The referendum will remain affordable

If the "Narodniks" weaken the "United Russia" independent deputies introduced before the second reading the amendments to the scandalous draft of the Law "On Referendum", which makes it impossible to conduct popular voting at the initiative of citizens. If the amendments are adopted in the second reading, then the referendum will remain an accessible democratic tool. For this, not only the liberals that survived in the Duma spoke, but also members of the People’s Party, which are part of United Russia. If opponents of the law unite, then the "EP" will not be able to gain the necessary majority in 300 votes in order to pull their version of the bill. The opponents of the bill were already supported by the Commissioner for Human Rights Vladimir Lukin. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, the State Duma Committee on the Constitutional Legislation of the State Duma, which is headed by a member of the United Russia party Vladimir Pligin, approved only 30 of the 100 amendments proposed by opponents of the bill.

Independent deputies proposed to reduce by ten times - from 4,500 to 450 people - the number of initiative groups to collect signatures, abandon notarial certification of signatures and increase the period of their collection to 3 months. Independent deputy Viktor Pokhmelkin believes that the collection of 2 million signatures in the law in support of the referendum is a sufficient barrier to hold it: "No one for 9 years of the former law could collect such a number, so why complicate the procedure?"

The demartes could not pay attention to the demars if 15 deputies from the People’s Party consisting of the United Russia faction did not agree with them. “The law shows the desire of officials to manipulate people and complicate the holding of a referendum,” Gennady Gudkov, leader of the People’s Party, told the newspaper. Criticism of the bill was also made by the Commissioner for Human Rights Vladimir Lukin. He also does not like that the project provides for a complex procedure for putting out questions for a referendum and unjustifies the time to collect signatures. This is the first sharp performance of the Commissioner for a long time - the predecessor of Lukin, the communist Oleg Mironov, tried not to disturb the power of hard statements.

Dissatisfaction also causes the procedure for adopting the law. The authorities are believed by opponents of the bill, shows an excessive rush. “I am a deputy of the four convocations, but I don’t remember such an abuse of the procedure. This was not even under the communist majority,” said the newspaper Pokhmelkin. He intends to call on colleagues to boycott the meetings of the Duma on the adoption of the Law "On Referendum". Gudkov believes that the haste of the adoption of the law demonstrates the neglect of officials to the people and parliament. "Such haste is needed only when catching fleas. And who do we catch now?" - the leader of the "Narodniks" is surprised. The head of the Committee on Constitutional Legislation, Vladimir Pligin, who on Tuesday examined the amendments introduced after the first reading of the law, is sure that the law is adopted within a reasonable time.

Among the authors of the amendments there is no consensus about their fate. Pokhmelkin is sure that the decision is predetermined: "This is the president’s initiative, which will be sold by the obedient majority." Gudkov believes that amendments to the law can be adopted: "It is necessary for this very little - to conduct a normal dialogue with the deputies and not rush. If our amendments are ignored, then I recommend that the party members do not vote." The threat looks serious - the YP faction has 302 people, to whom 8-10 deputies from the LDPR and the "Motherland" always join. Therefore, the refusal of 15 deputies, “Narodniks” from voting can lead to the fact that the law will not gain the necessary constitutional majority of 300 people.

06/08/2004 / Pavel pharmacist