Al Jazeera
One important democratic power that was
added to Iceland's new constitution is that citizens will be able to
initiate legislation and it asserts that the citizens of the country
hold its national resources in common[EPA]
London, UK - Last week I wrote about Ireland and Iceland
and how their responses to economic crisis have differed. This week I
want to explore one particular aspect of what's been happening in
Iceland. When the citizens of Europe register the full extent of the
problems in the financial sector, and the inadequacy of current
responses, the crisis in the EU will become a constitutional matter,
both in individual countries and in the European Union as a whole. At
the moment Iceland is drafting a new constitution for itself. Both the
method of composition and the draft proposals have some important
lessons for the rest of us.
When the crisis began in Iceland in 2008, attention soon turned to the country's constitution. The current version dates back to 1944 and independence from Denmark. Though it has been adapted and revised somewhat since then, many campaigners have long wanted to start afresh. As a first step, 950 people met on November 6th, 2010 to discuss the themes and values of the new constitution in a National Forum. Normally experts and elites discuss constitutions in splendid isolation. The Icelandic approach was different. The members of the Forum were chosen at random from the Population Register 'with due regard to a reasonable distribution of participants across the country and an equal division between genders, to the extent possible'.
When the crisis began in Iceland in 2008, attention soon turned to the country's constitution. The current version dates back to 1944 and independence from Denmark. Though it has been adapted and revised somewhat since then, many campaigners have long wanted to start afresh. As a first step, 950 people met on November 6th, 2010 to discuss the themes and values of the new constitution in a National Forum. Normally experts and elites discuss constitutions in splendid isolation. The Icelandic approach was different. The members of the Forum were chosen at random from the Population Register 'with due regard to a reasonable distribution of participants across the country and an equal division between genders, to the extent possible'.
