5
Dispatch → Bulletin → Opinion
by 
The Township of Junitaki-cho.
.
28 reads.
Information for Voters: Protecting Convicted Voters
Summary
The question of whether prisoners should retain their right to vote in elections is debated pretty frequently. Some would argue that participating in the democratic process is a foundation right of citizenship, while others assert that it's a privilege which can be revoked based on behaviour. This resolution takes the position of the former, and thus advocates for the voting rights of incarcerated persons. It basically requires that people who are imprisoned be allowed to vote for public offices, given reasonable access to voting materials for public offices, and not be coerced to vote in a particular way in an election for a public office.
Analysis
Did you notice it? That everything in the previous section is qualified with "elections for public office"? Because that's all this resolution applies to. It does not guarantee prisoners the right to vote on referenda or other such non-election matters which frequently come up in democratic states. As such, it's a pretty weak solution which shouldn't satisfy anyone seeking political freedoms for prisoners. We can do better.
Additionally, there's an argument to be made that prisoners whose crimes involved electoral fraud should be barred from voting. This IFV takes no position on this matter, but notes that the proposal does not make any such provisions.
Recommendation
Because of the obvious oversight which fails to secure complete political freedom for those imprisoned, the Refugia Councillor of World Assembly Affairs recommends voting against Protecting Convicted Voters.
