 |
Iceland's
economy was on the brink
of collapse in 2008 |
In a
possible world-first, Iceland’s citizens have helped draft a new constitution
via social networks such as Facebook and Twitter. The draft document has been
presented to Iceland’s parliamentary speaker.
A council
of 25 ordinary, publicly-elected Icelandic citizens presented a draft
constitution to Iceland's parliamentary speaker Asta Ragnheidur Johannesdottir
on Friday. This may be the first time that citizens have actively contributed
suggestions via the Internet and were able to follow progress on social
networks such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Flickr.
The
constitution of the island nation of 320,000 people was first instituted in
1944. The Icelandic parliament, known as Althingi, agreed in 2010 that the
country's citizens should be involved to include their viewpoint, on the core
values of the constitution.
The council
began work on the draft constitution in April. During this time, its work was
posted on the Internet. Icelanders submitted around 1,600 propositions and
comments on the council's website.
People
pressure
"The
reaction from the public was very important," said Salvor Nordal, the head
of constitutional council. Most of the suggestions had to do with a revised
economic model, following Iceland's economic collapse in 2008. All Iceland's
major banks failed at the time, leading the country to the brink of economic
collapse.
There is
little public support for Iceland to join the EU.
 |
There is
little public support for
Iceland to join the EU. |
"This
triggered massive social movements, and mounted pressure to revamp the
constitution, and for the process to be led by ordinary citizens," said
council member Silja Omarsdottir.
Some of the
suggestions were extreme or even bizzare. One suggested that Iceland's natural
resources were to be designated public property and no private organization or
individuals would be permitted to own them or the rights connected to them.
Another proposal wanted to "kill all capitalists."
Johannesdottir
said the draft would be examined by a parliamentary committee starting on
October 1.
Author:
Wilhelmina Lyffyt (AFP, dpa)
Editor: Nicole Goebel
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