Task 1: The Swiss direct democracy practice in a global context.
Proposal of workshop: « Possible improvements of the Swiss direct democracy system »
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The Swiss direct democracy system is certainly a good example in the world. However, this system could also be improved. We note that in frequent cases, in the world, before the adoption of the instruments of “modern direct democracy”, other instruments more oriented towards “participatory democracy” are preferred as a first step in the direction of an improvement of the traditional “representative democracy”. Unfortunately, Switzerland does not offer a good panorama of practical experiences in instruments of “participatory democracy” such as:
– assemblies of citizens.
– channels of communication between decision makers and citizens.
– media control and neutrality.
– information and transparency of the financial sources of the parties and of the initiatives.
Starting from the experiences in a Swiss city council and taking care of the situation in the Swiss parliament, we intend to explore the possibility of desirable improvements in the Swiss democratic system.
