From purges to a ‘new Turkey’ – the final stage of the state’s reconstruction

Author(s): Mateusz R. Chudziak / Language(s): English

The purges in the state apparatus which have been underway in Turkey since the failed military coup represent a decisive stage in the construction of a ‘new Turkey’, involving both the final elimination of the remaining elements of the old Kemalist establishment and the crackdown on the group centred around Fethullah Gülen, a preacher and former government ally accused of plotting the coup. The authorities view him as the greatest threat. In a broader context, the aim of the purges is to ultimately replace the present elites with new ones. This may lead to the elimination of any conceivable opposition capable of threatening the rule of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

The internet in Russia: the cradle of civil society

Author(s): Jadwiga Rogoża / Language(s): English

In the last decade, along with economic and technological growth, Russia has seen a dynamic development of the internet. Today the net is an everyday tool of work, information and entertainment for 40% of Russians – the most educated, active and affluent part of the society. The spread of the internet (known in Russia as the Runet) has, in turn, brought about significant political and social consequences. With the political and social sphere in Russia strictly controlled by the government, most of this activity has moved to cyberspace. The internet has become an alternative to the state-controlled media, a site for the free exchange of views and a home to numerous social initiatives. In this way, it has become a school of citizenship for Russians, and a kind of ‘test tube’ that has spawned social and political activity. This activity went beyond cyberspace in the election period in 2011/2012, and turned into massive street protests.The potential of the internet has also been used by the Russian government, both to shape public opinion (via loyal online media) and to monitor civil initiatives, especially opposition ones. The state has many instruments of technical control and supervision of the internet and its users’ activity. This control was used in the election period 2011/2012, when selected sites were blocked and pressure exerted on independent websites. These actions were a warning sign from the government, aimed at discouraging internet users from any opposition activity. However, it does not seem feasible that any restriction of such activity can be effective. The scale of this activity is now enormous, and attempts to censor the net and resorting to repression against internet users on a wider scale would only fuel resentment towards the government.

How far do the borders of the West extend? Russian/Polish strategic conflicts in the period 1990-2010

Author(s): Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz / Language(s): English

From a historical perspective, the last two decades can almost be regarded as a 'golden age' of Polish-Russian relations. This is the first time in several centuries that a sovereign Poland and Russia have been able to develop mutual relations without resorting to force; moreover, they have established a bilateral legal basis and put into practice its provisions on "the inviolability of borders, territorial integrity, non-interference with internal affairs and the nations' right to self-determination.This does not change the fact that since 1990 the atmosphere between the two countries has much more often been chilly and tense. Contrary to the widely-held belief, Polish-Russian conflicts do not stem from genetic Russophobia on the part of Poland, or irrational prejudice on the part of Russia. Their substance is real and concerns strategic issues. At the deepest level, though, this is a dispute about how far the borders of the Western world extend, and about the Russian Federation's sphere of influence. However, it is not a clash between two states; moreover, Poland is certainly not the most important actor in this regard, although due to the historical context and its geographic location, it is one of the countries that lies closest to the 'line of contact', and is therefore particularly entangled in the disagreement.

Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Nagorno-Karabakh: unfrozen conflicts between Russia and the West

Author(s): Wojciech Bartuzi,Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz,Krzysztof Strachota / Language(s): English

The Southern Caucasus is the site of three armed conflicts with separatist backgrounds, which have remained unsolved for years: the conflicts in Georgia's Abkhazia and South Ossetia, and Azerbaijan's conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh (including the areas around Nagorno-Karabakh which were seized by Armenian separatists in the course of the war). Neither Georgia nor Azerbaijan have had any control over the disputed areas since the early 1990s. Both states are simultaneously in conflict with the separatists' informal patrons, respectively Russia and Armenia.

Fourth estate conscience - Self-regulation of media in Montenegro

Author(s): Duško Vuković,Daliborka Uljarević / Language(s): English

All media and journalists in Montenegro have unique code of ethics, adopted in 2002 and amended in 2015, but there is no single self-regulatory body at the level of the entire media community that takes care of respect of ethics. Part of the media, local and national, has founded the Media Council for Self-Regulation (MCSR) in 2012, and in the same year, a group of local print media established their own self-regulatory council. One private television with national coverage (TV Vijesti), two daily newspapers (Vijesti and Dan) and one weekly (Monitor) opted for ombudsmen as a form of self-regulation. The National Public Media Service RTCG, which is a member of the MCSR, also has its Commission for applications and complaints of listeners and viewers, as a body of the RTCG Council. In last years, a tendency of violation of professional standards and ethics has been noticeable in Montenegro.

Lëvizësit e radikalizimit dhe ekstremizmit të dhunshëm në mal të zi - Rekomandimet për fuqizimin e rezistencës së komunitetit

Author(s): Petar Đukanović / Language(s): Albanian

Radikalizmi, ekstremizmi i dhunshëm dhe terorizmi, si dhe qellimi i tyre perfundimtarë dhe më i vështirë, janë kërcënime serioze dhe sfidë për siguri dhe stabilitet të shoqërive bashkëkohore, nga të cilat nuk është i liruar as Mali i Zi. Përveç reagimit efektiv të shtetit, kundërveprimi ndaj këtyre fenomeneve kërkon veprimin e të gjithë aktorëve socialë - nga familja, përmes shkollës deri te shoqëria civile, përfshirë mediat, të cilat kanë një rol të rëndësishëm në parandalimin e tyre.. Lufta efektive kundra radikalizimit me kornizë ligjislative, kriminalizimin e akteve penale dhe sistemit efikas të sankcionimit, por edhe aspektëve ushtarakë dhe të sigurisë, nënkupton përmirësim të vazhdueshem të mbrojtjes së drejtave të njeriut, si dhe zhvillim të qëndrueshem ekonomik.

