– is a long-standing shortcoming affecting the representativeness
of European democracies. Although the overall presence of women
in elected bodies has been increasing for several decades, progress
is at the same time slow and not uniform amongst Council of Europe
member States.
8 I generally agree with the concept expressed in paragraph
8.1.6 of the draft resolution but I think that it should be reworded.
9 First of all, it is not advisable to suggest that States should
combine mechanisms relating to electoral systems and internal party
functioning to promote increased representation of women in politics
because States should not interfere with internal party regulations
(except in exceptional circumstances). It would therefore be wiser
to ask States to put in place electoral mechanisms that promote
women’s representation – as already recommended by the Assembly
in a number of texts, the most recent being Assembly Resolution 1706 (2010)
on increasing women’s representation in politics through the electoral
system – while encouraging political parties to introduce voluntary
measures to the same end.
10 Furthermore, what is important is not so much encouraging
the electorate “to vote for women” but giving women the same opportunities
to be elected as men. This means that both States and political
parties, in their respective realms, should take measures to ensure
that women are not discriminated against in their political work,
and that they are given the same chances as men to reach leadership
positions, appear in the media and be visible to the electorate.
11 As a result, I would like to propose Amendment C.
4 Family voting
12 Family voting is an irregularity
which has been detected on several occasions during election observation
missions by the Parliamentary Assembly and other bodies. As summarised
by the Assembly in its Recommendation 1676 (2004) on women’s participation
in elections, “‘Family voting’ occurs in three ways: in group voting,
where a male family member accompanies one or more women relatives
into a polling booth; in open voting, when family groups vote together
in the open; and in proxy voting, where a male family member collects
ballot papers belonging to one or more women relatives and marks
those papers as he sees fit. ‘Family voting’ is an undemocratic
practice which disenfranchises women voters and should not be tolerated.”
13 In addition to the above-mentioned Assembly recommendation,
family voting is the subject of Recommendation 111 (2002) “Women’s
individual voting rights: a democratic requirement”, by the Congress of
Local and Regional Authorities.
14 I believe that this irregularity should be mentioned in the
draft resolution. Therefore, I propose Amendment A.
5 E-participation
15 A number of Assembly committees
have been seized for opinion on the report of the Committee on Political
Affairs and Democracy. I do not wish to overlap with some considerations
that may be raised by their rapporteurs for opinion. However, in
my conclusion, I wish to mention that democracy has also to keep
pace with modernity.
16 On the one hand, it is necessary for parliaments and governments
to engage with the electorate through new media and social networks
as, while the turnout in polling stations has fallen, political
participation has not necessarily decreased but has found new ways
to express itself. This would also allow for a stronger involvement
of youth in political life.
17 On the other hand, the advent of e-democracy may lead politicians
to accept “a broader understanding of citizenship, encompassing
persons and groups of persons permanently residing and integrated
in a political entity, irrespective of nationality”.
Note
