Suchergebnisse

Iako su SAD jedna od država koja ne predviđa oblike neposredne demokracije na razini federacije, ustavi članica američke federacije prihvaćaju instituciju ustavne i zakonodavne inicijative – jedan od ključnih elemenata za njihovo razlikovanje od Ustava SAD-a. Građani 24 savezne države SAD-a neposredno su od 1904. do kraja 2005. odlučivali o 2.155 ustavnih i zakonskih prijedloga, u 21. stoljeću Amerikanci očekuju širenje novog ustavnog populizma – uporabe institucija neposredne demokracije. Autorice tumače ustavna rješenja i stvarne učinke primjene navedenih institucijana oblikovanje državne politike u tim državama. ; Although the USA is one of the states that does not have provisions for the forms of direct democracy at federal level, the constitutions of American federal states have accepted the institute of constitutional and legal initiative, which is one of the key elements that differs them from the Constitution of the United States of America. The citizens of 24 American federal states directly decided about 2,155 constitutional and law drafts between 1904 and 2005. The American people expect the institutions of direct democracy to be used more extensively in the 21st century. The authors explain constitutional solutions and the effects of implementation of these institutes on the shaping of state policies in the respective federal states. The institute is used for bypassing the state legislatures in order to limit their freedom of action by constitutionalising the political choices. Tax- -reduction initiatives limit the revenues legislatures can levy and spend, and thus control the damage. This institute is becoming a means of launching changes in different public areas, such as taxes and expenditures, campaign financing, public education. However, the state legislatures can limit effects of the successful initiatives by withholding financial aid necessary for their implementation. State policy does not finish at the moment the initiatives are adopted by citizens. Sanctions depend on citizens' ability to establish the facts about the compliance with the decisions made by direct citizens' participation, and on clarity of the texts adopted by initiatives.

Hrvatski ustav promijenjen je 2010. godine kako bi se snizili uvjeti za provedbu neposredne demokracije na nacionalnoj razini, te na taj način spasio referendum o članstvu Hrvatske u Europskoj uniji od vjerojatnog neuspjeha. Od tada je u Hrvatskoj došlo do naglog uspona građanskih inicijativa putem kojih je zaustavljana provedba nekoliko vladinih reformskih prijedloga. Stoga se može reći da je u Hrvatskoj recentna privlačnost neposredne demokracije stvorila novo okružje za djelovanje predstavničke demokracije. Počevši od teorijskih razmišljanja, ovaj članak analizira praksu neposredne demokracije u odabranim tranzicijskim zemljama, koja bi mogla biti poučna za Hrvatsku. Središnji dio članka razmatra prepreke na putu prema učinkovitoj provedbi neposredne demokracije u Hrvatskoj. ; In 2010 the Croatian Constitution was changed to lower the requirements for the implementation of direct democracy at the national level, in order to save the referendum on Croatia's EU membership from possible failure. Since then, Croatia has witnessed a sharp increase in people's initiatives that have managed to block a number of the government's reform proposals. Therefore, the newly discovered appeal of direct democracy in Croatia has created a new environment for the operation of its representative democracy. Starting from theoretical notions, this paper analyses the practice of direct democracy in selected transitional countries, which could be instructive for Croatia. In its central part, the paper explores the obstacle that stand in the way of the efficient implementation of direct democracy in Croatia.

Having reflected on the concept of direct democracy & the possibility of its implementation, the author focuses on Germany & Austria. It is not possible to hold a federal referendum in Germany, although the Basic law explicitly states that the people exercise their power also through referenda. After analyzing the Weimar experience with direct democracy, the author argues that the reasons why there are no direct democracy mechanisms at the federal level do not lie in the "bitter experience of the Weimar Republic." Having considered the implementation of direct democracy mechanisms in the German provinces & in Austria, the author concludes that Germany & Austria are not the leading countries in employing direct democracy but they are surely not at the very back of the list. Adapted from the source document.

