Etiket direct democracy

Annika Sehn “The party system is old-fashioned, instead of it there must be an efficient way to voice the questions of individuals,” says Werner Kuppers, the person behind the wheel of the “Omnibus for direct democracy in Germany” that made a stopover at Bilgi’s Santral campus. Johannes Stüttgen, a close friend of the late German artist Joseph Beuys, and an artist himself supports the activists in the bus with ideas, speeches and discussions. “We are driving around with an idea. We are campaigning for the realization of direct democracy on all levels,” explains Stüttgen. The “Omnibus for Direct Democracy in Germany,” as it is officially called, was on a tour of Eastern Europe including Turkey. “Democracy in Motion Tour,” this is how the passengers of the bus call their trip. The main event on the campus was a workshop with the students taking the course called “City and Art.” Following the workshop there was a free discussion with the people on Democracy in Motion Tour. “They were very interested and they were well prepared and had their own thoughts and arguments concerning direct democracy,” Stüttgen said afterwards. To vote just to elect representatives in the legislative assembly is not sufficient for a full democratic system, citizens should be provided with the means to voice their say about concrete issues concerning law and politics, Stüttgen explains. This could be done through popular referendums. Those referendums are already possible in some of the German states. Before a referendum takes place, people have to take initiative and demand that a chance given to them to express their will. A popular referendum is then held on the basis of collection of certain number of signatures and decisions taken in the Bundestag, namely the German Partliament. This procedure aims at direct access to politics for […]