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Supervising electoral processes (Science and technique of democracy No. 48)
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Author:Venice Commission
Format:cm 24 109 pp.
This publication contains the reports presented at the seminar entitled "Supervising Processes", organised in Madrid on 24 and 25 April 2009 by the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission) in co-operation with the Centre for Political and Constitutional Studies (CEPC). This was the first UniDem (Universities for Democracy) seminar which compared the legal situation in Europe with that of the United States and Latin America.
The aim of the seminar was to study the ways of making electoral legislation effective. It addressed electoral disputes from a procedural as well as from a substantive point of view. It also demonstrated the different approaches taken in Europe, where disputes are generally dealt with by constitutional or ordinary courts, and Latin America, where specialised courts have been established. The seminar dealt with the role of international judicial instances, such as the European Court of Human Rights and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, in guaranteeing the quality of the electoral process, as well as with the control of electoral campaign financing.
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Blasphemy, insult and hatred - Finding answers in a democratic society (Science and Technique of democracy No.47)
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(2010)
Author: Venice Commission
Format:16 x 24 cm Pages 250
Mutual understanding and acceptance is perhaps the main challenge of modern society. Diversity is undoubtedly an asset, but cohabiting with people of different backgrounds and ideas calls for a new ethic of responsible intercultural relations, in Europe and in the world.
This book tries to answer a series of pertinent and poignant questions arising from these issues, such as whether it is still possible to criticise ideas when this may be considered hurtful to certain religious feelings; whether society is hostage to the excessive sensitivity of certain individuals; or what legal responses there may be to these phenomena, and whether criminal law is the only answer.
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The cancellation of election results (Science and technique of democracy No. 46) (2010)
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Author: Venice Commission
ISBN: 16x24c. Pages 74
Electoral law, like all other fields of law, is effective only if it provides for sanctions. The cancellation of elections results, the most serious of sanctions, is in general linked to the most serious of irregularities, especially when its effects are felt beyond a small constituency. However, small technical
inaccuracies may affect election results if the difference in votes is minimal, as recent examples such as the notorious 2000 United States presidential elections have shown. This book aims to determine when electoral disputes should lead to such a consequence, based on the practice of national, constitutional and supreme courts throughout Europe, as well as on the practice of the European Court of Human Rights.
This publication contains the reports presented at the Seminar on Cancellation of Election Results, organised by the Venice Commission in co-operation with the Constitutional Court of Malta and the Maltese Ministry of Justice and Home Affairs, on 14 and 15 November 2008.
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Armed forces and security services: what democratic controls? (2009)
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Format:A5. Pages 210
Faced with the growing threats of terrorism and international organised crime, European societies are feeling an increasing need for both domestic and external security.
Government action to combat these threats must be lawful – and also legitimate – and be conducted with due respect for human rights, democracy and the rule of law, which are fundamental Council of Europe principles. The question arises as to who is going to exercise democratic oversight in this area. What are the roles of parliaments, the executive, the judiciary and civil society ? Do supervisory bodies exist at supranational level ?
This book presents the various players and their duties in the security field and confirms the need to strike a balance between a democratic conception of fundamental freedoms and security safeguards, on the basis of reports by the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly and the European Commission for Democracy through Law.
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Can excessive length of proceedings be remedied? (Science and technique of democracy No. 44) (2007)
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Format:16 x 24cm. Pages 370.
Synopsis
Remedying the excessive length of proceedings is a problem common to most European states, which has received much attention in Strasbourg, thus becoming an absolute priority for the Council of Europe and its member states.
With this in mind, the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission) compiled an up-to-date inventory of the existing legislation of 47 states, a guide to the relevant case law of the European Court of Human Rights and its own assessment of and its far-reaching conclusions as to what would effectively remedy breaches of the reasonable length requirement.
This publication contains firstly the Report on the Effectiveness of National Remedies in respect of Excessive Length of Proceedings adopted by the Venice Commission at its 69th Plenary Session (15-16 December 2006). The questionnaire which served as the basis for this study, as well as the replies thereto by the 47 member States of the Council of Europe appear in Section II. Finally, Section III contains the reports which were presented at the International Conference on "Remedies for unduly lengthy proceedings: a new approach to the obligations of Council of Europe member States", in Bucharest on 3 April 2006 and which provided invaluable "food for thought" for the report.
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The preconditions for a democratic election(Science and technique of democracy No. 43) (2006)
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Author(s):Venice Commission
Format:16x24cm Pages 100
This publication contains the reports presented at the seminar "Preconditions for a democratic election", organised by the Venice Commission in co-operation with the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the framework of the Romanian Presidency of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, on 17 and 18 February 2006.
