Background

The project Federalism & Representation in Russia: New Directions for the Federation Council studied the Federation Council's evolving role in the legislative process and provide practical support aimed at strengthening the Federation Council's capacity to exercise its responsibilities as a federal legislative chamber in a constitutional democracy.

The reform of Russia’s political institutions was one of President Putin’s central priorities. In particular, he focused his attention on Russia’s federal system, seeking to re-concentrate power and establish a uniform legal framework throughout the country. One of his principal reforms in this area concerned the Federation Council. Putin had fundamentally changed the makeup and role of this chamber with the reform he initiated in the summer of 2000, under which the chamber was to consist of full-time appointed representatives of the executive and legislative branches of power in each of the 89 federal subjects. The shift in the composition of the chamber was of great potential significance, because the new members would be motivated to develop professional expertise as legislators and political influence in order to effectively defend the interests of their regions.

The 1993 Constitution established a system of two chambers of the Russian Parliament, each formed and governed separately. However, the Federation Council was less known than the State Duma. Such basic questions as the voting alignments in the chamber, the relationship between regional policy initiatives and legislative activity in the federal parliament, and the patterns of relations between the Federal Council and the president, government and Duma were scarcely understood except through occasional press reports. The need to understand how the Federation Council works and the nature of its place in the political order was all the more pressing when its new members were going to work as full time legislators.

The project “Federalism and Representation in Russia: New Directions for the Federation Council” was based on the premise that a restoration of authoritarian rule in Russia would be incapable of achieving either effective or democratic government, and thus would impair both international security and Russia’s own development. Strong legislative institutions able to check and oversee the actions of the executive are indispensable to effective democratic government. It is precisely in this area where President Putin made some significant reforms. We strongly believed that these reforms offered a unique window of opportunity both to evaluate and to contribute to the strengthening of the legislative branch at the federal level.

Programme objectives

The overall objective of this programme was to strengthen the capacity of the newly reformed Federation Council of the Russian Federal Assembly to exercise its responsibilities as a federal legislative chamber in a constitutional democracy and to foster transparency in the legislative process. Other long term objectives were to stimulate a dialogue between representatives of the Federation Council and the State Duma and to contribute to the establishment and long-term development of effective democratic parliamentary systems in the regions of the Russian Federation.

By monitoring the Federation Council’s activities, providing information to the general public about the status of specific draft laws and conducting parliamentary workshops on topics which were of interest to the Federation Council members, the project partners strived to reach the following short term goals:

• Assist the new members of the reformed Federation Council to develop knowledge and skills that improve their effectiveness as legislators as they seek to define their roles as full-time representatives and lawmakers in the federal parliament;
• Facilitate non-partisan, open debates between all project participants on issues of concern, in particular on how to establish both institutionalised and informal channels of access and communication;
• Increase familiarity on the part of the members and staff of the Federation Council with the structures and procedures of upper chambers in democratic parliaments in Europe;
• Stimulate in-depth discussion on specific issues in a series of inter-parliamentary workshops. Follow up to the workshops can be guaranteed by the Institute for Law and Public Policy and the Assembly of Parliamentarians, based in Moscow;
• Raise awareness among members of the Federation Council of the specific responsibilities attached to their legislative functions by providing them with an opportunity to hear first-hand how parliamentarians in other democracies function;
• Establish closer personal and professional ties with their counterparts from long-established democracies, such as The Netherlands;
• Produce workshop reports with a broad distribution containing the findings and results of the workshops, definitions of essential terminology, comparative studies and useful advice;
• Reinforce public awareness of the Federation Council’s new role;
• Study the operation and role of the Federation Council in this formative period as the reform of this legislative body takes hold.

Programme Duration

1 December 2001-1 February 2004

Funding

Funding for the Programme Federalism & Representation in Russia: New Directions for the Federation Council was provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands and the Carnegie Corporation.

Programme activities

First preparatory visit to Moscow

The preparatory phase of the project commenced on 1 December 2001, and involved planning discussions on project implementation in Moscow. In February 2002 during the first preparatory visit to Moscow, EWPPP met with its partner ILPP, to discuss implementation of the four parliamentary workshops including: logistics, dates and draft agendas. This visit was also used to get the official approval of the programme from the new leadership of the Federation Council.

Meanwhile the ILPP's website posted a series of short reports on legislative issues, with a particular emphasis on the role of the Federation Council and current legislative issues on federalism.

