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Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Monday participated at a conference of EU parliament speakers, a regular meeting to discuss current issues regarding the role of the parliament, and to coordinate parliamentary activities in the EU.
The video conference was organised by the German Bundestag parliament and Bundesrat federal council.
This is a regular meeting of the speakers of EU national parliaments, with the speakers of aspirant countries for EU membership invited too.
Jandroković spoke about the organisation and work of the Croatian Sabor during the COVID-19 pandemic and the importance of digital technology for the further development of democracy.
"The pandemic pointed out the advantages of digital technology in the everyday work of the parliament. During Croatia's presidency of the Council of the EU, we had to quickly adapt to the new reality and pandemic circumstances and ensure the continuation of inter-parliamentary cooperation through digital channels," said Jandroković.
He noted that the Croatian Sabor had adopted amendments to its Standing Orders so that lawmakers could have access to online voting and participate in parliamentary debates via video link.
He underscored the virtual digital platform of the Conference on the Future of Europe as an example where digital technology provides a significant contribution to the further development of representative democracy.
Jandroković announced an event in which the Croatian Parliament will actively be included in marking the conference, which will be held on Tuesday, 11 May 2021 in Parliament House.
"Politicians need to be aware that even though technology contributes to developing participating democracy, at the same time it brings numerous risks like fake news, disinformation, and cyber attacks that affect the entire society. For that reason we need to find a way to use everything that is good in technology but also to point out the negative impact it could have in making up opinions particularly among the young, who often make up their opinions using digital tools," said Jandroković.