By electing Walloon deputies every five years, the citizens give their mandate to be represented in the Parliament.
The mechanism of representative democracy doesn’t exclude the population from participating in the development of decisions by being consulted, debating or proposing the existence of several ways to be heard.
The last word, however, always remains with the elected representatives.
Since May 2018, the Walloon Parliament enables citizens to participate very directly and transparently, with deputies, to the drafting of legislative proposals via a collaborative digital platform named “A decree by all, a decree for all”.
This platform offers the deputies who so wish, the possibility of connecting with citizens in drafting a proposal for a decree. Citizens can contribute by intervening on a specific problem, identified by a deputy, who undertakes to address the most supported observations individually, but also to rely on contributions to submit a text.
Since the launch of this initiative, citizens of Wallonia have already been able to contribute to the reflections of deputies around two themes, notably the strengthening of local commerce and the creation of “no long-term unemployed” territories.
For more information: https://decret-tous.parlement-wallonie.be/
Illustration: explanatory video: https://vimeo.com/273280797