Implementing Human Rights in Serbia and Montenegro

 

The Danish Institute
for Human Rights

Ministry for Human and Minority Rights

   

 

Overview: Law Reform

 

 

 

The legislative reform program seeks to achieve compatibility of legislation governing human and minority rights in both Republics and establish an efficient process of legislative review, thus enabling both Republics to apply the Charter on Human and Minority Rights and Civil Freedoms.

 

Legislative reform programme resulted in:

 

Legislative Reform –Process

Legislative Reform Programmes are prepared according to the model and methodology explained in more detail further in the text.

 

Overview – Table

 

Page 1

 

Column 1

 

 

  • Constitutional Charter of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro with the Charter on Human and Minority Rights and Civil Freedoms

  • Constitution of the Republic of Serbia/

  • Montenegro

 

Column 2
 
Rights

Column 3

 

National Legislation

 

Column 4

 

International Documents

(UN, COE and EU)

Ratified
Signed and Other

 

 

 

 

 

 

Page 2

Column 5

 

Problems and Gaps

 

 

Column 6

 

Ref.

Second Part of Programme

 

 

Column 7

 

Other Rights to Which the Problem Relates

Column 8

 

Recommendations/ Solutions

 

Column 9

 

Notes

(options/best practices that can be used in problem solving)

Column 10

 

Laws

 

 

Column 1

Represents the starting point in the work on the legislative reform programme in order to identify the rights, that point being the Constitutional Charter of State Union of Serbia and Montenegro and Charter of Human and Minority Rights and Civil Freedoms. Constitution of the Republic of Serbia and Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro are also a part of this column, given that they represent the highest legal acts in Republic, which define the mentioned rights.

Column 2

Represents a list of individual rights defined and listed according to the criterion used in the Charter on Human and Minority Rights and Civil Freedoms. Every individual right is related to an Article of the Charter and Article of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia/Constitution of the Republic of Montenegro in which it is defined. Every right is given a corresponding number (from 1 to 44) for easier following.

Column 3

Represents a list of national legislation relating to each defined right and consists of:

 

Column 4

Represents a list of international documents of United Nations, Council of Europe, European Union and other international documents relating to each defined right and is divided in two sub columns:

A - ratified (which are a part of national legislation) and

B – signed and others (which are not ratified, but are of significance for a given right).

 

Column 5

Represents problems and gaps in national legislation that have been identified by conducting of „right by right“ analysis, comparing each right listed in Column 2 with the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia/Republic of Montenegro, national legislation and international standards. Each defined problem is given a corresponding number, for easier connecting with the relevant statute and reference in the Catalogue of statutes.

 

Column 6

This column gives a reference to papers written by working group members in the process of preparation of the Programme, in relation to the right that is being dealt with (from 1 to 44). They include detailed explanations of the problems in legislation with recommendations and represent the Second part of the Legislative Reform Programme. For some identified problems and gaps there is no reference, since these are not the result of work of the working group, but are derived from comments and suggestions of experts consulted in the final phase of programme preparation.

Column 7

Indicates the connections between the right and the defined problem in legislation with other rights from the Charter on Human and Minority Rights, in order to avoid repetition, since some problems relate to several rights.

 
Column 8

In order to overcome defined and grouped problems and gaps in national legislation and achieving compatibility with international standards, recommendations are given for solving these problems and gaps (e.g. which statutes need to be amended or which statutes need to be passed...).

 

Column 9

Where necessary, it is possible to consider practices in order to recommend the best solutions to problems and gaps.

 

Column 10

Represents statutes where there is a need for intervention in terms of harmonisation with international standards.

 

Implementation of the Law Reform Programme

Column 10 -Laws- is the basis for the list of statutes comprising the Catalogue of Statutes, given in the end of First Part of the Programme. Each listed statute is connected with numbers of identified problems/gaps in column 2. For each law authorised to porpose the law and  task bearer is defined.