The texts focuses on constitutionalisation of democracy in the European Union and the phenomenon of democratic deficit through the failed Constitution for Europe and, thereafter, the Lisbon Treaty, which takes over the definition of democracy as the foundation of the European Union. In this context, the author also looks into the contribution of political scientist Zvonko Posavec, who was one of the first in Croatia to advocate the need for constitutionalisation of the European Union as a project of finalising the process of European integration. While writing about the need for constitutional foundation of the European Union, Posavec simultaneously reflects on representative democracy as the form of democracy on which the European Union is predominantly founded. Beside a valorisation of Posavec's works on democracy in the European Union, this paper deals with the problem of the democratic deficit in the European Union which is manifest in the lack of democratic legitimacy of EU institutions, with the sole exception of the European Parliament. The author finds, however, that the main deficit of the European Union is not the democratic process, but political alienation. He perceives the latter as alienation of citizens from the EU as a derivative community, non-transparent and distanced from the basic interests of the citizens and the media interest in politics. Although the European Union declaratively relies on basic democratic values, in practice democracy is experienced primarily through a democratic deficit contrasted by a more obvious bureaucratic surfeit of the European political construction. The author asserts that the Lisbon Treaty was a step towards founding the EU on democratic principles inasmuch as it introduced elements of participative democracy, although it did not accept proposals for introduction of direct democracy in the EU. Finally, the author puts forward some ideas which might reduce the degree of political alienation of citizens in relation to the European Union; this requires giving greater authority to the European Parliament, abolishing the monopoly of the legislative initiative of the European Commission, incorporating the Council of the European Union into the European Parliament as the second House, i.e. the European Senate, and consequently implementing the mechanism of consulting the citizens regarding the legislative initiatives of the EU. The author concludes that the democratic deficit and political alienation cannot be overcome in the European Union without overcoming the democratic deficits and concrete forms of political alienation in the member states which the European Union consists. Adapted from the source document.

Nedavno održani referendum o izlasku Ujedinjenog Kraljevstva iz Europske unije te najave budućih referenduma u drugim državama članicama, uz pozivanje na prvenstvo "volje naroda", nameću potrebu podrobnijeg istraživanja stvarne uloge neposrednog odlučivanja građana u Uniji. Ovaj rad pridonosi tome analizom temeljnih problema s kojima se, kao složeni politički sustav, Unija mora nositi. Oslanjanjem na usporedno federalističko iskustvo ističemo dvostruki problem višerazinskog političkog prostora te problem prevođenja ovlasti i osporavanja takva prijevoda izravnodemokratskim putem. Te dvije teškoće zajedno dovode do toga da je od izravnog sudjelovanja građana u odlučivanju o "europskim pitanjima" teško očekivati ikakav siguran ishod. ; The purpose of this paper is to present two basic ways in which a path has been laid for EU citizens to directly participate in decision-making on issues related to the Union, and to analyse the main obstacles for them to functioning. The direct participation criterion removed from our attention those forms of citizen engagement that rely on intermediaries who are either elected national or European representatives, or are embodied in civil society organisations. The idea of participation should have covered two fundamental instruments that directly relate to citizens: national referenda on European issues and the European Citizens' Initiative. Our analysis shows that there are several obstacles in the construction of the Union which have a significant effect on any reference to the directly expressed will of the people. The basis of this great number of problems is certainly the specific multi-layered political arena of the Union, which, on one hand, weakens any national referendum in terms of its supranational significance, and, on the other hand, imposes on citizens, through the European Citizens' Initiative, high requirements to adapt to the logic of supranational mechanisms. When considering the complaints that are usually directed at the direct decision-making of citizens, the idea of establishing a direct link between the Union and the citizens of particular Members States still has a long path of development before it.

