ESTONIANS WANT DIRECT ELECTION OF MORE POWERFUL PRESIDENT
Published:
4 November 2003 y., Tuesday
Approximately 85 percent of the population favors the direct election of the president, with 11 percent opposed and 4 percent undecided, BNS reported on 31 October, citing a poll conducted in early October by the EMOR research company.
Most of those polled also said they believe the president should have greater powers. Nearly half of the poll's respondents were unable to name a suitable presidential candidate, but the leading choices were President Arnold Ruutel (16 percent), Reform Party Chairman Siim Kallas (8 percent), parliament speaker Toomas Savi (5 percent), and Center Party Chairman Edgar Savisaar (4 percent).
A bill calling for direct presidential elections passed its first reading in September with 71 of the 101 parliament deputies voting in favor. The second reading is scheduled for January. The ruling coalition has also suggested that a referendum on amending the constitution to allow direct presidential elections in 2006 should be held on 13 June 2004 simultaneously with the Europarliament elections.
Šaltinis:
rferl.org
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.
The most popular articles
Preparations for the traditional Mexican Day of the Dead get underway in Mexico City as residents erect alters and bake bread for the deceased.
more »
In three resolutions adopted in Strasbourg on Thursday, the European Parliament restates its solidarity with O. Orlov, a member of the Russian human rights organization Memorial and winner of the 2009 EP Sakharov Prize, who is now facing trial, denounces the imprisonment of Cambodian opposition leader S. Rainsy and calls on Zimbabwe's President R. Mugabe to put an end to the threat of mass forced evictions.
more »
Marrying diligent driver behaviour, quality road infrastructure and sound vehicles for safer roads across Europe.
more »
A group of journalism students in Moscow pose semi-naked for a steamy calendar wishing Russia's prime minister a happy birthday.
more »
In the EU27 in 2008, 20% of women and 32% of men aged 25 to 34 lived with at least one of their parents.
more »
“Vertical” health funds targeting specific diseases such as AIDS, malaria or TB have achieved some success, but only at the cost of draining resources from basic “horizontal” health infrastructure such as clinics.
more »
This autumn, the 2010 European Job Days give jobseekers a chance to meet employers from all over Europe, and find out about working in other EU countries through seminars and workshops.
more »
During his visit to New York, on 27 September at the City University of New York, Lithuania’s Minister of Foreign Affairs A. Ažubalis, opened a photography exhibition dedicated to the Lithuanian Jewish cultural heritage and conferred an award of Lithuania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on former Executive Director of the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research.
more »
The 26th of September marks the European Day of Languages. Perhaps the Knights of the Order of St John in the Middle Ages prided themselves about the fact that they had eight “langues” but Parliament does better with its daily “Headlines” on its website in 22 languages.
more »
A proposed new plan focuses on closing the pay gap and opening up company boardrooms to more women. Tackling domestic violence is also a top priority.
more »