Code of Good Practice in Electoral MattersRecommendation 1595 (2003)

Doc. 9978

13 October 2003

Code of Good Practice in Electoral Matters
Recommendation 1595 (2003)

Reply from the Committee of Ministers

adopted at the 855^th meeting of the Ministers’ Deputies (9 October 2003)

1. The Committee of Ministers welcomes Parliamentary Assembly Recommendation 1595 (2003) on the Code of Good Practice in Electoral Matters, which it considers raises an important issue that merits thorough consideration. It has noted with satisfaction the adoption by the Venice Commission in October 2002 of the Code of Good Practice in Electoral Matters, which was subsequently adopted also by the Parliamentary Assembly and by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities.

2. The Committee of Ministers recognises the importance of the Code and is pleased to note that it is already serving as a useful reference document for related Council of Europe activities. It has thus been used by the Venice Commission when it gave an opinion on the Electoral Code of Azerbaijan and in various training seminars for election officials, inter alia in Albania and Armenia. The Code has also been used by the Assembly and by the Congress when monitoring elections.

3. The proposal made by the Assembly and by the Congress to transform the Code of Good Practice in Electoral Matters into a European convention, has been given serious consideration by the Committee of Ministers. It considers that rights and freedoms related to electoral matters are among the most important elements for democracy and for democratic change in central and eastern Europe. A convention in this field would further highlight the importance for all Council of Europe member states to adhere to the fundamental principles of democratic elections (i.e. universal, equal, free, secret and direct suffrage). For the convention to have any added value, however, its standards would have to be no less exacting than those in the Code. The Committee of Ministers takes note of the signing of the Convention on standards of democratic elections, electoral rights and freedoms in the member states of the Commonwealth of Independent States in October 2002 and will follow with interest its implementation.

4. The Committee of Ministers is concerned that, as member states’ systems, for historical reasons, differ to a large extent in the field of elections and electoral campaigns, it may prove difficult at this moment to draft a legal instrument (particularly a binding one) on this matter. Moreover, in the light of the fact that the Code was only recently adopted, the Committee of Ministers considers that it would be premature at this stage to initiate work on its transformation into a legally binding instrument.

5. The Committee of Ministers considers that in the immediate future a sustained effort should be made to increase awareness in member states of the existence and merits of the Code of good practice in electoral matters. The Code should be translated into additional non-official languages and should also be widely distributed to members of national parliaments and national electoral authorities. The Committee of Ministers welcomes the decision of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe, as expressed in its Resolution 148 (2003) on the Code of Good Practice in Electoral Matters, to circulate the Code to all CLRAE members so that it can be used forthwith for guidance on holding local and regional elections. It also welcomes the fact that the Code has been distributed to parliamentarians of all Council of Europe member states.

6. After the evaluation of the impact of the Code on legislation and practices in member states, the need for further steps could be examined, also taking into account the work of other international organisations including the OSCE. The Committee of Ministers notes that the Code is already a basis for the work of the Council for Democratic Elections when recommending improvements to the electoral law and the electoral administration in the member states, following its examination of the observation reports by the international community, including the Parliamentary Assembly and the CLRAE. As proposed by the Integrated Project “Making Democratic Institutions Work”, feedback could also be asked from member states on the take-up of the provisions laid down in the Code.

7. The Committee of Ministers further considers that before considering the elaboration of a binding document, it is important to let technology catch up inter alia on the issue of e-enabled voting under consideration by an Ad-Hoc Group of Specialists on legal, operational and technical standards for e-enabled voting.

8. The drafting of the election evaluation guide by the Council for Democratic Elections, has been followed closely by the Committee of Ministers, which welcomes its recent adoption by the Venice Commission. The guide is based on the Code, and covers the essential points that constitute universal, equal, free, secret and direct suffrage. It will facilitate the task of election observers in ascertaining whether electoral processes comply with the standards laid down in the Code.

9. Finally, the Committee of Ministers would like to inform the Parliamentary Assembly that it will continue to study the question as to how it could give appropriate recognition to the Code, for example through a resolution, recommendation or a political declaration.