The bill aims to improve electoral legislation and raise the requirements for individuals seeking election to the country's highest legislative body.
The current version of the Constitutional Law provides for restrictions on passive electoral rights for citizens with an unexpunged or unquashed criminal record; however, after its expungement or quashing, the legislation does not establish additional restrictions for persons previously convicted of committing intentional grave and especially grave crimes.
In this regard, the President has proposed to establish additional qualification requirements for candidates for deputies of the People's Assembly – Parliament of the Republic of Abkhazia. The bill stipulates that citizens convicted of a serious intentional crime, whose criminal record has been expunged or cleared, will not be eligible to be elected as deputies for ten years from the date of expungement or clearing of their criminal record. For citizens convicted of committing particularly serious crimes, it is proposed to establish a similar restriction for a period of fifteen years.
As noted in the explanatory note to the bill, the proposed changes are aimed at enhancing the authority of the People's Assembly – Parliament of the Republic of Abkhazia and strengthening public trust in the institution of representative government. At the same time, it is emphasized that the established restrictions are not a measure of criminal punishment, but rather qualification requirements for persons seeking to engage in legislative activities and adopt laws that determine the development of the state and society.
The adoption of the bill will not require amendments to other regulatory legal acts of the Republic of Abkhazia.