Review article
The Role of Libraries in the Public Consultation Process in the Adoption of Laws, Other Regulations and Acts
Gordan Struić
orcid.org/0000-0001-6528-4436
; Hrvatski sabor, Zagreb, Hrvatska
Abstract
Having in mind the need for argumentative representation of citizens’ rights in the enactment of laws, other regulations and acts, and involvement in the process of their formulation and enactment, the paper explores the role of libraries in the process of public consultation, as one of the most used instruments of participation, viewed from a legal perspective through the interpretation of applicable Croatian regulations and relevant international and other documents to determine what this role consists of. In addition to the relevant literature and normative framework, the paper highlights some examples of the role of libraries in participatory practice. It is concluded that their participatory role consists of the possibility of direct involvement in the public consultation process, in accordance with the Law on the right to access information and the Code of consultation with the interested public in the procedures of enacting laws, other regulations and acts, as well as of helping the public to be involved in the consultation process through a series of activities in accordance with the Law on libraries and library activity. Although libraries are not obliged to carry out a consultation process for their acts, it can be interpreted that there is no impediment to doing so, especially if these acts may affect the public interest. Since this topic has not been researched so far, it is expected that the results will provide new insights into the role of libraries in the participatory process, encouraging scientific interest in further research on this topic, but also as guidelines for using this instrument in participatory practice.
Keywords
participation; public consultation; the role of libraries; regulations; the public
Hrčak ID:
271954
URI
Publication date:
31.12.2021.
Visits: 965 *