Second preparatory visit to Moscow

In June 2002, EWPPP staff conducted the second preparatory visit to Moscow and met with its local partners, members of the Russian Duma, members of the Council of Federation and experts to prepare and discuss the implementation of the first international inter-parliamentary workshop. The research team had drafted the agenda for the first workshop in Moscow. The meeting gave a preliminary outline on the current problems within the Federation Council. The consortium closely tracked the development of the Federation Council as it became a full-fledged full-time legislative body. Specific areas of focus included the rotation of members, the organizational structure of the Federation Council, the degree of autonomy of Federation Council members and their relationship with other federal institutions. Research activities included:

• Surveys
• Interviews
• Data gathering
• Data analysis
• Preparation of publications (including production of a scholarly monograph in Russian and a series of conference papers in English)

In the meantime, the second supplement to East European Constitutional Review (Konstitutsionnoe pravo: vostochnoevropeiskoe obozrenie) was published. It included more than 20 analytical articles comprised of comments on the new Rules and Regulations of the Council of Federation, comments on the Labour Code, and proposed amendments to the Budget Law. In September 2002 the third issue was published, which focused on amendments to the Tax Code, Criminal Procedure Code, comments to the new Arbitration Code, and an analytical article about land reform. It also included information about parliamentary hearings and round tables in the Council of Federation.

International Inter-parliamentary Workshop I: The Constitutional Status and Powers of Upper Chambers of Parliament and their Members

The First International Inter-parliamentary Workshop was held from 17 to 18 October 2002, in the premises of the Federation Council and at the “Strategia” centre, and focused on "The Constitutional Status and Powers of Upper Chambers of Parliament and their Members". The agenda for the first workshop was drafted in close cooperation with the Commission on the Methodology for the Realization of the Constitutional Powers of the Federation Council. The combination of EWPPP’s international network and the direct involvement of committees and the Chairman of the Federation Council guaranteed high-level participation, both from Russia and from abroad.

Outcome

The workshop focused on sharing knowledge about how members of upper chambers in a variety of democratic parliaments exercise their rights and powers in the legislative process. Workshop I addressed issues such as the rules and procedures followed by upper chambers in the legislative process, the organizational structure of upper chambers, and the relations between upper and lower chambers in law-making.Participants form the Russian side included members and staff of the Council of the Federation and the State Duma, officials from the Executive Branch and the Constitutional Court, Russian legal and policy experts, representatives of the Russian media and other interest groups.

In April 2003, the fourth and fifth supplements to Konstitutsionnoe pravo were published. The supplements consisted of more than 50 analytical articles which included the following issues: the new act about the election of deputies to the State Duma of the Russian Federation, the Federation Council’s discussions of the Budgetary Code, amendments to the Tax Code, the Council of Federation and an analysis of its development, and the parliamentary hearings, "Government Hours", in the Council of Federation. In July 2003 the sixth issue was published, focusing on the following issues: the new act for communication, amendments to the Code of criminal procedure, the public service act, the Federal Council initiative for amendments to the law on the election of the president of the Russian Federation, amendments to the electoral law and to the act for guarantee of electoral rights and the right to take part in referendums, the reform of the housing and communal services, and the parliamentary hearings, "Government Hours", in the Council of Federation.

International Inter-parliamentary Workshop II: The Representative Functions of Upper Chambers of Parliaments

The Second International Inter-parliamentary Workshop was organized from 14 to 15 February 2003 in Moscow. The theme of the second workshop was “The Representative Functions of Upper Chambers of Parliaments”. Topics discussed included:

• conceptions of the representative functions of parliamentary upper chambers in democratic theory and practice;
• procedures for the selection of members of upper chambers: constitutional norms and practices;
• constitutional variation in the role of upper chambers in policy making;
• political representation and status of upper chamber members: constitutional powers and representative roles;
• the organization of the activity of members of upper chambers as a subject of humanitarian and legal strategy.

Participants of the second Inter-parliamentary Workshop included members and staff of the Federation Council; Duma deputies; officials from the Executive Branch and the Constitutional Court; Russian legal and policy experts; representatives of the Russian media and other interest groups; parliamentarians, staff officials, and experts from The Netherlands and other European countries.

Outcome

Attention was called to the dialectic activity of members of upper houses – the representation of subjects at the regional level and the representation of state and federation issues. The Federation Council is a constitutional partner to the head of state, and one of its major duties is to safeguard and participate in humanitarian and legal strategies. The proper functioning of the upper chamber depends on the quality of senators’ activities, professionalism, the alignment of forces, and ultimately the art of political maneuvering, or internal strategies within the existing government.

