As for the proximity of November 17, the date of the appointment of the new convocation of the National Assembly, I return to some reflections published in a longer text.

According to a report by Civicus (2023), democracy is a contested terrain with failures around the world. The powers of the state play a fundamental role in the governance of the country; However, there are cases where the rejection of the legislature is massive.

Trust in the Ecuadorian National Assembly has declined over the years. A few months ago, his image was negatively evaluated by 95.37% of the population (click Report, 05/23), and his management as bad/very bad by 92.32% (Opinion Profiles, 04/23).

Political scientist S. Basaba proposes the reform of the Code of Democracy, because it “guarantees enough incentives for the most incompetent and most corrupt to dedicate themselves to politics” and proposes several changes: two to three years of party affiliation to be completed as a member of parliament, loss of mandate in case of withdrawal from the bench, second round selection; to review the mechanism by which the associated movements and parties, without a mandate in 10 years, maintain their registration in the CNE. On the other hand, the Constitutional Court is analyzing an amendment that increases the requirements for a representative in the assembly, today it is only necessary to be Ecuadorian and of legal age.

The United Nations Development Program and the Inter-Parliamentary Union in their third World Parliamentary Report 2022 provide examples of good practice in more than 70 parliaments, from the perspective that we need to prepare for what is coming and whether parliaments are the foundation for a more peaceful, prosperous and dialogic society .

The report highlights the potential of public and digital participation to connect with citizens and young people, highlighting that there are 1.8 billion people between the ages of 10 and 24, the largest generation in history. It also highlights the low representation of women in the halls of power, with only 13 out of 187 national parliaments approaching gender equality.

In order to commit to real changes, within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda, the report compiles strategic, inclusive, participatory, innovative and sensitive recommendations for working with citizens’ mistrust, protecting the public space for discussion, listening to all voices and achieving greater relevance of the Parliament. We encourage the new Assembly to consider it.

We also hope that parliamentarians will give their opinion in a reasoned manner, reach a consensus, and avoid misinformation and insolence typical of certain politicians. The French thinker Edgar Morin rightly observes that we are not only facing a crisis that unites political parties but also the validity of democracy; a hyper-bureaucratized State on which lobbyists parasitize; a society dominated by the omnipresent power of profit. It is not only a crisis of civilization and humanism. It is a more radical and hidden crisis, says Morin, “it is a crisis of thinking.” (OR)