LOCAL DEMOCRACY: CHALLENGES IN THE CONDITIONS OF RUSSIAN ARMED AGGRESSION AGAINST UKRAINE

Abstract

Introduction. Ensuring the rights and freedoms of man and citizen is the basis for building a democratic state. Effective representation of citizens' interests at the local level is possible only under the condition of a developed system of local democracy.

More than four years after the start of the full-scale invasion, the issue of preserving democracy in Ukraine has not lost its relevance. In recent years, we have observed great scientific interest in the issues of local self-government and territorial organization of power in Ukraine. The number of original and innovative studies devoted to decentralization, its essence, content, principles and goals, trends in its development, borrowing positive foreign municipal experience and international standards of local self-government is increasing. In this context, the issue of the functioning of local democracy acquires particular importance in the conditions of the challenges of the Russian-Ukrainian armed conflict.

Purpose. The purpose of the study is to reveal the challenges for local democracy in the conditions of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.

Materials and methods. The materials of the study are: 1) regulatory and legal support for the regulation of local democracy; 2) works of domestic and foreign authors conducting their scientific and practical research in the field of constitutional and municipal law, in particular on local democracy.

In the process of conducting the study, such general philosophical methods were used as: dialectical and axiological methods. In addition, general scientific methods were used: logical, analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, abstraction and concretization, systemic method. The generalization method was used in the preparation of conclusions.

Results. The article analyzes the practice of local democracy, in particular, issues related to the military aggression of the russian federation against Ukraine. It is noted that the introduction of martial law in connection with the full-scale aggression of the russian federation in Ukraine creates certain restrictions for citizens in terms of public relations and access to public information.

 The article emphasizes that the tools of electronic democracy play an important role in ensuring the interaction of local authorities with local residents. In particular, one of the important tools of local democracy is the petition of citizens, which can be submitted electronically.

It is emphasized that the constitutional guarantee of petition is inviolable and cannot be limited even during war or a state of emergency. It is emphasized that one of the tools of public relations that is gaining popularity at the state and local levels is electronic petitions. It is noted that electronic petitions are a means of supporting the development of democracy, drawing the attention of the authorities to important issues, and expressing opinions, problems and proposals to the relevant authorities through mass online petitions

 The article analyzes the features of electronic consultations as a means of public relations. It is noted that electronic consultations are a type of public consultation, which, among other things, involves the publication of draft documents of state bodies or issues to be resolved for the purpose of receiving suggestions and comments. One of the most promising tools for public participation was identified as the «participatory budget», which allows each resident to submit their own projects and vote on other important projects financed from the local budget.

Prospects. In connection with the active development of local democracy, it is important to study the theoretical and practical components of this phenomenon. In further scientific research, it is proposed to focus on the forms of local democracy.