Omnibus Law: we ask Congress to honor deliberation and citizen participation

We, the undersigned civil society organizations, request that the treatment of the “Bases and Starting Points for the Freedom of Argentines” bill continues in ordinary sessions so that our representatives can discuss it in a timeframe commensurate with its complexity, and that the instances of participation are extended so that citizens can express their views on the proposed reforms.

On December 22, 2023, the Executive Power of the Nation summoned the Congress to extraordinary sessions in order to submit for its consideration the bill entitled “Bases and Starting Points for the Freedom of the Argentines”.

The initiative contains more than 600 articles covering a wide range of topics: health, education, employment, social security, children and family, culture, environment, tourism, justice, security and defense, electoral system, fiscal policy, debt, economic deregulation and administrative reorganization, among others. This project proposes amendments to Codes and laws that were debated for years, that were enacted after having listened to a wide range of actors and that recognized historical struggles of various groups, and includes changes that will have direct and far-reaching consequences on people’s lives.

It is evident that understanding, studying and establishing a position regarding such a number and type of reforms requires a deliberative process of analysis, substantiation, argumentation and discussion. It is not possible to ensure an informed and robust parliamentary debate or to analyze in depth the impacts that each of the regulatory modifications would have in the timeframe proposed by the Executive Branch. The quality of public debate makes the quality of our democracy.

It is also impossible to guarantee, in a few weeks, a process of real citizen participation, allowing to listen to all the actors with expertise and experience in the matters included in the project and to those sectors that could be most affected by it. Although during the last week some entities were able to present their views to the deputies, each one had only 5 minutes to do so, and -as the call was limited to 3 days- many were left out of the debate. In addition, there were no opportunities for members of the legislative body to ask questions or request additional information, nor were there reasonable time limits for them to fully analyze the contributions received.

On the other hand, it should not be overlooked that some of the reforms included in the bill violate human rights recognized in treaties with constitutional hierarchy in our country and do not comply with the standards of specialized Committees. If these normative changes are approved, an even more critical social situation could arise, the judicial conflict in different jurisdictions would increase and the responsibility of the State before international organizations would be compromised, which reinforces the need to approach the discussion seriously.

In view of the above, the undersigned civil society organizations request the Congress of the Nation to continue in ordinary sessions the treatment of the bill “Bases and Points of Departure for the Freedom of the Argentines” so that our representatives can discuss it in time according to its complexity, and to expand the instances of participation, ensuring that public hearings are convened to allow citizens in general and the sectors affected by the reforms in particular, to express their views on them. Although the extraordinary sessions have been extended until February 15, such term is still ostensibly insufficient to discuss such a large number of regulatory changes.

Once again, we need a Legislative Branch that defends the system of checks and balances designed by our Constitution and chooses a pluralistic, deliberative and participatory democracy.

Signing organizations:

• Asociación Civil por la Igualdad y la Justicia (ACIJ)
• Equipo Latinoamericano de Justicia y Género (ELA)
• Consciente Colectivo
• Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales (CELS)
• Fundación para el Desarrollo de Políticas Sustentables (Fundeps)
• Fundación SES
• Asociación Ecuménica de Cuyo (FEC)
• Asociación para la Promoción y Protección de los Derechos Humanos Xumek
• Comisión Argentina para Personas Refugiadas y Migrantes (CAREF)
• Fundación Igualdad
• Abogados y Abogadas del Noroeste en derechos humanos y estudios sociales (Andhes)
• Jóvenes por el Clima
• Fundación Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (FARN)
• Democracia en Red
• Amnistía Internacional Argentina
• Coordinadora de Abogadxs de Interés Público (CAIP)
• Escuela de Fiscales
• Fundación Protestante Hora de Obrar
• Salta Transparente
• Instituto de Estudios Comparados en Ciencias Penales y Sociales (INECIP)
• Centro de Políticas Públicas para el Socialismo (CEPPAS)
• Red Argentina de Abogacía Comunitaria (RAAC)
• Observatorio de Justicia Sanitaria y Climática