The three coalition parties, the Reform Party, the Social Democrats and Eesti 200, managed to break an opposition Riigikogu filibuster for the first time, ending a long-running stand-off which started with the entry into office of that coalition, a year ago.

The opposition Conservative People's Party of Estonia (EKRE) had been in the vanguard of filibustering on various bills, in this most recent case on a bill which amends e-voting rules in Estonia.

The opposition has said the move is illegal, while Deputy Speaker Toomas Kivimägi (Reform) said that it helped streamline the parliament's work, adding that filibustering has been "over-used" by the opposition.

At the start of Wednesday afternoon's Riigikogu session, there were no longer any questions remaining over the EKRE obstruction, however

EKRE were fundamentally opposed to a bill which alters e-voting rules and had planned to delay the 96 amendments submitted by taking ten-minute breaks with each of them.

Coalition MPs had been saying for weeks that they would not allow the type of overnight session that has happened several times in the course of the XV Riigikogu's life-span, this time around.

As a result, discussions going on in the corridors of Toompea more concerned how long any filibuster could be allowed to continue, and how the Riigikogu board would formalize its decisions on this.

Initially, everything proceeded as usual. Hendrik Terras (Eesti 200) constitutional committee chair, presented the bill and was quizzed on it for an hour-and-a-half.

He said that reducing to 96 the original 266 bill amendment proposals was within the committee's self-organization rights as guaranteed by the Supreme Court.

This presentation was followed by speeches in which the opposition expressed concerns about both a lack of transparency in e-voting, and the risks of m-voting, or voting via smartphone.

After going through seven amendments with seven breaks, the coalition made its move precisely at sundown...

Compromise proposed to stop bundling similar amendments together

Announcing a 30-minute recess, Deputy Speaker Kivimägi said: "Dear colleagues, since the pattern remains unchanged, the Board of the Riigikogu has proposed convening the council of elders."

A subsequent discussion in Riigikogu Speaker Lauri Hussar's (Eesti 200) office lasted longer than expected, and shortly after 9.30 p.m., Siim Pohlak, the EKRE faction's vice-chair, stepped out of that office to announce that no agreement had been struck.

Pohlak said: "They proposed that we stop taking breaks as if that were a major issue."

"However we have held night sessions which lasted until Thursday afternoon, so there's nothing extraordinary happening here today," Pohlak went on.

Coalition MPs also suggested a compromise whereby the bundling of identical amendments would be discontinued. In return, they wanted the opposition to refrain from taking breaks before voting on proposals.

Kivimägi said that the Riigikogu could vote on as many as four hundred proposals if no breaks were taken during that time. "Not allowing for breaks infringes on the rights of Riigikogu MPs much less than bundling too many proposals together," he said.

Neither EKRE nor Isamaa were willing to agree to this proposal of stopping taking breaks, however, since both parties say they fundamentally consider the bundling of proposals illegal in any case.

Kivimägi: Taking breaks as a means of filibustering is invalid

At around 9.45 p.m., Kivimägi returned to the Riigikogu podium and announced that after the council of elders and the Riigikogu board had also met. He spoke at length about the self-organization right as outlined by the Supreme Court, adding that filibustering should be tolerated only up to a point.

Kivimägi wound up by stating: "Riigikogu board members Lauri Hussar and Toomas Kivimägi concluded that to ensure the effective functioning of the Riigikogu, the examination of amendments to bill 344 SE should not allow factions to take breaks before voting."

He added that the second Riigikogu speaker, Jüri Ratas (Isamaa), disagreed on this.

This meant that the board's decision on the bill would go to a full plenary vote. Opposition deputies protested this, stressing that the Riigikogu rules of procedure allow for the taking of breaks. "I believe that taking breaks for the purpose of filibustering is illegitimate," Kivimägi said in response.

Isamaa chair Helir-Valdor Seeder similarly referenced the Supreme Court's position that filibustering must be tolerated, as long as it does not paralyze the legislature's work. "At this point in time, it is not a long-term obstacle," Seeder said, noting that there had been no overnight sessions in the preceding four months.

Seeder, as with other opposition deputies, asked how many breaks could, then, be taken. Kivimägi answered that there is no specified limit and that each bill must be assessed anew.

At about 10.15 p.m. the coalition voted on that decision, after which no more breaks could be taken.

EKRE: The coalition overreacted

Speaking briefly to ERR, Pohlak said: "This is a disproportionate and total overreaction."

"There is nothing more to say, let's just leave it at that," he went on.

Kivimägi said the decision represents a way to streamline the work of the Riigikogu. "Filibustering has been over-used," he said, adding that the main tool at an MP's disposal is speaking. "This [right] is practically unlimited," he noted, listing the options provided for it in the Riigikogu's rules of procedure.

"While if we are told that they will retaliate when we are in opposition, then, sincerely, I have no concerns on that," Kivimägi went on, referring to EKRE leader Martin Helme's comments on what will happen if his party returns to office and Reform finds itself in opposition.

Once the late-night decision to stop taking breaks passed, everything beyond that did indeed proceed quickly.

The remaining amendments were voted through without breaks, and at 10.45 p.m. the bill "Amendment to the Riigikogu Election Act and related acts (344 SE II)," ie. the bill which had been contested over amendments on e-voting, passed its second reading.

The bill must pass a third reading to enter into law, but only minor amendments, and nothing substantive, can be made between the drafts of the second and third readings.

Sessions at the XV Riigikogu, now just over a year old, had been characterized by a long-running filibuster that started last spring and returned in the fall after the summer recess. EKRE has long been skeptical about e-voting in Estonia.

The board of the Riigikogu consists of the speaker and the two deputy speakers, while the council of elders is made up of the chief whips of each of the elected parties, currently six, plus the board itself.

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!