Code of Good Practice on Referendums
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Text
adopted by the Standing Committee, acting on behalf of
the Assembly, on 23 November 2007 (see Doc. 11435, report of the Political Affairs Committee, rapporteur:
Mr Van den Brande).
- Thesaurus
1. Referendums are an instrument of
direct democracy which belong to the European electoral heritage.
In recent years, recourse to this instrument in Council of Europe
member states has increased, as has the public perception of its
political impact: European citizens witnessed how the rejection
of the European Union Constitutional Treaty in some European Union
member states has had political repercussions in others, and has
forestalled, for the time being, the continuation of the ratification
process. Similarly, many Europeans followed closely the referendum
which led to the establishment of a new sovereign state: the Republic
of Montenegro.
2. While considering referendums as a positive means to enable
citizens to participate in the political decision-making process
and to bridge the distance between them and decision makers, the
Parliamentary Assembly has constantly demanded that the Council
of Europe, as an organisation devoted to the promotion and reinforcement
of democracy and the rule of law, establish clear and comprehensive
guidelines in this field.
3. The Assembly, therefore, welcomes the adoption of the Code
of Good Practice on Referendums by the European Commission for Democracy
through Law (Venice Commission), which enlarges on the Venice Commission’s
previous guidelines on constitutional referendums at national level,
complements the Council of Europe guidelines on referendums and
popular initiatives at local level, and is the natural counterpart
to the Code of Good Practice in Electoral Matters, adopted in 2003.
4. Considering that the adoption of the Code of Good Practice
on Referendums would enable member states to re-evaluate and, if
necessary, revise their legislation and practice in this field,
and in accordance with the procedure followed for the Code of Good
Practice in Electoral Matters, the Assembly decides to forward the
code of good practice to national delegations and parliaments so
that it can be applied in Council of Europe member states without
delay.
