PARLIAMENT AND DEMOCRACY - Inter-Parliamentary Union

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A representative parliament I 17 sentative – a connection that may be important for facilitating access of members to their electorates, and for representing local interests. The submissions to this study show that a number of parliaments which previously relied on an exclusively single-member constituency system have recently added a partylist element as the simplest reform to ensure that parliament becomes more representative and inclusive. For example, in 2002 the Parliament of Monaco added a proportional element to its two-stage constituency ballot so as to guarantee a more diverse political representation in the National Council. In 2004 the Republic of Korea changed its electoral law to a ‘1 Person 2 Votes System’ under which each voter is allowed to cast one ballot for a candidate running in the voter’s district and a second for the political party of preference, which will help determine the distribution of 56 additional seats on a proportional basis. ‘As a result, the 17 th National Assembly became more representative, reflecting the voices of all corners of society.’ The effect of such a reform in empowering previously underrepresented sections of society is exemplified in this submission on the Philippines from a member of the IPU working group: The passage of the ‘Party List System Act’ in 1995, covering 20% of the membership of the House of Representatives of the Philippine Congress, or a maximum number of 53 seats out of a total of 236 members, is a breakthrough towards a process of dismantling monopoly control by big business and big landed interests in the composition of the Philippine Congress. It is a proportional representation system alongside the single-district, first-past-the post system of legislative districts. Though imperfect and needing amendment, the party list system has allowed the election of representatives of the ‘marginalised and underrepresented’ sectors of Philippine society. Further online reading about different electoral system s: Administration and Cost of Elections Project (2003). Electoral systems index. Election Process Information Collection Project (2004). EPIC research results for electoral systems. International IDEA (2002). Electoral system design: The new International IDEA handbook. Inter-Parliamentary Union (2006). Parline database module on electoral systems.
18 I PARLIAMENT AND DEMOCRACY IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY Who actually votes Apart from the inclusiveness of the suffrage and the character of the electoral system, the political representativeness of a parliament may also be affected by who actually exercises their right to vote. Although there are many reasons for people not doing so, a common one is the belief that those who are elected will not represent the interests of the voters. If this belief is more widespread among some sections of society than others, it will skew the resulting character of parliament. So, for example, the cost of campaigning for election may affect the ability of those elected to represent the views of their voters rather than of those who have contributed most to their election coffers. Examples of good practice in the regulation of campaign and party finance will considered more fully in the chapter on accountability. Here it will be sufficient to quote the comments of the Canadian Parliament about the importance of strict financial rules for the credibility of the electoral process, and consequently for electoral turnout: Political parties are at the heart of a modern political and electoral system and are essential to a vibrant and viable democratic system. Recent changes to the Canada Elections Act and the Income Tax Act governing the financing of political parties and candidates have contributed to increasing the representative nature of the Canadian electoral system. These key amendments provide for greater disclosure of sources and amounts of financing, limits on donations by individuals, and prohibitions on donations to political participants by organizations such as corporations and unions. The changes also address public financing measures to ensure fairness across all political parties …… In Canada, politicians are very concerned about participation rates in the political process, particularly voter turnout among young people. This problem is by no means unique to Canada as it is common to all western democracies. Part of the objective of the changes outlined above is to restore public confidence in the electoral system. For more information on candidate and party financing, see chapter 5.
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strengthening of both legislative a
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3. Technology assessment. This has
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Australia Austria Belarus Belgium B
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MS. MARTA LAGOS CRUZ-COKE Executive
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MS. DULCE MARIA SAURI RIANCHO Membe
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types of, 8, 15-17, 69 voter partic
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