In this article the author analyses the innovations in the Treaty of Lisbon, in particular the ones related to the status of European citizenship, i.e. European citizens. Accordingly, he points out the fact that many authors who investigate the significance and reach of the Treaty of Lisbon as a constitutional surrogate fail to see the important innovations related to consolidation and development of the concept of European citizenship. In the first part, the author sketches out the evolution of the European citizenship concept from the first founding treaties of the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Community. He concludes that the Treaty on European Union and the constituting of the EU as a supranational political community sui generis marked the beginning of practical realization of the European citizenship concept. This was carried out primarily through policy-measures and pilot-programmes, and then the discussion on the European Constitution incited the shift to a higher level of affirmation of European citizenship. The problem of European citizenship as a political project of construction of an European demos encounters many difficulties and contradictions, and the Treaty of Lisbon links the realization of European citizenship with the spreading of democracy, which has been at the roots of the European integration process from the originally projected model of representative democracy to the model of participative and immediate (direct) democracy. For this reason, the "European citizens' initiative" is an important innovation which provides a new stimulus to the realization of the European citizenship concept. It remains uncertain, however, how firmly this political idea can be established if in some of the EU member-states citizens are still treated as nationals, i.e. if they do not participate in public affairs of their nation-state as much as they should participate even at the very top of the pyramid of a multi-level governance system such as the EU. Adapted from the source document.

Nedavno održani referendum o izlasku Ujedinjenog Kraljevstva iz Europske unije te najave budućih referenduma u drugim državama članicama, uz pozivanje na prvenstvo "volje naroda", nameću potrebu podrobnijeg istraživanja stvarne uloge neposrednog odlučivanja građana u Uniji. Ovaj rad pridonosi tome analizom temeljnih problema s kojima se, kao složeni politički sustav, Unija mora nositi. Oslanjanjem na usporedno federalističko iskustvo ističemo dvostruki problem višerazinskog političkog prostora te problem prevođenja ovlasti i osporavanja takva prijevoda izravnodemokratskim putem. Te dvije teškoće zajedno dovode do toga da je od izravnog sudjelovanja građana u odlučivanju o "europskim pitanjima" teško očekivati ikakav siguran ishod. ; The purpose of this paper is to present two basic ways in which a path has been laid for EU citizens to directly participate in decision-making on issues related to the Union, and to analyse the main obstacles for them to functioning. The direct participation criterion removed from our attention those forms of citizen engagement that rely on intermediaries who are either elected national or European representatives, or are embodied in civil society organisations. The idea of participation should have covered two fundamental instruments that directly relate to citizens: national referenda on European issues and the European Citizens' Initiative. Our analysis shows that there are several obstacles in the construction of the Union which have a significant effect on any reference to the directly expressed will of the people. The basis of this great number of problems is certainly the specific multi-layered political arena of the Union, which, on one hand, weakens any national referendum in terms of its supranational significance, and, on the other hand, imposes on citizens, through the European Citizens' Initiative, high requirements to adapt to the logic of supranational mechanisms. When considering the complaints that are usually directed at the direct decision-making of citizens, the ...

Ovaj rad ispituje pravne odraze autonomije političkog predstavništva u kontekstu tekuće pandemije. U njemu se iz vizure ustavne teorije razmatraju dva događaja. Jedan je odluka Ustavnog suda o izbornosti uvjeta ograničenja temeljnih prava. Drugi su građanske inicijative kojima se Sabor nastoji prisiliti na pridržavanje tih uvjeta. Koristeći koncept ustavne šutnje kao instrument, ova se dva razvoja povezuje kako bi se istražilo prostore koje Ustav Republike Hrvatske ostavlja političkim praksama, ali i moguće djelovanje građanskih inicijativa na njih. Svrha je toga tvrditi da se građanske inicijative ne može smatrati neustavnima ako ne pokušavaju nadglasati legitimne ustavne šutnje političkog predstavništva. ; In this paper author explores the legal dimensions of the autonomy of the legislature in the context of the current pandemic. The paper is situated in Croatian constitutional theory and is written against the background of two developments. The first one is a decision of the Constitutional Court of Croatia that authorized the Croatian parliament to avoid a more demanding procedure for adopting the restrictions of fundamental rights enacted in the pandemic. The second development is the use of ballot initiatives to force the parliament to adhere to this procedure. Using the concept of constitutional silences as a tool, I bring these two developments together to explore what are the spaces for unwritten political rules left by the Croatian Constitution and how does the ballot initiative challenge them. I do this to argue that ballot initiatives should not be considered unconstitutional when they do not attempt to override legitimate constitutional silences of parliamentary representation.