International Inter-parliamentary Workshop III: The Representative Functions of Upper Chambers of Parliaments: Regional Aspect

The Third International Inter-parliamentary Workshop was organized in St. Petersburg, June 20-21, 2003, and dealt with “The Representative Functions of Upper Chambers of Parliaments: Regional Aspect”. The agenda for the workshop was drafted in close cooperation with Professor Thomas Remington and the Commission on the Methodology for the Realization of the Constitutional Powers of the Federation Council. The workshop focused on the following topics:

• creation of a common economic space;
• participation of regional executive and legislative bodies of state power in federal law-making;
• participation by members of the upper chamber in policy-making processes in the regions;
• the upper chamber as intermediary between the federal executive branch and the bodies of state power of the territorial subjects.
• Participants included members and staff of the Council of Federation and the State Duma; members of the Legislative Assemblies of Saint-Petersburg, Leningradskaya and Novgorodskaya oblast’; officials from the Executive Branch and the Constitutional Court; Russian legal and policy experts; representatives of the Russian media and other interest groups.

Outcome

Again the combination of EWPPP’s international network and the direct involvement of committees and the Chairman of the Federation Council guaranteed high-level participation not only from Russia but also from abroad. International participants in the third Inter-parliamentary Seminar included members and staff of the Slovenian National Council, members of the Dutch First Chamber, the First Vice-President of the Spanish Senate and a legal advisor, a member of the British House of Lords and a staff member of the German Bundesrat. The qualitative and the legal characteristics of the representative nature of the Federation Council of Russia had not been yet been fully formulated in the Russian legislation. This meeting further increased awareness among members of the Federation Council of the specific responsibilities attached to their legislative functions as far as regional representation is concerned, by providing them with an opportunity to hear first-hand how parliamentarians from upper chambers in other democracies function.

International Inter-parliamentary Workshop IV: The Oversight of Legislation and Law-Implementing Practice as a Field of Activity of Upper Chambers of Parliament

The final International Inter-parliamentary Workshop IV was held in Moscow, from 14 to 15 November 2003 and was devoted to “The Oversight of Legislation and Law-Implementing Practice as a Field of Activity of Upper Chambers of Parliament”.

Participants of this last International Workshop included members and staff of the Federation Council; State Duma deputies; officials from the Executive Branch and Constitutional Court; Russian legal and policy experts; representatives of the Russian media and other interest groups; parliamentarians, staff officials, and experts from The Netherlands and other European countries. This International Seminar focused on the following topics:

• legal foundations of the exercise of oversight of legislation and the implementation of legislation by the upper chamber of the Russian Parliament and of other European parliaments: a comparative analysis;
• the role of the upper chamber in exercising oversight of the legislation and law-implementing practice;
• the relations between upper chambers and territorial authorities in exercising oversight of legislation;
• oversight of legality and implementation of international legal norms in the activity of upper chambers;
• humanitarian-legal expertise in the system of oversight of legislation and law-implementing practice.

Wrap-Up Meeting: 14-17 February 2004

Upon the explicit request of the local partner organization, the Institute for Law and Public Policy, and with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, the EWPPP organized an additional visit to Moscow from 14 to 17 February 2004. The aim of this visit was to evaluate the completed programme for Russia and to discuss possibilities for future co-operation between EWPPP, ILPP and the Assembly of Parliamentarians.

Outcome

The partners agreed that the programme was useful as a means to strengthen the capacity of the newly reformed Federation Council of the Russian Federal Assembly to exercise its responsibilities as a federal legislative chamber in a constitutional democracy and to foster transparency in the legislative process. A lack of transparency in the legislative process continues to be a problem in Russia. They further agreed the programme had been unique in publishing the results of the monitoring analysis through a website and a quarterly journal East European Constitutional Review (Konstitutsionnoe pravo: vostochnoevropeiskoe obozrenie). Active debate in response to research results was posted on the ILPP website. Partners emphasized the importance of the scholarly study component, which consisted of a series of useful and insightful research papers and publications. These research papers and publications were widely distributed and are now referred to on a regular basis by the community of scholars in the Russian Federation and abroad who study political institutions and processes in Russia.

Analysis and evaluation

The project fit perfectly the overall goal of the Social Transition (Matra) Programme. This programme can be approached from two angles: civil society and government. Although the EWPPP also carries out projects which concentrate chiefly on the development of the relationship between civil society and parliaments in Central and Eastern Europe and the CIS countries, this programme for the Russian Federation came from a distinctly ‘parliamentary’ angle, as the Federation Council had been granted a new role in the political spectrum, which required its members to take on new responsibilities and review their relations with the general public.

