On Tuesday, Parliament’s Committee on Political System and Intercommunity Relations began the amendment debate on the Equitable Representation Bill. Two out of a total of 30 submitted amendments were reviewed.
“All amendments from the opposition are not ones aiming to find a solution or something better, but rather those are amendments so that the law can be afterwards blocked”, VLEN MP Imrlije Saliu-Fetai said.
During the amendment debate, the focus was on definitions within the law, which, according to the opposition, deviate from the Ohrid Framework Agreement. It was pointed out that the level of integration should be increased, but also that there should be a debate in relation to all ethnic communities, instead of just a debate and accusations between ethnic Albanian MPs from the ruling structure and from the opposition.
SDSM MP Fatmir Bytyqi clarified that the opposition’s draft amendment aimed to ensure effective equality, effective participation, and reference representation. The tools, as he stated, that will enable real equality to be distinguished from statistical decoration.