International
Today marks the beginning of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, with South Africa taking on Mexico this morning in the Cup’s opening match. The match resulted in a 1-1 draw, but was still pretty entertaining to watch.
In honor of the start of the World Cup I direct your attention to the petition to bring the Cup back to the United States. The U.S. is in the bidding process for the 2018 or 2022 Cup, and it would be great to bring it back. So go use your citizen petition power and sign it!
Some of you might already have seen the video, but if you haven’t yet check it out, and join us in San Francisco in July to learn about how you can become a citizen in charge.
Tired of politicians who don’t listen to you? Take charge with citizen initiative rights. Join us in San Francisco July 30 - August 4 to learn more. Register to attend for FREE by June 7th: www.USConferenceOnIandR.com
Citizens in Charge president Paul Jacob’s Townhall.com article this past weekend deals with the effort to bring the initiative to the European Union. It’s a very interesting article about the steps that are being taken to bring initiative rights to Europeans and how it’s a bit different than what we have in 26 states here in America. Check it out.
The European Commission must be congratulated! It has done a good job with the draft regulation on the European Citizens’ Initiative. What is especially positive about the proposed regulation for the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) is the balanced approach: designing such a totally new procedure presents an enormous challenge, but things have been kept fairly simple.
Election hopefuls clashed over Immigration, Wycombe Hospital, the economy and Europe at The Bucks Free Press Wycombe hustings last night. Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrat and UK Independence Parties took part in the 90 minute debate which saw candidates challenged by Free Press readers.
While around the United States legislators and special interests seek to restrict citizens’ initiative & referendum petitioning rights, the European Union is expanding them. Joe Matthews of the New America Foundation notes:
The news here are the choices the Europeans appear to be making about how to structure the new signature gathering process. In almost every way, their process represents a vast improvement on what we have in California.
The European Commission today (31 March) set out the rules for using a “citizens’ initiative” which allows one million people to ask the Commission to propose new laws. Using the initiative, which was introduced by the Lisbon treaty, will require at least one million signatures from at least nine of the 27 member states. Organisers will also to make sure they get a minimum number of names from each country, based on the so-called digressive proportionality system, which is used to divide up seats between member states in the European Parliament.
Let’s go halfway across the pond to Iceland for a little bit of international intitiative & referendum news.
Citizens of Iceland voted this past weekend on a repayment plan to pay back patrons of an Icelandic bank that failed. With the results almost completely tallied I think it’s safe to say that they did not like the repayment plan. It’s back to the drawing board for the government of Iceland on how to repay the debt.
British recording company EMI has put Abbey Road Studios - where rock legends The Beatles recorded most of their albums and singles - up for sale, and fans have started an online petition to keep the building a recording studio.
I put this up on our newswire this morning, but thought I would mention it here in the blog as well. Activists in Spain gathered nearly 200,000 signatures in order to get a vote in the Catalan parliament to ban bullfighting.
Already faced with a rapidly ageing fanbase at home and widespread incomprehension and rejection abroad, Spanish bullfighting has suffered another major setback after the Catalan parliament voted to outlaw it completely across the region.
Citizens in Charge Foundation would like to wish you and yours Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas.
Richard Winger at Ballot Access News uses a situation in Maine to make a great point about the many and often absurd reasons that petition signatures can be challenged around the country:
Honduras heads for crisis as its left-wing President tries to push ahead with a referendum that the country’s congress and courts have declared illegal. President Manuel Zelaya seeks to change several parts of the constitution including allowing himself to run for re-election so that he can stay in power. Similar action by Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez has allowed him to stay in power in that country.