Ovaj rad ispituje pravne odraze autonomije političkog predstavništva u kontekstu tekuće pandemije. U njemu se iz vizure ustavne teorije razmatraju dva događaja. Jedan je odluka Ustavnog suda o izbornosti uvjeta ograničenja temeljnih prava. Drugi su građanske inicijative kojima se Sabor nastoji prisiliti na pridržavanje tih uvjeta. Koristeći koncept ustavne šutnje kao instrument, ova se dva razvoja povezuje kako bi se istražilo prostore koje Ustav Republike Hrvatske ostavlja političkim praksama, ali i moguće djelovanje građanskih inicijativa na njih. Svrha je toga tvrditi da se građanske inicijative ne može smatrati neustavnima ako ne pokušavaju nadglasati legitimne ustavne šutnje političkog predstavništva. ; In this paper author explores the legal dimensions of the autonomy of the legislature in the context of the current pandemic. The paper is situated in Croatian constitutional theory and is written against the background of two developments. The first one is a decision of the Constitutional Court of Croatia that authorized the Croatian parliament to avoid a more demanding procedure for adopting the restrictions of fundamental rights enacted in the pandemic. The second development is the use of ballot initiatives to force the parliament to adhere to this procedure. Using the concept of constitutional silences as a tool, I bring these two developments together to explore what are the spaces for unwritten political rules left by the Croatian Constitution and how does the ballot initiative challenge them. I do this to argue that ballot initiatives should not be considered unconstitutional when they do not attempt to override legitimate constitutional silences of parliamentary representation.

Ovaj članak analizira razlike između konsocijacijske i centrifugalne demokracije, nudeći pojmovni pregled tih dvaju modela i uspoređujući ih na primjerima Švicarske i Bosne i Hercegovine. Po prvi se put modelu demokracije u Bosni i Hercegovini pripisuje pojam centrifugalne demokracije. Takvo određenje potvrđuje se analizom povijesnog razvoja institucija te analizom postojećih glavnih društvenih rascjepa i sukoba među političkom elitom. Razvoj konsocijacijske demokracije na primjeru Švicarske analizira se od 1848. godine, a centrifugalna demokracija u Bosni i Hercegovini od 1878. godine. U članku se također razmatraju "politički korektivi" koji stabiliziraju i aktivno usmjeravaju rad političkih elita u Švicarskoj i Bosni i Hercegovini. To su referendum i pučka inicijativa u prvom slučaju te prisutnost međunarodne zajednice u drugom slučaju. Zaključno se razmatra možebitni proces transformacije bosanskohercegovačkog poretka iz centrifugalne u konsocijacijsku demokraciju i oprimjeruje se potencijalnim inovacijama u institucionalnom dizajnu koje bi slijedile švicarski model. ; This paper analyzes differences between consociational and centrifugal democracy. It offers a conceptual framework for the two models and compares them through the Swiss and Bosnian Herzegovinian cases. For the first time, the concept of centrifugal democracy is attributed to the Bosnian-Herzegovinian model of democracy. This attribution is confirmed through an analysis of the historical institutional development, and of existing cleavages and conflicts among political elites. The development of Swiss consociational democracy is examined since 1848, while the development of Bosnian-Herzegovinian centrifugal democracy is assessed since 1878. The paper also considers "political correctives", which stabilize and direct the work of political elites in Switzerland and Bosnia and Herzegovina. These comprise referenda and popular initiatives in the first case and international community in the second case. The paper concludes with an assessment of a possible process of transformation of Bosnian-Herzegovinian centrifugal democracy into consociational democracy, and provides examples of potential institutional innovations that would follow the Swiss model.

