SDE MP: Support declaration better way to check third country voters
SDE's chairman reached a compromise with coalition partners Reform and Eesti 200 to support amending the constitution and restricting voting rights, said MP Eduard Odinets. But the party still believes it is wrong to apply a blanket ban on Russians and Belarusians.
On Tuesday evening, SDE's board and Riigikogu faction will meet to discuss the issue. Chairman Lauri Läänemets' "compromise" has provoked a strong backlash within the party.
"The evening meeting will reveal whether the party leadership and faction are prepared to move forward together with this compromise. It's clear, however, that the intensity of the discussion has already reached a boiling point, meaning everyone will need to make some concessions. We must find a way to progress on this issue, and the initiation of two parallel processes—the constitutional amendment and the legislative changes proposed by the Social Democrats — demonstrates the necessity for compromise," Odinets told Tuesday's "Terevisioon", predicting a heated discussion in the party.
The MP said it is important that people with undefined citizenship, also known as grey passport holders, are excluded from the list of those who cannot vote.
The party is confident that allowing this group to retain its voting rights is part of the agreed compromise.
"According to the compromise reached, these individuals should retain their voting rights. It will be clearly stated that people with undetermined citizenship will keep their right to vote, as they cannot be tied to any particular country. They are not citizens of any nation; they are permanent residents of Estonia and the European Union, and this right should remain with them. They cannot be held responsible for the actions of any country," Odinets explained the socialists' position.
Odinets sees various shortcomings in the process of taking away the right to vote by amending the constitution.
"Currently, no one has a clear idea of whether an expedited constitutional amendment process will succeed, when it might take effect, how the Chancellor of Justice will respond, or how the President will react. No one has yet seen the wording of the proposed amendment. Politicians have been promised access to the draft on Tuesday or Wednesday, and all further processes hinge on this. Changing the law is a much simpler and faster route, and at least some progress could be made through a parallel process," said a member of the Constitutional Commission.
SDE thinks there are better ways to check voters.
"We will start asking them to sign a declaration, which will allow us to distinguish those who are against Estonia from those who are not. Right now, if we remove voting rights from everyone, it implies that we consider all voters living in Estonia to be somehow opposed to the country," Odinets said.
He believes a voting ban could increase the security threat to Estonia, rather than reduce it as some politicians claim.
"Stripping people of their political rights, removing their ability to participate in local decision-making, and denying them the right to be involved in political life is more likely to turn them against Estonia and may actually increase security risk." The MP said.
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Editor: Mirjam Mäekivi, Helen Wright
Source: "Terevisioon", interviewed by Juhan Kilumets