ZAGREB, Nov 12 (Hina) - The Croatian government has drawn up a final Constitutional bill on the rights of national minorities, which stipulates that members of minorities, which account for less than 1.5 percent of the total Croatian
population, have the right to the double voting. This means that at parliamentary elections, members of such minorities will have the right to cast ballots both for general lists of MPs and for their (minority) representatives.
ZAGREB, Nov 12 (Hina) - The Croatian government has drawn up a final
Constitutional bill on the rights of national minorities, which
stipulates that members of minorities, which account for less than
1.5 percent of the total Croatian population, have the right to the
double voting. This means that at parliamentary elections, members
of such minorities will have the right to cast ballots both for
general lists of MPs and for their (minority) representatives. #L#
This is also to be further regulated by a law on elections.
Under the existent law, each the Hungarian, Serb and Italian
minorities elect one of their representatives, and the ethnic
Czechs and Slovaks elect one of their representatives. The
remaining German, Ruthenian, Ukrainian and Jewish minorities
together elect one representative.
The bill on minority rights does not stipulate the double voting
right for any minority which makes up more than 1.5 percent of the
entire population, and this is only the Serb minority.
The bill regulates that at least one seat in the Sabor must be
ensured for a representative of the Serb minority, plus seats for
its representatives, the number of which is to be calculated by the
so-called non-fixed quota. This quota depends on the number of Serb
voters who turn out at the polls as against the number of all voters
who cast ballots. According to some calculations, this will enable
the Serb minority to have three to four representatives in the
Croatian parliament.
The non-fixed quota is not a new thing in the Croatian electoral
system. It was applied at the last parliamentary election for the
calculation of the number of seats for representatives of the
Croatian Diaspora.
The final bill on minority rights envisages that representatives of
minorities be chosen from lists of political parties or from slates
with independent candidates, in accordance to the election law.
This provision has caused fear among some minority deputies who are
afraid that thus not only minorities (but other factors) will elect
their representatives.
A deputy prime minister, Goran Granic, has said that a large part of
the current minority MPs were on political parties' lists.
Granic has added that minorites were not consulted for the
elaboration of the final version of the Constitutional bill on
their rights, given that the concept of the document remained the
same. Besides, those who have drawn up the final version respected
objections given during parliamentary debates and suggestions
given by the OSCE.
Asked whether the bill was harmonised between the (ruling)
coalition partners, Granic answered "I hope so."
Consultations with parliamentary parties are scheduled for
Wednesday. After that the bill is to be forwarded into the
government and parliamentary procedure.
(hina) ms sb