Suchergebnisse

Referendum lokalne jest przykładem demokracji bezpośredniej. Jego istota zawiera się w powszechnym i bezpośrednim udziale uprawnionych obywateli w głosowaniu, z których każdy dysponuje jednym głosem, a decydujące znaczenie ma wola większości. Jego przeprowadzenie wymaga ustalenia rodzaju referendum (wiążące lub opiniodawcze) oraz prawidłowego sformułowania pytania referendalnego. Idea referendum lokalnego niesie ze sobą pewne ograniczenia: przedmiotowe i organizacyjne (zakłada pewną aktywność obywateli; często trudno o pełny racjonalizm w dokonywanym wyborze; sama formuła głosowania ogranicza pole dla ewentualnego kompromisu; przeprowadzenie wymaga czasu oraz wiąże się z koniecznością poniesienia znaczących kosztów). ; A local referendum is an example of direct democracy. Its essence is contained in the universal and direct participation of eligible citizens in voting in which everyone has one vote, and the willpower of the majority is decisive. Prior to a referendum it must be decided whether it will be binding or opinion-making while the questions to be asked in a referendum must be correctly formulated.The idea of a local referendum carries certain objective and organisational limitations (it assumes a certain initiative of citizens; the full rationalism of the choice made is not always obvious; and the voting formula limits the field to a possible compromise; it is also time consuming and it entails significant cost).

The author has analysed the following issues: Polish referenda traditions in the twentieth century, the currently applicable law contained in the Constitution of the Republic of Poland of 1997 and the Act of 2003, the modern referendum practice in Poland (subject and results of the referendum carried out in 1997, 2003 and 2015) and the legal limits of sovereign power (i.e. the subject of the Nation's admissible decision in a referendum). The paper also points to the prospects for a consultative referendum on the amendment to the Constitution, related to the initiative of the President of the Republic of Poland submitted on 3 May 2017. It concerns the involvement of citizens in the process of drafting the constitution from scratch, before work on its draft in the Parliament commences, a practice that has not had a precedent in our history. The author takes the view that, notwithstanding the flaws or shortcomings of the existing legal regulations and the negative past experience, a referendum may become a joint result of the work of a sovereign nation may strengthen the authority of the new constitution. ; Autor analizuje następujące problemy: polskie tradycje referendalne w XX w., obowiązujące uregulowanie referendum zawarte w Konstytucji Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej z 1997 r. i ustawie z 2003 r., współczesną praktykę referendum w Polsce (przedmiot i wyniki referendum przeprowadzonego w 1997, 2003 oraz 2015) oraz prawne granice władzy suwerena, czyli przedmiot dopuszczalnej decyzji Narodu w referendum. Wskazuje także perspektywy referendum konsultacyjnego w sprawie zmiany Konstytucji, związane z inicjatywą Prezydenta Rzeczypospolitej, zgłoszoną 3 maja 2017 r. Dotyczy ona zaangażowania obywateli w proces tworzenia konstytucji od początku, przed pracami w parlamencie, co nie miało precedensu w naszej historii. Wyraża pogląd, że niezależnie od wad obowiązującej regulacji prawnej i negatywnych doświadczeń wynikających z praktyki, referendum to może być dziełem suwerennego Narodu i wzmocnić autorytet nowej konstytucji.

This draft was inspired by the intention to describe the attitude of the political elites of contemporary Poland to referendums at the national level. To this end, reference is made to the opinions voiced in the period 1989–2011. Consequently, the analysis spans the experience of twenty two years, which is a sufficient period to identify certain regularities. The surveys conducted indicate that Polish citizens have the right to participate in a referendum, but they do not have a right to referendum, that is to initiate a public vote. This shape of the legal foundations for national referendum is a consequence of the fact that political elites are inclined to apply this institution of direct democracy only provided that it is beneficial to them. Therefore, at the national level there is only a top-bottom referendum (supervised by the political elite). It appears that it contradicts the possibility of treating this institution of direct democracy as equal to representative forms of governance. ; This draft was inspired by the intention to describe the attitude of the political elites of contemporary Poland to referendums at the national level. To this end, reference is made to the opinions voiced in the period 1989–2011. Consequently, the analysis spans the experience of twenty two years, which is a sufficient period to identify certain regularities. The surveys conducted indicate that Polish citizens have the right to participate in a referendum, but they do not have a right to referendum, that is to initiate a public vote. This shape of the legal foundations for national referendum is a consequence of the fact that political elites are inclined to apply this institution of direct democracy only provided that it is beneficial to them. Therefore, at the national level there is only a top-bottom referendum (supervised by the political elite). It appears that it contradicts the possibility of treating this institution of direct democracy as equal to representative forms of governance.

This draft was inspired by the intention to describe the attitude of the political elites of contemporary Poland to referendums at the national level. To this end, reference is made to the opinions voiced in the period 1989-2011. Consequently, the analysis spans the experience of twenty two years, which is a sufficient period to identify certain regularities. The surveys conducted indicate that Polish citizens have the right to participate in a referendum, but they do not have a right to referendum, that is to initiate a public vote. This shape of the legal foundations for national referendum is a consequence of the fact that political elites are inclined to apply this institution of direct democracy only provided that it is beneficial to them. Therefore, at the national level there is only a top-bottom referendum (supervised by the political elite). It appears that it contradicts the possibility of treating this institution of direct democracy as equal to representative forms of governance.

The aim of this paper is a comparative analysis of legislative solutions and practical application of the direct democracy in Hungary and Albania after 1989. The legal changes that occurred during this period have guaranteed the citizens of both countries the tools to direct exercising the political power. Unfortunately, these tools have been almost immediately limited. The long-term political conflict, which effectively discouraged the public opinion to such activity, was responsible for this limitation in the case of Albania. Hungarians, on the other hand, have lost these rights as a result of unfortunate decisions of rulers, who were repeatedly changing the electoral law. The object of our attention will be especially institutional and legal differences determining the development (or regression) of the direct democracy in those countries. Main thesis of the article is the opinion that Hungary and Albania, regardless of their common experiences, represent two different models for adaptation of direct democracy solutions. ; Celem niniejszego artykułu jest odpowiedź na pytanie o miejsce instytucji referendum ogólnokrajowego w systemach politycznych Węgier i Albanii po transformacji ustrojowej 1989, zarówno w wymiarze legislacyjnym, jak i praktycznym. Zmiany prawne, które nastąpiły w tym okresie, zagwarantowały obywatelom obydwu państw narzędzia do bezpośredniego sprawowania władzy. Jednakże niemal natychmiast zmiany te były ograniczane. W przypadku Albanii zadecydował o tym wieloletni zamęt polityczny, który skutecznie zniechęcił społeczeństwo do aktywności referendalnej. Węgrom uprawnienia te stopniowo odbierały natomiast decyzje poszczególnych rządów zmieniających wielokrotnie ordynację wyborczą. Przedmiotem naszego zainteresowania będą różnice instytucjonalne i prawne determinujące stan demokracji bezpośredniej w obydwu państwach. Główna teza artykułu opiera się na opinii, że Węgry i Albania, niezależnie od ich wspólnych doświadczeń, reprezentują dwa różne modele adaptacji rozwiązań demokracji bezpośredniej.