Simply avoiding irregularities during the vote or the counting of ballots is not enough for elections to be considered in conformity with the European electoral heritage. There are a certain number of conditions wich must also be respected prior to the vote for it to be considered free and fair. The reports examine the most important of these conditions, respect for fundamental rights, in particular freedom of expression, of assembly and association, as well as equal access to the media and to financing of electoral campaigns, regarding both elections and referendums.
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The status of international treaties on human rights (Science and technique of democracy No. 42) (2006)
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Authors: Venice Commission
Format:16 x 24 cm . Pages 225.
This volume compiles the papers and comments delivered and the conclusions reached at the seminar "The Status of International Treaties on Human Rights", which was organised in Coimbra, Portugal, on 7 and 8 October 2005 by the Venice Commission in co-operation with the lus Gentium Coimbrigae Centre and the Faculty of Law of the University of Coimbra and the International Association of Constitutional Law (IACL).
The reports analyses the specific features of international human rights treaties; the impact of state succession on these treaties; the territorial scope of human rights obligations; the position of human rights treaties in the national legal systems; the impact on the national systems of the obligation to comply with the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights; the criteria for establishing the hierarchy of legal rules in national and international law; the difference between jus cogens and core rights; and the pro
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Organisation of elections by an impartial body (Science and democracy No. 41) (2006)
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Author(s:Venice Commission
Format:16x24cm Pages 60
After fifteen years of democratic transition in central and eastern Europe, the organisation of elections in conformity with the principles of the European electoral heritage is still a major challenge. In order to ensure the effectiveness of these principles (univeral, equal, free, secret and direct suffrage) a certain number of procedural guarantees must be respected.
Firstly, elections must be organised by an impartial body in an independent and transparent manner; this is the main message in this publication. The body in charge of organising the elections should be able to ensure, without any political manipulation, that the electoral process is carried out efficiently, from the pre-election period right up to the close of any dispute regarding the results.
The reports cover three aspects wich are indispensable to the impartiality of electoral commissions and equivalent bodies: independence with regard to the composition and functioni
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Evaluation of fifteen years of constitutional practice in Central and Eastern Europe (Science and technique of Democracy No. 40)
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Author:Venice Commission
Paper. Format:16 x 24 cm.Pages 98.
A decade and a half after the democratic transition in the countries of central and eastern Europe, the Venice Commission marked its fifteen years of existence by looking back over this period of institutional upheaval.
The Warsaw seminar, which inaugurated the work of the Polish chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, viewed these fifteen years of change in the light of constitutional practice. Thus, two basic approaches were adopted: the role of the executive in this practice, and the influence of electoral systems in institutional change.
The papers and discussions in Warsaw brought together specialists from very different backgrounds. Marking a convergence between constitutional law and electoral law, this conference retraced fifteen years over which the outlines of powers have gradually taken shape. Depending on the state, the executive has moved towards a presidential, semi-presidential, or parliamentary
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European standards of electoral law in contemporary constitualism (Science and Technique of Democracy No. 39
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Author: Venice Commission
Paper.Format:16x24.Pages165.
This volume includes the reports presented at the seminar on "European standards of electoral law in contemporary constitutionalism” organised by the Venice Commission in co-operation with the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Bulgaria in Sofia (Bulgaria), on 28 and 29 May 2004.
Electoral law and co-operation with constitutional courts and courts of equivalent jurisdiction have been two of the main areas of the activities of the Venice Commission since its creation in 1990. However, this is the first time that the Commission has organised an activity of such a high level focusing on the role played by constitutional justice in the electoral process.
The reports cover such fundamental issues as the advantages and shortcomings of different electoral systems, the case law of higher national courts on electoral disputes, the participation of foreigners in the electoral process at the local level, the electoral rights of individu
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State consolidation and national identity (Science and technique of democracy No. 38)
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(2005 Format 16x24cm 116 pages.
After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the new democracies of central and eastern Europe had to face a number of challenges on their way to democracy. One of the common problems was to build a multi-ethnic state where the interests of different minorities are taken into account without compromising the unity of the country.
The presentations and discussions in the framework of the Chisinau Conference focused on the variety of approaches to the multi-ethic state and on the different challenges that democracies, both new and well established, will have to face in the twenty-first century. In this context, issues such as federalism, autonomy and linguistic diversity were given special focus.
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European and US constitutionalism (Science and technique of democracy No. 37)
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Council of Europe publication (2005)
Author(s) : G. Nolte
Format : 16 x 24 cm
No. of pages : 254
This book compiles the papers and comments delivered at the Conférence on "European and American constitutionaism" which took place in Göttingen in 2003. Through topics like freedom of speech, human dignity, the protective function of the state, adjudication and democracy and international influences, the conference papers identify salient features of the constitutional systems on both sides of the Atlantic and address recent developments following the end of the soviet era in eastern Europe and the terrorists attacks of 11 September 2001
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