The main theme of this edition of RiTo is Estonia and the European Union.
Siim Kallas | Presentation in the Riigikogu at the 1st Reading of the Draft State Budget Act 2000 |
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Kalle Jürgenson | State Budget 2000, What and Why? |
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Olev Raju | Commentaries on the State Budget 2000 |
Madis Võõras | Estonia on the Way to Full Membership of the European Space Agency |
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Ene Ergma | Estonia Has Become a Space State |
Urve Läänemets | A Good Teacher Should Be Ready to Learn Also from the Pupils |
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Külli Eichenbaum | Using the Local Peculiarities of Old Võromaa |
Political codes. Estonia and the EU. Government stability. Electoral behavior. Estonian women in positions of power. The Riigikogu and the state budgets. The free movement of the labor force. A quality of basic education. The party politicization of local politics. Estonia´s political elite. Parliamentary information services.
Summaries of articles are in English.
The main theme of this edition of RiTo is Estonia and the European Union.
One of the goals of the discussion is to show that the theory of collective responsibility (like many other similar groups of theories) is demagogical and harmful, designed to disenfranchise people and free those in power from primary responsibility over what happens in a state.
In less than a year all of Estonia's institutions and government offices must adapt to the realities of EU operation. It is clear that merely handling the amount of information coming from Brussels will severely test Estonia's administrative capabilities.
*The article is based on the report “The EU and Democracy in the Nordic Region. European Affairs Committees in Finland, Sweden and Denmark”, October 2002.
I would like to focus here on a development of central importance both for Europe and its partners elsewhere, for which planning has been intricately detailed in some areas, myopically absent in others: the new Europe we shall inhabit beginning the first of May, 2004.
*This article is a thoroughly revised version of the report that was presented for the first time on 11 September 2002 in London at the Royal Institute of Foreign Affairs. I would like to thank the Embassy of Great Britain in Tallinn for their support.
Russia was not able to comprehend the essence of the Schengen Agreement when it raised the dispute about Kaliningrad in 2002. The issue which Russia interpreted as a visa requirement imposed against Russia is actually nothing else but a random side requirement of Europe without internal borders, which the citizens of the European Union support in every way, and it has nothing to do with the problem of Russia.
The article gives an overview of the beginnings and course of European Union entry negotiations, as well as problems and solutions that have emerged during the talks.
With the ratification of the constitution, the Republic of Estonia had taken the first decisive step toward the European legal space. Today, more steps are required to be taken.
The EU entry process to date has shown that a state's executive power's role strengthens upon accession to the union
Compared to previous ones, the contract between Res Publica, Reform Party and the People's Union is undoubtedly a new approach.
If Estonia does not want to remain a haven for cheap subcontracted labor, now is the time to start moving from a minimalist, conservation-minded state toward an innovative state that invests in its people's future.
Cooperation between partners with diverse interests is only possible when a common ground is found and agreement is able to be reached on the principles. This means a coalition agreement is essential, though it is a separate matter how detailed a given agreement should be in terms of concrete policies.
Estonia is used to coalition agreements being the programmatic basic documents of the mutual agreements between the political forces in the governing coalition.
Despite the frequent changes of governing coalition, Estonia is considered the most successful transitional state in Eastern Europe.
Much data has been gathered to understand the political preference of the electorate in Estonia. But what good are data if they are not put to use to further develop and modernize politicians' and officials' knowledge?
In March 2003, the first woman was elected speaker of parliament - Ene Ergma.
A legislative bill is never without accompanying documents that annotate its content and aims, helping legislators understand the necessity of passing the law and propriety of the measures within.
The drafting and passage of the most important politico-economic document of the year, the state budget, are regulated in Estonia chiefly by three laws: the Constitution, the State Budget Act and the parliamentary rules of procedure.
Concerns involving the free movement of workers in Estonia are different from the ones in current EU member states. It is not an influx that is feared but rather an exodus of younger people due to a preponderance of highly qualified people and a resulting shortage of staff and drop in competitiveness.
The information-based economy needs workers who are able to integrate their skills with personal traits and views to adapt to the period of economic transition.
The role of parties is influential in local government, especially at election time. In their views and work as representatives, council members still consider the views of the local people more than their party.
Following the entry into force of the Public Procurement Act on 1 April 2001, the question has arisen of why buyers or public organizations do not use open tenders and still try almost without exception to offer unadvertised tenders, which are regulated by a special section of the Act.
Even though a great volume of operations and development plans have been drawn up in Estonia over the last few years, making them official in government has been a complicated affair.
The article focuses on Estonia's political elite's vision of politics and society, in the context of the media discussion of the growing distance between people and politicians.
The structure of civic associations includes both supportive and coordinating as well as developmental roles.
The network of Estonian non-profit organizations in ten regions in the country is now four years old.
The research and info services of many European parliaments cooperate with libraries, the largest networks being the European Center for Parliamentary Research and Documentation (www.ecprd.org) and the International Federation of Library Association's (www.ifla.org) Section on Library and Research Services for Parliaments.
Well-functioning parliamentary information services can make legislation more effective.
*The article is translated from the author’s paper “Knowledge and Power. The Essential Connection between Research and the Work of Legislature”, published by the European Centre for Parliamentary Research and Documentation (ECPRD). Dick Toornstra, ECPRD, European Parliament 2002. Full text is available on the website of the ECPRD at www.ecprd.org
Every MP has things in his schedule that someone else could do for him or her but which are not in the job description of anyone working in the Riigikogu.
In the early 2002, the Riigikogu secretariat organized a competition for preparatory school students - collecting memories from MPs in the 7th Riigikogu. Even though only 12 works were received, they proved that there was enough interesting material to go around.
The 9th Riigikogu closed for business, as it were, on February 13, 2003, having passed 881 acts of law, joined by two acts passed at extraordinary session on February 25 - a constitutional amendment and the appointment of the Auditor General - bringing the total to 883 (771 laws, 110 decisions, 1 proclamation and 1 appeal).
The National Library has been the EU's depository library since April 1992.
May 14 of this year marked ten years since Estonia was approved as the 27th member of the CE. The CE, founded in 1949 by 10 countries, is a continually changing organization with a membership that has grown from 26 to 45 over the last ten years. According to its statutes, the organization is charged with achieving greater unity between its members, foremost through acknowledging common values (pluralistic democracy, human rights and the paramount position of the rule of law) and through practical cooperation. The CE has had a notable role in standardizing legislation in European countries.