One of the major concerns of the Internet users that participated of the chat accomplished on Wednesday (26) by the Chamber of Deputies News Agency about the elections for the Mercosur Parliament (Parlasur) was the cost of that new representation to the Brazilian taxpayer.

According to Deputy Dr. Rosinha by (PT-PR), rapporteur of this claim, the trend is that every Mercosur representative earns the equivalent amount of a Federal Deputy, but no other auxiliary funds, such as in the European Parliament. Dr. Rosinha defends that this cost is directly assigned to the Brazilian Congress, but this is not defined yet.

The elected representatives will have, in the future, offices in Montevideo, although there will be a representation of the Mercosur Parliament in each of the capitals of the block, called “unidade de enlace" (binding unit), that will work as a link between Parlasur and national parliaments.

Concerning the technical advisory body, in the Mercosur Parliament Constitutive Protocol, there is the forecast of an international competitive tendering for future employees of the Parlasur (article 16).

Accomplishment of the election
Internet users also demonstrated concern about the lack of knowledge of the citizen about the activities of the Mercosur Parliament, and the viability of the elections’ accomplishment for Parlasur, on 2010.

Dr. Rosinha acknowledges that there is not a good media coverage about the topic, and that it has been difficult to approve the rules for the direct and unique elections on 2010, because the deadline for this will be expired on early October, and the reporting must be sent to the two houses of the Congress. "I rather believe that, since this is a political House, the leaderships will know how to identify this priority and to approve the bill", says the bill’s rapporteur in the Chamber.

Proportionality
The number of representatives assigned to each country in the Parlasur’s composition also concerns Internet users. Dr. Rosinha clarified that the last approved agreement of Parlasur Floor establishes that Paraguay and Uruguay are maintained with 18 (each one), and Brazil with 37 between January 2011 and December 2014. From that date on, it will become 75. As to Argentina, there are 26 on the first step and 37 from 2014 on. There is still the approval of this agreement by the Common Market Council.

There is also the fear that Brazil remains in a vulnerable position, since the sum of the other countries will be bigger than our representation.

Parlasur, clarified the Deputy, adopts the attenuated proportionality, such as the European Parliament. Otherwise, Brazil would stand out in all decisions. Besides, the formation of political groups in the scope of the Mercosur Parliament may balance the purely national focus, similar to what happens in the European Parliament. There, the representatives gather not for their nationality, but for their ideological affinities.

Reporting - Rejane Xavier
Edition - Wilson Silveira
Translation-Grupo Solucion-SP Language Center