National Convent: Limiting Public’s Involvement in Legislative Process Harms Serbia’s EU Integration

Serbia, EU flags (BETAPHOTO/European Council/FRANCOIS LENOIR)

The National Convent on the European Union (NCEU) warned on April 8 that limiting the public’s participation in the process of passing regulations harmed Serbia’s EU integration process.

The Convent particularly criticized the public debates on amendments to the Family Act and three new laws: on weapons and ammunition, on interior affairs and on personal data processing in internal affairs. According to the NCEU’s working group for the EU negotiation chapters 23 and 24, which cover the fields these laws pertain to, the line ministries formally fulfill the minimum of procedural requirements, but at the same time limit the citizens’ possibility to fundamentally influence the drafting of laws.

The problem is compounded by the inadequate informing of the public about the start of debates, scheduling them for ends of work weeks or during holidays and by the simultaneous holding of several debates that are complex and too extensive.

The Convent has urged the line institutions to end this bad practice and secure that public debates are conducted in a transparent and inclusive process, with good quality, that would enable the full participation of the professional and broader public and contribute to the bringing of sustainable and harmonized laws. Additionally, the NCEU has urged the European Commission to pay particular attention on assessing the quality of the process within which laws are adopted.