Uvođenje mjesnih zajednica kao samoupravnih jedinica unutar općine bilo je oblik jačanja društvenoga samoupravljanja i socijalističke izravne demokracije u Jugoslaviji te, prema marksističkoj teoriji, dio procesa odumiranja države. Začetke donosi Ustav iz 1963., no tek Ustavom iz 1974. mjesne su zajednice postale obavezan oblik samoupravnoga organiziranja građana. Zamišljene kao svojevrsne proširene obitelji, umnogome su ovisile o inicijativi odozdo i djelovanju aktivista. Rad donosi teorijske pretpostavke i praktične aspekte aktivističkoga djelovanja u mjesnim zajednicama u raznim dijelovima Jugoslavije, a na temelju analize uspostavljaju se karakteristični tipovi aktivista koji su određeni generacijskim, klasnim i interesnim odnosima. Podaci se ponajviše crpe iz onodobne literature, specijaliziranoga lista Mjesna zajednica i arhivskoga gradiva. ; After the experience with people's committees, small municipalities, and residential communities, socialist Yugoslavia began introducing local communities as self-governing units and communities of citizens within the new, larger municipalities. They were a way of strengthening social self-management and socialist direct democracy and, according to Marxist theory, envisioned as part of the withering away of the state, and therefore part of the process of de-bureaucratisation and humanisation of social relations. The foundations of the new socio-political organisation were set down by the 1963 Constitution, but it was only the 1974 Constitution that established local communities as one of the core parts of the socio-political system and a compulsory form of citizens' self-government organisation. Envisioned as something akin to extended families, they were greatly dependent on initiatives from below, on the energy, enthusiasm, and free time of interested citizens. Therefore, this paper attempts to answer the following questions: how was the concept of local communities envisioned; did citizens' interest reach the expected level, and who were the activists among them; what prompted their enthusiasm, and how did they understand their activities? Based on our analysis, we establish the characteristic types of activists determined by generational, class, and interest relations. In defining the theoretical and practical aspects of social self-government in local communities, the paper refers to the Programme of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia, constitutional and legal provisions, and the theoretical tenets of the actors of that period. Our approach also considers the then and current papers from the field of administrative sciences. The everyday and practical activities in local communities are analysed based on the writings published in Mjesna zajednica (Local Community), the specialised monthly of the Conference for the Development of Local Communities, which acted as part of the Socialist Alliance of the Working People of Yugoslavia, as well as archival data from the fond of the Republican Conference of the Socialist Alliance of the Working People of Croatia.