However, by allocating a leading role to two influential Russian NGOs in the field of legal and policy advice, the programme contributed to the development of trust and mutual respect between parliament and NGOs. By assigning a specific role to representatives of various NGOs, interest groups and the media, the organizers succeeded in promoting the involvement of these groups in fields relevant to the federal legislature. In addition, the project raised awareness among parliamentarians of the positive contribution NGOs and the media can make to the development of an effective democratic parliamentary system.

Throughout the legislative monitoring component of the project, information regarding the Federation Council was distributed to an audience which extended beyond the federal institutions. The legislative monitoring component of the programme stimulated and increased awareness and an active interest on the part of legislators and legislative staff, executive and judicial branch officials, scholars and interested citizens in the drafting and adopting of (a specific piece of) legislation.

Scholarly study consisted of a series of useful and insightful research papers and publications. The Parliamentary workshops resulted in the acquisition by a multi-party group of Federation Council members and staff of techniques which enhance the efficiency of the Russian upper house. The workshops also increased awareness of and interest in the drafting and adoption of legislation. As a result of the project, a higher degree of co-operation and improved dialogue was achieved between the Federation Council, the State Duma, and representatives of other federal institutions.

Thus, the project at hand contributed to the overall goal of the Social Transition (Matra) Programme by answering the criteria of the Matra programme, in that it fostered good governance by:

• Providing support to central government authorities;
• Developing democratic practices in government;
• Increasing transparency and open dialogue;
• Improving the co-operation of parliament with NGOs, representatives of the media and interest groups.

Furthermore, this project aimed to stimulate the transfer of practical knowledge, experience and techniques, of practitioners who have first hand experience with the topics discussed during the workshops. The programme succeeded in establishing a network of contacts among deputies, parliamentary staff and specialists, which serve as a basis for ongoing co-operation, exchange of experience and know-how in the Russian Federation and across Europe.

Conclusions and recommendations

The programme Federalism and Representation in Russia: New Directions for the Federation Council provided the backdrop for actors in the field of Russian federalism to discuss important issues as a group and increase awareness of and interest in drafting and adoption of legislation among the members of the Council of Federation of Russia. The programme, therefore, achieved its goal of strengthening the capacity of the newly reformed Federation Council of the Russian Federal Assembly to exercise its responsibilities as a federal legislative chamber in a constitutional democracy and fostered transparency in the legislative process. The programme has also succeeded in attaining a higher degree of cooperation between all levels of government and particularly between the Federation Council and State Duma.

One of the major accomplishments of the programme was the dissemination of Russian and international best practices, not only during the workshops but also through the distribution of a quarterly journal as well as a scholarly study regarding the development of the Council of Federation and the workshop reports. With these results in mind, it is clear that the project was effective in fostering co-operation and communication among parliamentarians, both nationally and internationally, and contributed to the establishment and long-term development of effective democratic parliamentary systems in the regions of the Russian Federation.

However, it is also clear that this is only an interim achievement, which must be expanded to include the development of new or the strengthening of existing tools which increase awareness of and interest in drafting and adoption of legislation and foster co-operation and communication between all levels of government and between the Federation Council and State Duma and the public at large. Steps must now be taken to address the obstacles which were identified during the workshops. This programme has fostered a willingness on all sides to address these problems, but that alone is not enough to overcome the challenges which lie ahead.

One of the obstacles identified is the lack of a clear-cut legal status for the independent monitoring expertise which will be difficult to establish in a situation where lawmakers are not accountable for the laws they make. Monitoring in its turn is an essential instrument for perfecting the quality of legislation and all practices of application.

Another problem facing the Federation Council is that the qualitative and legal characteristics of the representative nature of the Federation Council of Russia have not been fully formulated in Russian legislation. The destiny of the upper chamber depends on the quality of senators’ activity, professionalism, the alignment of forces, and ultimately the art of political maneuvering, or internal strategies within the existing government. Calling attention to the dialectic nature of the activity of members of upper houses – the representation of subjects, regions, and the representation of state and federation issues - is just the first step in the process of making fundamental changes to the existing legislation, which contradicts itself in certain areas and provides no guidelines concerning other topics. The Federation Council is the constitutional partner to the head of state, and one of its major duties is to safeguard and participate in humanitarian-legal strategies.

This project was successful in providing the foundation for future co-operation in strengthening federal legislature. It is hoped that those who participated in the programme will translate the best practices into new legislative initiatives for the Russian Federation.