To the Issue of Local Referendums in Ukraine and Foreign Countries. Comparative Aspect
The article researches certain types of referendums in foreign countries to solve issues regarding an opportunity to implement this experience in Ukraine. The authors study peculiarities of referendum in Switzerland. Following the example of the United States of America the role of referendum as an effective tool to solve political, social and other problems has been presented. The authors analyze legislative regulation of local referendum institute in Poland. Attention has been focused on the meaning of imperative referendums which related to the issue of certain territories in Great Britain. The authors provided Ukrainian experience on local referendums. The article also distinguished between All-Ukrainian and local referendums. Referring to the draft law 'On Local Referendums', collisions, incompliance with international practice, lack of basic definitions which is necessary for the best efficiency of this institute as well as legal certainty have been found. The article has proposed to abolish legislative gap regarding regulation of local referendums in Ukraine. Opinion on the necessity to borrow foreign experience and implement nonbinding referendum as one of the institutes of direct democracy has been given. Attention has been focused on the necessity to increase legal awareness of population to prevent certain political parties from using this institute for lobbying of their interests. The authors focus on the need to develop legislative provisions aimed at regulating the mentioned issue to create a background for implementation of an imperative referendum which in turn will contribute to implementation of Constitutional provisions which relate to government by the people and people's participation in settlement of state affairs.