Guidelines to Assist National Minority Participation in the Electoral Process Page: 7 Rights permits States to limit civil and political rights in order to protect the rights of others, to ensure national security or to maintain public order.15 There are two aspects to the right to participate in public life that require more detailed elaboration. They are: • • 1. the cluster of individual rights guaranteeing participation in elections and public life; and the right not to be discriminated against in the exercise of those rights because the person belongs to a national minority. The individual rights to participate in elections There are a cluster of individual rights considered as essential for the establishment and maintenance of a democracy. They extend from the right to form political and other associations, to campaign, stand for office and vote. The rights extend beyond the rights of the individual voter to the rights of political parties and other associations to canvas support and campaign. This cluster is normally desegregated into the following specific rights: • • • • • • the right to vote, in particular the right to a secret ballot; the right to regular and fair elections; the right to stand for public office; freedom of association; freedom of assembly; freedom of expression. These rights should be guaranteed in the constitution. Although constitutions generally permit the legislature to restrict these rights, those restrictions must be carefully scrutinised to ensure that they are not in violation of international standards and, more generally, do not impact on the participation of national minorities in public life. Examples of problematic restrictions are: • • • stipulating a language requirement for public office; undue requirements for the registration of political parties; distribution requirements which force parties or candidates to stand in a number of provinces or districts or even force them to have an office in each province if this has the effect of discriminating against national minorities The right to vote • The right to vote contemplated under this head is the general right to vote. Some States provide persons from national minorities with an additional vote.16 The right to an additional vote is properly a matter to be considered under different forms for minority representation and participation in public life. Those issues are dealt with under paragraph 7 below. 15 16 See also: specific limitation provisions attached to each right in the European Convention on Human Rights and to the various Fundamental Rights in Chapter 1 of the Dutch Constitution. For examples of general limitation clauses see: section 1 of the Canadian Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms; section 36 of the South African Constitution; the restriction in Articles 18, 18a and 19 of the German Basic Law; Articles 12 to 14 of the Swedish Instrument of Government. Examples of how different States seek to accommodate national minorities see: Articles 32B and 68 of the Hungarian Constitution; Canada (Article 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms(see footnote 7 above), which protects minority language educational rights; Articles 53 and 55 of the Spanish Constitution