Committee Chairperson Prof. Dr Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic convened the third sitting of the Constitutional Issues Committee, held on 29 September 2009, to discuss one item: the Information of competent authorities on the fulfillment of duties stipulated by the Constitution under article 15 of the Constitutional Law on Implementation of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia.

In the introductory address the Committee Chairperson summarised the National Assembly’s activities in the previous period, emphasising that 217 laws and 64 decisions had been adopted, but also that all the deadlines for the harmonisation of the remaining laws with the Constitution had expired. She reminded the Committee that the Assembly did not fulfill its duties either, since the National Assembly Act and new Rules of Procedure have not been adopted yet. Although the Constitution proscribes no deadline for the adoption of the two documents, the parliament should fulfill this duty as soon as possible, Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic stressed.

The Committee members also stressed the need to pass the National Assembly Act and new Rules of Procedure as soon as possible and proposed a consultation of deputy group heads so as to bring the business to a close. They agreed that a lot of laws had been harmonised with the Constitution, but that some priorities need to be set, listing these two laws among them. Also, passing judiciary laws not harmonised with the Constitution should be sped up and the Serbian Constitutional Court should be enabled to function at full capacity. The fact that some of the duties from the Constitutional Law have not been fulfilled does not mean that the Constitution is not observed, the Committee members stated adding that everybody should implement all measures within their purview to ensure that the Constitutional duties be met.

At the end of the discussion, the Committee adopted the Conclusion that the National Assembly shall forward to the competent authorities and institutions.

The sitting was chaired by the Committee Chairperson, Prof. Dr Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic.