Latvian constitutional referendum, 2008

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A constitutional referendum to amend the constitution of Latvia in order to allow one-tenth of the total registered electorate to initiate a popular referendum to dissolve the Latvian parliament was held in Latvia on 2 August 2008.

Constitution of Latvia

The Constitution of Latvia is the fundamental law of the Republic of Latvia. Satversme is the oldest Eastern or Central European constitution still in force and the sixth oldest still-functioning republican basic law in the world. It was adopted, as it states itself in the text, by the people of Latvia, in their freely elected Constitutional Assembly of Latvia on 15 February 1922 and came into force on 7 November 1922. It was heavily influenced by Germany's Weimar Constitution and the Swiss Federal Constitution. The constitution establishes the main bodies of government ; it consists of 115 articles arranged in eight chapters.

A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is invited to vote on a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new law. In some countries, it is synonymous with a plebiscite or a vote on a ballot question.

In parliamentary and some semi-presidential systems, a dissolution of parliament is the dispersal of a legislature at the call of an election.

Contents

The referendum on this issue was triggered when the Government of Latvia voted against an opposition motion to adopt this change to the constitution, which resulted in a referendum in Latvia by law. President Valdis Zatlers and the left-wing opposition were in favour of the referendum, while the government was against it, arguing that it would cause even more instability in a country which has seen 13 governments in the 18 years since independence. At least half of the total registered electorate (i.e. more than 757,607) had to approve the referendum proposal in order for it to be valid. [1] [2]

Government of Latvia Executive authority in Latvia

The Government of Latvia is the central government of the Republic of Latvia. The Constitution of Latvia (Satversme) outlines the nation as a parliamentary republic represented by a unicameral parliament (Saeima) and the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Latvia, which form the executive branch of the Government of Latvia.

President of Latvia

The President of Latvia, is head of state and commander-in-chief of the National Armed Forces of the Republic of Latvia.

Valdis Zatlers President of Latvia

Valdis Zatlers is a Latvian politician and former physician who served as the seventh president of Latvia from 2007 to 2011. He won the Latvian presidential election of 31 May 2007. He became President of Latvia on 8 July 2007 and left office on 7 July 2011 after failing to win reelection for a second term.

Preliminary results indicated that an overwhelming 96% of voters had voted in favour of the amendment, although only about 40% of the electorate voted in favour, which means the referendum is invalid. [3] It is expected that the strong result, while failing to directly change the constitution, might press politicians to adopt a similar measure nonetheless. [4]

If passed, the amendment would have represented the first time in an EU country that voters would have been able to dissolve their national parliament - a right traditionally reserved for the head of state. [5]

European Union Economic and political union of European states

The European Union (EU) is a political and economic union of 28 member states that are located primarily in Europe. It has an area of 4,475,757 km2 (1,728,099 sq mi) and an estimated population of about 513 million. The EU has developed an internal single market through a standardised system of laws that apply in all member states in those matters, and only those matters, where members have agreed to act as one. EU policies aim to ensure the free movement of people, goods, services and capital within the internal market, enact legislation in justice and home affairs and maintain common policies on trade, agriculture, fisheries and regional development. For travel within the Schengen Area, passport controls have been abolished. A monetary union was established in 1999 and came into full force in 2002 and is composed of 19 EU member states which use the euro currency.

A head of state is the public persona who officially represents the national unity and legitimacy of a sovereign state. Depending on the country's form of government and separation of powers, the head of state may be a ceremonial figurehead or concurrently the head of government. In a parliamentary system the head of state is the de jure leader of the nation, and there is a separate de facto leader, often with the title of prime minister. In contrast, a semi-presidential system has both heads of state and government as the leaders de facto of the nation.

Background

The moves to initiate the referendum began in Autumn 2007 at a time of public discontent with the government which had led to the largest street protests to date in the post-Soviet era. [6]

History of Latvia occurrences and people in Latvia throughout history

The history of Latvia began around 9000 BC with the end of the last glacial period in northern Europe. Ancient Baltic peoples arrived in the area during the second millennium BC, and four distinct tribal realms in Latvia's territory were identifiable towards the end of the first millennium AD. Latvia's principal river Daugava, was at the head of an important trade route from the Baltic region through Russia into southern Europe and the Middle East that was used by the Vikings and later Nordic and German traders.

The movement to organise the referendum was led by the Free Trade Union Confederation of Latvia. [7] The referendum also took place at a time of poor economic indicators with inflation exceeding 17 percent and economic growth expected to fall to near zero. [5]

Free Trade Union Confederation of Latvia

The Free Trade Union Confederation of Latvia is the only national trade union center in Latvia. It was founded in 1990 as a reformation of the Soviet era trade unions. LBAS is the biggest non-governmental organisation in Latvia which protects the interests of professional trade union members and employees on the branch and interbranch level. LBAS coordinates the cooperation between 23 independent Latvian trade unions, represents and protects the interests of its members in the national and international institutions, implements a joint working programme.

