“Deliberative democracy is a way of responding to citizens' disenchantment with democratic processes and lack of public trust in institutions, and a useful method in complex situations to overcome ethnic and political divides,” stressed Karl-Heinz Lambertz (Belgium, SOC/G/PD), Congress Rapporteur on deliberative democracy at local and regional level, at the Assembly of European Regions (AER) Bureau on 12 May 2021.
Speaking in the debate on the future of democracy in European regions, he underlined the four essential criteria to take into account in desiging a deliberative process: the choice of participants; the selection of topics; the organisation of the citizen dialogue and, above all, the follow-up of the citizens' recommendations. “This last criterion is of paramount importance for the success of deliberative democracy at local and regional level,” added Mr Lambertz.
He gave the example of the German-speaking Community of Belgium, whose Parliament voted unanimously to institutionalise a Citizens Assembly drawn by lot in political decision making. “Thanks to this historic decision the citizens are now consistently involved with shaping their future,” he added.
The Rapporteur also stressed the contribution of deliberative democracy to the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals at local and regional levels, and in particular SDG 16 on peace, justice and strong institutions ensures responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels.
The report on deliberative democracy is expected to be submitted for adoption at the meeting of the Governance Committee on 26 October and then be adopted in Congress session in March 2022.
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