Iranian Researchers Study Tools for Promoting Citizens Participation in Legislation
The Research Center of the Iranian Parliament, in a report entitled ‘Measures for Promoting the Sense of Citizens’ Participation in the National Governance System’, stated that in the last six decades, various approaches have been adopted by external actors, specially the governments, in governance of Iran.
The report states that basically, citizenship rights are considered as the basis and consistency of mutual relations between the government and the people, and for the citizen as a modern social role, an interconnected set of rights and responsibilities towards the society is defined. Therefore, citizens' participation in governance affairs should be provided regardless of racial, ethnic and class affiliations. In this report, ways to take advantage of citizens' participation in policy-making and decision-making is presented.
The report underlines that participation of citizens in legislation means the presence and active role of citizens in the legislative process. This participation can take place in different formats like presenting opinions and suggestions, attending legislative sessions and even passing laws, which has many advantages, including, improving the quality of laws; citizens' participation can help find the real needs and priorities of the society and lay the ground for passing laws that meet these needs.
The Research Center of the Iranian Parliament suggests that in order to realize citizens' participation in legislation, it is necessary to formulate the necessary rules and regulations. These laws should specify the terms and conditions of citizens' participation in legislation. Also, for the active participation of citizens in legislation, it is necessary to provide the necessary grounds for this. These fields include education of citizens, public information and creating appropriate communication platforms between citizens and legislative institutions.
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