Buryatia holds Constitutional Referendum

[Imperator Azenquor]

Buryatia holds Constitutional Referendum

Yakutsk, Buryatia:

-President Rokossovska

“In a somewhat controversial move, President Rokossovska has ordered a national referendum on convening a Constitutional convention to rewrite the entire Buryatian Constitution. This Constitutional convention, if approved would begin work immediately to draft a new Constitution. Once the new Constitution is completed it would have to be approved by 2/3 of the Parliament and the Presidency before being enacted. The entire process could take anywhere from three months to an entire year to complete, and would require the work of several Constitutional lawyers, judges, and People’s Committees from every province of Buryatia.

Opposition Party leader Mr. Altan Enkh, of the Democratic Party of Buryatia has claimed that the decision to hold a referendum was constitutionally illegal as ‘there is no article in Buryatia’s Constitution that permits a referendum to take place, simply with Presidential approval’. The Opposition Parties in Parliament have demanded that the decision to call a Constitutional convention could only proceed with the approval of the Parliament.

Despite the objections, the Buryatian Electoral Commission has already started opening polling stations across the country and has readied the necessary information and ballots. Once the Electoral Commission confirmed this move, Mr. Altan Enkh announced that he would be sending a formal request to the Supreme Court to annul the results of the referendum until ‘the Constitutionality of the referendum can be confirmed’. The Electoral Commission, and the President have simply reiterated their claims that the referendum is legal and is a necessary step to decide whether or not a Constitutional convention should be convened.

Opinion polls conducted by the BCNA suggest that 74% of the population would be in favor of a new Constitution, 16% believe that the current Constitution is sufficient, and the remainder were undecided.

We will continue to monitor the polls, and will bring you the results as soon as they are certified by the Electoral Commission."-Reporter

[Amyante]

"Before deciding whether we wish to support the rewriting of the Buryatian Constitution, we are wondering what sections of it you have planned to alter, as such decisions are not to be taken lightly. What goals do you wish to achieve with this?"

[Razgriz 2K9]

We will temorarily refrain until further notice.

OOC: Until I read each and every detail of Buryatia's constitution. Which'll take the rest of today.

[Nagato the Great]

We will withhold our opinion until details about what changes will be made.

OOC: where can you even find the Buryatian Constitution?

[JEDCJT]

"We shall refrain from voicing our opinions. We wish Buryatia into doing what it deems best for its people."

[Subtleknifewielder]

"There are undoubtedly certain things in the Buryatian constitution that require change. We support this proposition."

[Imperator Azenquor]

OOC: Buryatia's current Constitution, without Article 301, can be found in my signature under 'Buryatia Embassy, History & Gov't Info'. I know that the gov't info hasn't been updated yet.

IC:

"Before deciding whether we wish to support the rewriting of the Buryatian Constitution, we are wondering what sections of it you have planned to alter, as such decisions are not to be taken lightly. What goals do you wish to achieve with this?"

"By definition, we are not editing the Constitution. To edit the Constitution would require nothing more than a 2/3 approval of Parliament. What is proposed is to draft an entirely new Constitution to replace the existing one. None of the proposals for the new Constitution have been set in stone, as the Constitutional convention has not been approved yet. Some key changes proposed include:

-Increasing the powers afforded to Devolved Parliaments so that they are entrenched in the Constitution

-Increasing the number of Devolved Parliaments

-Shortening the terms of the Parliament MPs

-Enacting stricter Campaign Financing Legislation

-Restructuring the People's Khural (Parliament) so that more power rests with the Parliament and not with the Senate

-Mandating that all People's Khural positions be elected directly by the population and not selected by the monarch

-Restructuring the relationship between the Military and the Government

-Ensuring the Political Independence of the Buryatian Central Reserve

-Establishing guidelines for a Presidential Recall vote

-Establishing the right of citizens to view government documents

-Changing Presidential term limits

-Changing who can be classified as a citizen of Buryatia

-Establishing stronger media regulation laws

-Changing the name of the country to one that better incorporates nationality vs one that is of a primary ethnic group

-Reforming the relationship between the state and the monarchy

-Changing the form of government to a sui generis Presidential Republic

"

Edited September 11, 2009 by Imperator Azenquor

[Razgriz 2K9]

We approve of your constitutional reforms.

[Imperator Azenquor]

BCNA: Initial results reported

“The Electoral Commission has released a preliminary report on the status of the referendum. Voting is still continuing across Buryatia, however it is possible to predict the results in some of Buryatia’s eastern provinces as the polls have already closed there. With estimates of the total voter turnout near to 80%, voting has continued steadily with no incidents reported to the commission.

In Olenyok province, with 97% of the votes tallied, the Electoral Commission has predicted a victory for the ‘Yes’ vote. The vote tallies show that 81.8% of eligible voters in Olenyok province voted ‘Yes’ to the proposal. This result was in line with initial predictions. In neighboring East Caledonia province, with 99% of the votes counted, the Yes vote has won with 61.2% of the vote. In Novaya Zemlya, where polls have been closed for several hours, the results showed a victory for the ‘No’ vote with 50.8% of eligible voters turning out to vote.

The Buryatian Electoral Commission will announce additional provisional results as they are verified, and will provide the final results as soon as all provinces have reported in. We will also watch the political developments.

In the Parliament, the Opposition Democratic Party of Buryatia has called their supporters onto the streets to protest against the referendum. The DPB has submitted documentation to the Supreme Court to attempt to have the referendum declared invalid as the referendum was carried out without the approval of the Parliament. Although there is room for a referendum, the DPB believes that the referendum should only be carried out with the approval of the Parliament with bipartisan support. The Buryatian Socialist Alternative has not responded to the individual allegations but has stated that they conferred with the Supreme Court prior to the referendum, and consulted Constitutional Courts before deciding to proceed.

The Socialist Alternative Coalition has so far touted the referendum as ‘involving the people of this nation directly in the administration of the country’ and has stated that ‘if the people of the nation approve the referendum, then we can bring the debate on a Constitutional convention to Parliament. We are not circumventing Parliament, we are simply involving the citizens of this country in a major decision’."-Reporter

[Amyante]

"Very well, we thank Buryatia for a list of their proposed changes, and will support the rewriting of the Constitution."

[Imperator Azenquor]

BCNA: Referendum results in

“We can now confirm that all ballots have been cast and the result has been verified by the Buryatian Electoral Commission. With all provinces reporting in, we can announce that the ‘Yes’ vote has won with 62% of the vote. This means that, upon the approval of the Parliament, the nation shall convene a Constitutional convention immediately to draft a new Constitution.

Once the vote tally was announced, we also received confirmation from the Supreme Court that the referendum was fully valid and constitutional. In response, several Opposition MPs have announced their intention to filibuster any attempts to bring the motion to Parliament for a vote. Thirty Left Wing Buryatian Socialist Alternative MPs have announced that they will not vote in support of the Constitutional convention motion. This would mean that the government no longer has a filibuster proof majority in the Parliament.

In a short response, President Rokossovska announced her intention to proceed with or without the nation’s Parliament on her side”-Reporter

Edited September 12, 2009 by Imperator Azenquor