Demokracije su u opasnosti da će ih zadaviti populistički demagozi, koji se postavljaju kao jedini i istinski vođe "naroda", i koji zanemarujući ustavnu "strukturu slobode", parlamentarnu supremaciju, kontrolu sudova i, nadasve, ustavna ograničenja dovode u izravnu vezu s odlučivanjem biračkog tijela. Referendumi se sve više koriste za donošenje određenih odluka koje ne mogu proći u parlamentu. Tvrdi se da ne smije postojati nikakva prepreka vlasti naroda. Ovaj je fenomen najpoznatiji liberalni časopis The Economist obilježio novom riječju referendumanijom u kojoj se referendum izravno povezuje s manijom. U okolnostima kada televizija i Internet pokazuje svu bijedu brojnih skupština i to ne samo u novim već i u zrelim demokracijama taj je fenomen dobio punu simpatiju šire javnosti. Nakon što je u Velikoj Britaniji toj matici svih parlamenata referendum o Brexitu iskorišten kao instrument političke borbe što je dovelo do tekućeg "pretapanja" visoko cijenjenog britanskog političkog sistema izgleda da se ispunilo najgore moguće proročanstvo o napredovanju populističkih snaga u velikom broju europskih država. Republika Hrvatska je već dugo izložena takvim ugrozama od strane političkih grupa koje se ekstremno protive politici Vlade, počam od katoličkih konzervativaca a odnedavno i sindikalista. Zahvaljujući neadekvatnoj regulaciji refrerenduma o građanskim inicijativama gdje se ne govori o nikakvom kvorumu već se odluka donosi većinom onih koji glasuju mogućnosti manipulacije su ogromne. U postojećim okolnostima trajne konfuzije, brojni političari koji su već izjavili svoju namjeru da će ukoliko budu izabrani za Predsjednika Republike takav referendum koristiti radi uklanjanja svih kontrola i provjera koje postoje između šefa države i "naroda". Imajući u vidu krizu demokracije i smatrajući takve prijetnje sasvim ozbiljnim autor naglašava potrebu da se jednim međustranačkim dogovorom stvore uvjeti kojima bi se referendum uz odgovarajuću regulaciju uklopio u deemokreatski sistem ustavne demokracije. ; Democracies are at risk to be strangled by the populist demagogues, posturing as the only and true leaders of 'the people', while disregarding constitutional "structure of liberty", meaning that, the parliamentary supremacy, judicial review and, above all, the constitutional limits to the very direct decision making by the voters' constituencies. Referenda are being used ever more, often to push certain decision, which could not pass the parliament. The claim is that there must not be any limits to the power of the people. That phenomenon the most esteemed liberal magazine "The Economist" nicknamed coining the word "referendumania", apparently combining 'a mania' with 'referenda'. It has been received with a lot of sympathy by the general public, in circumstances when the television and the Internet shows all the misery of the numerous assemblies, not only in a new but also in the mature democracies. After the referendum on the Brexit has been used as an instrument of the political struggle in the mother of parliaments, Great Britain, which lead to the ongoing "melting down" of the highly valued British political system, it seems that the worst of prophecies are realized by advancing populist forces in a number of Euroepan states. Republic of Croatia has been for a long time exposed to such treats, by the political groups extremely opposed to governmental policies, first by the Catholic conservatives and most recently by the trade unionists. Due to the very inadequate regulation of the referenda on civil initiatives, whereas the decision is to be made by a majority of those who vote, without any quorum being provided, the posibilites of manipulation are enormous. In the lasting confusion, a number of politicians has already proclaimed their intention, if elected the president of the Republic, to use such a referendum in order to remove all the checks and balances between the chief of state and "the people". Taking such treats very seriously in the existing crisis of democracy, the author emphasizes hi plead for an interparty agreement which would enable the referendum to be properly regulated and thus incorporated into the system of a democratic constitutional democracy.

Hrvatska i Slovačka imale su tijekom 1990-ih državnike s autoritarnim tendencijama vladanja. To je na različite načine bilo povezano i s institucijom predsjednika države te je 1999., odnosno 2000. ustavnim promjenama koje su se ticale i te institucije uspostavljen parlamentarni sustav s izravno izabranim predsjednikom. U ovom radu pokušava se utvrditi je li to utjecalo na funkcioniranje sustava vlasti i konsolidaciju demokracije. S obzirom na to da su promjene trebale spriječiti pojavu novih autoritarnih državnika, pretpostavka je da su one trebale pozitivno utjecati na demokratsku konsolidaciju. S druge strane, uvođenje parlamentarnoga sustava s izravno izabranim predsjednikom stvara opasnost da će ustavno slab predsjednik pozivom na svoju veliku legitimnost, dobivenu na izravnim izborima, nastojati zadobiti ovlasti koje mu ne pripadaju. Sustav će zbog toga imati obilježja defektne demokracije, a neće se pretvoriti u konsolidiranu liberalnu demokraciju. Usporedbom ustava i političke prakse pokušava se dobiti odgovor na to. ; In the 1990s, Croatia and Slovakia had statesmen with authoritarian tendencies. This was in many ways associated with the institution of the president and the 1999 and 2000 constitutional reforms, which were connected with this institution, established a parliamentary system with a directly elected president in those countries. This paper tries to determine if that affected the functioning of the system of government and the consolidation of democracy. Given that those changes were meant to prevent the emergence of new authoritarian statesmen, premise is that they should have had a positive impact on democratic consolidation. On the other hand, the introduction of a parliamentary system with a directly elected president created a risk that a constitutionally weak president, by calling on his great legitimacy acquired by direct vote, would strive to get powers that do not belong to him. The system would therefore receive the characteristics of a defective democracy and would not turn into a consolidated liberal democracy. By comparing constitutions and political practice we try to get an answer to this question.