ZAGREB, June 18 (Hina) - The coordinator of Croatia's Opposition Six, Radimir Cacic, on Friday submitted a draft electoral law agreement between the Opposition Six and the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) to HDZ bench president
Vladimir Seks. Seks said the HDZ would voice its opinion next week. In the seven-item draft agreement, the Opposition Six sets several conditions to have a new electoral law reached by consensus. These are a public debate on the security and intelligence system, the establishment of a commission of inquiry which would probe into possible illegal influence on the services' work, the passing of a law on electoral units, changes to the law on Croatian Radio-Television, and to mutually agree on the date of the elections. A new condition is the passing of a code on inter-party relations. The Opposition Six requests consensus in scheduling the public deb
ZAGREB, June 18 (Hina) - The coordinator of Croatia's Opposition
Six, Radimir Cacic, on Friday submitted a draft electoral law
agreement between the Opposition Six and the ruling Croatian
Democratic Union (HDZ) to HDZ bench president Vladimir Seks.
Seks said the HDZ would voice its opinion next week.
In the seven-item draft agreement, the Opposition Six sets several
conditions to have a new electoral law reached by consensus.
These are a public debate on the security and intelligence system,
the establishment of a commission of inquiry which would probe into
possible illegal influence on the services' work, the passing of a
law on electoral units, changes to the law on Croatian Radio-
Television, and to mutually agree on the date of the elections.
A new condition is the passing of a code on inter-party relations.
The Opposition Six requests consensus in scheduling the public
debate, choosing the contents of a resolution on the security and
intelligence system, establishing the tasks, work methods, and
composition of the commission of inquiry, and in passing the
electoral legislation package and the mentioned code.
The parliament's first regular sitting in September has been
suggested as the ultimate deadline for realising the draft
agreement. It could be shortened in case the HDZ and the Opposition
Six agree on holding the elections as soon as possible, in which
case extraordinary parliamentary sittings could be convened in
July and August.
Seks told reporters the HDZ will respond to the proposals next week.
He added the Opposition Six had set two new conditions for an
agreement on the electoral law, namely the establishment of a
commission of inquiry and the passing of a law on electoral units
before the electoral law has been passed.
Seks did not want to prejudge how acceptable for the ruling party
the ultimatum on the establishment of the commission of inquiry
was.
Both Seks and Cacic explained a code on inter-party relations was
customary in several countries, whose experience could be used in
drafting Croatia's code.
Cacic said the code idea had been initiated by the HDZ, but added the
ruling party had suggested that the code refer to the post-election
period.
The initiative was acceptable, but we assessed the code should
refer to the period prior to the elections, Cacic said. He added the
Opposition was working on the code, using experts' opinions.
The Opposition Six comprises the Croatian Social Liberal Party, the
Liberal Party, the Social Democratic Party, the Istrian Democratic
Assembly, the Croatian Peasants' Party, and the Croatian People's
Party.
(hina) ha jn