ČSSD rejects women quotas, changes against "whalers"

Brno, March 19 (CTK) - The Czech senior opposition Social Democrats' (CSSD) congress Saturday turned down draft changes to the party statutes such as extending the leaders' mandate to three years from the present two, quotas for female candidates and steps to stem expedient mass recruitment of new members.

On the other hand, the delegates approved a change preventing cumulation of party posts.

The CSSD commission for upgrading the statutes proposed a half-year period of for new applicants to wait before being admitted to the party.

The step was meant to reduce the influence of so-called "whalers," or party officials, sometimes backed by allied businessmen, who organising mass recruitment of new members in order to win elections or push through their aims in party votes.

The congress rejected the commission's proposal Saturday. It also rejected the proposal that a local branch be authorised to admit ten new members at the most at one session.

Nor did the congress nod to the proposal limiting the size of a party local branch. If a branch's membership exceeded 150, a new branch were to be established, according to the proposal.

The congress approved a change to the statutes that prevents a CSSD official from being elected to more than three party posts.

The delegates also approved a change aimed against members' expedient departures from the CSSD.

"Some members who want to avoid expulsion, leave the party by themselves to rejoin it later. The approved change conditions such ex-member's readmission on the approval of the CSSD local branch and the district committee, if it were to happen in two years [after the member's departure]," said Bohuslav Sobotka, whom the congress elected CSSD chairman on Friday.

Another change concerns the foundation of new local branches. If the party's district committee does not give the green light to them, the rejected applicants can appeal to the regional committee.

The latest change to the statutes of a technical character, said Sobotka. If someone leaves the party or suspends his/her membership, he/she automatically loses the party posts he/she was elected to.

Changes to the statutes require approval from three-fifths of delegates to a congress.

Sobotka said other changes are being pondered, will be discussed in the party and possibly decided on at the next congress.