Democratic Performances of Parliaments in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro 298 pages, pdf  Download Back

Democratic Performances
of Parliaments in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro

 

Author: Slavisa Orlovic

Publisher: Center for Democracy, Faculty of Political Sciences (FPN), Serbia; Facutly of Political Sciences, Monte Negro;
                   Sarajevo Open Center (SOC), BiH

Date: 2012

Volume: 298 pages, pdf


Description

The volume in front of you is the result of one-year research project “Comparative Analysis of Democratic Performances of the Parliaments of Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro.” The research team of the project was composed by researchers and associates of the University of Belgrade – Faculty of Political Sciences, Faculty of Political Sciences of the University of Montenegro and Sarajevo Open Center, who are the authors of this volume. The project was funded within a broader regional project “Social, Political and Economic Change in the Western Balkans” within the framework of the Regional Research Promotion Programme in the Western Balkans (RRPP), aimed at improvement and development of research in the field of social sciences in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia.
In a broader sense, these are three states which have been encountering very different problems in the process of democratic transition and consolidation, and which, above else, obtained their state independence in different ways. A relatively weak parliament is a common weakness of new democracies. The development of the idea and practice of parliamentarian after the renewed multi party system has not been accompanied with adequate theoretical debates, empirical research or appropriate professional literature. Parliament is an institution enjoying almost the lowest level of trust of citizens. Citizens rather see it as a “voting machine” and a “screen to democracy” than as “institution of high dignity and respect” or “the incubator of democracy“.