Procedure for calling a referendum

Under the ‘Latvian Law on National Referendums and Legislative Initiatives’, the procedure on calling popular referendums has several stages. The first stage involves the collection of 10,000 signatures certified by notaries, which are then presented to the Latvian Central Election Commission (CEC). Following positive verification of these signatures, the Latvian Government must then provide facilities for signature gathering in every town and village in the country, to enable the population to sign in favour of a proposal for a referendum. [8]

In order to be successful, more than one-tenth of citizens eligible to vote in the previous parliamentary elections must sign in favour. Again, the signatures are verified by the CEC. If the 10% threshold is met, then the draft amendments are presented to the president who submits them to parliament for approval. If two thirds of MPs approve the changes at a sitting in which at least two thirds of the parliament is present then the changes are passed into law without the need for a referendum. If parliament rejects the laws, then a referendum is held. [7]

Collection of signatures

In the event, 11,095 signatures were initially collected and positively verified. Collection of further signatures then took place from March 12 to April 10, 2008 in 660 designated places, of which 40 were abroad. In total, counting the initial signatures, 217,567 voters supported the introduction of the draft amendments. [7] A further 6,814 signatures were disqualified. In the vast majority of cases this was due to citizens signing more than once. However, 35 were disqualified due to not being Latvian citizens, 22 on the grounds of insanity, 62 who were deceased or could not be identified and 1 person who was under the age of 18 upon signing. [7]

As the total number of valid signatures represented 14.6% of the electorate, [7] the amendments were duly presented by the president to parliament, which rejected them on 5 June 2008. [9] Accordingly, under the terms of the referendum law, a referendum had to be held not earlier than one month and not later than two months after rejection. [9]

Referendum campaign

"No" campaign

Opposing the referendum, Prime Minister Ivars Godmanis pointed out that political instability had also been a feature of pre-Soviet Latvia. He also argued that “Electing the parliament is a creative process, while a referendum would be a destructive process without any result." [10] [11] Parliamentary speaker Gundars Daudze argued that such referendums could create a huge crisis with neither parliament nor president operating. Meanwhile, the head of the People's Party in parliament, Māris Kučinskis, stated his belief that such referendums would allow a small number of people to change the election results. [10] The advertisements of the no campaign also played on fears of Russian influence, with one advertisement, illustrated by pictures of ethnic Russian politicians from the opposition left wing parties playing a balalaika in a sauna, declaring “If you vote tomorrow, then you, brother, are crazy. In our places, the Russians will come. The Russians will come.” [12]

"Yes" campaign

Former Prime Minister Einars Repše, a member of the opposition New Era party, argued that a yes vote of the majority of the electorate would be in accordance with basic democratic principles and that many contemporary Latvian politicians were working not for the state interest but for the interest of “Godfathers.” [10] Civic Union party leader Sandra Kalniete also called for a yes vote on the grounds that the amendments could force MPs “to finally listen to the will of their voters.” [10] For Human Rights in United Latvia MP Juris Sokolovskis supported a yes vote on the basis of perceived alienation of the electorate from their MPs and on the grounds that, even if the 50% quorum was not reached, a large yes majority would still be difficult for politicians to ignore. [10]

Results

Latvian constitutional referendum, 2008 [13]
Choice Votes %
X mark.svg No18,8573.00
Yes 608,847 96.78
Invalid or blank votes 1,415 0.22
Total votes629,119100.00
Turnout required 50.00

Reactions

Following the anticipated large yes vote, President Valdis Zatlers said the support shown was strong enough to prompt Parliament to adopt similar amendments on its own. "The rights of the people to dissolve the Parliament have to be included in the Constitution as soon as possible," Zatlers was quoted as saying by local news agency BNS. "If 40% want that, the duty of the Parliament is making it possible." [5]

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Politics of Latvia

The politics of Latvia takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic, whereby the Prime Minister is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. The President holds a primarily ceremonial role as Head of State. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and parliament, the Saeima. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. The Economist Intelligence Unit has rated Latvia as "flawed democracy" in 2017.

Saeima parliament of Latvia

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References

  1. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-05-20. Retrieved 2008-08-02.
  2. ↑ http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/223093,latvians-vote-in-a-poll-on-power-to-dissolve-parliament.html
  3. ↑ http://www.focus-fen.net/index.php?id=n148184
  4. ↑ "Latvian vote on sacking parliament falls short". Reuters. 2008-08-02.
  5. 1 2 3 "International Herald Tribune, 3 August 2008" . Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  6. ↑ "Latvian referendum article". France24.com. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 "Collection of signatures for Amendments to the Constitution of Latvia". Latvian Central Election Commission web.cvk.lv. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  8. ↑ "Latvian referendum fails". Groundreport.com. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  9. 1 2 "Referendum fact sheet" (PDF). Latvian Central Election Commission. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 "Politician's opinions on the referendum". Diena newspaper 30 July 2008. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  11. ↑ English translation of above 30 July Diena article
  12. ↑ Diena newspaper, 1 August 2008
  13. ↑ http://www.cvk.lv/cvkserv/TN_2008_1/rez/rezultati.htm
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