Pokretači radikalizacije i nasilnog ekstremizma u Crnoj Gori - Preporuke za osnaživanje otpornosti zajednice

Author(s): Petar Đukanović / Language(s): Montenegrine

Radikalizacija, nasilni ekstremizam i terorizam, kao njihov krajnji i najteži izraz, ozbiljne su prijetnje i izazov za bezbjednost i stabilnost savremenih društava, kojih nije lišena ni Crna Gora. Pored efikasne reakcije države, suprostavljanje ovim pojavama zahtijeva i djelovanje svih društvenih aktera - od porodice, preko škole do civilnog društva, uključujući i medije koji imaju svoj značaj u njihovoj prevenciji. Djelotvorna borba protiv radikalizacije uz zakonodavni okvir, inkriminaciju krivičnih djela i sistem efikasnog sankcionisanja, ali i vojno-bezbjedonosnih aspekata, podrazumijeva i stalno unaprijeđenje zaštite ljudskih prava, kao i održiv ekonomski razvoj.

Montenegro and the coronavirus - The state of the nation in the first six weeks

Author(s): Daliborka Uljarević,Tamara Milaš,Damir Nikočević / Language(s): English

Montenegro has been facing the novel coronavirus pandemic for six weeks now. It should be noted that the results are rather good in the area of public health protection. Some parts of the system have demonstrated an enviable capacity to successfully manage this health crisis, while Montenegrin citizens have demonstrated both responsibility and discipline in respecting measures and complying with the accompanying recommendations. This synergy has had a significant impact on the success in curbing the disease so far. This success is reflected in the relatively small number of registered infected persons and the lowest mortality rate in the region, and among the post-Yugoslav states.

SPINoFACT - Political advertising between spin and facts - Overview of political advertising in local elections in Mojkovac, Cetinje and Petnjica

Author(s): Damir Nikočević / Language(s): English

Political advertising is as any other advertising – based on good presentation of election offer and has persuasive character towards targeted public. Consequences of influencing the voters are visible, especially in the election campaign. Political decision represents a summary of individual decisions with collective consequences. We choose what is the most important for us by voting, with conviction it is also right for others. Therefore, elections are of also general importance and are subject of interweaving of interests and attention of party structures, business, media, many other social actors, but also citizens. Various subjects of political communication act in this field, and prof. PhD Miroljub Radojkovic from the Faculty of Political Sciences of University in Belgrade states the following: 1) Political establishment (government, opposition, parties, interest associations, administration organs); 2) Media (press, radio-broadcasting, digital media and media of civic selfexpression/journalism); 3) Outsiders (everyone who does not have access to decision-making arena) and social movements. On the waves of half-century of one-party system, large part of new-formed Montenegrin political structure has entered unprepared in multiparty system, insufficiently aware of importance of political competition for development of a society, with a surplus of political appetites, and shortage of democratic capacities. In the expansion of politics determined by foreign war factors – the first multiparty elections were organised. In time, historical and situational conditions have affected many political actors to start adopting technics of election and media presentation as per model of examples from developed democratic countries, while the election campaigns themselves started resembling more modern and more meaningful entireties. Party and media pluralism create assumptions also for greater effective participation of citizens. In contemporary society, which is characterised by new digital tools and technological achievements, role of media remains predominant for establishment of equal treatment and dialogue between various social actors. In the entire context, action of authorised institutions is of great importance, as well as of agencies and vocational associations, and the media themselves in providing objective information, contributing to transparency of the process and responsibility of all actors, and in evading situations in which amidst financial dependency they turn into noticeboard of election actors which occupy the space via advertisements and sometimes they also create news instead of journalists. Deep division of media community in Montenegro, also, has negative impact on quality of informing in election campaigns and often has diametrically different informing of media about one same event as a consequence. Project ‘SPINoFACT – Political advertising between spin and facts’, which part is this publication, has an objective to contribute to promotion of good practices and improvement of legislative framework when it comes to political advertising in media in Montenegro. Specific objective of the project is improvement of cooperation between media, relevant institutions, political parties and nongovernmental organisations, as well as to raise awareness of the public about importance of political advertising and more quality informing of citizens during election campaign. This pilot project relates to local elections in Mojkovac, Petnjica and Cetinje in November 20172, and was supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of Netherlands. How much, in what manner and in which media have the election lists been advertising? How have media been reporting during election campaign? What does the legislative framework provide? What is the role of self-regulatory bodies? What is the role of media in election campaigns? How do media affect the election campaign? These are only some of the questions to which we attempted to respond through realisation of activities in this project, which included: analysis of legislative framework relating to political advertising, qualitative and quantitative monitoring of media during election campaign for local elections in Mojkovac, Cetinje, Petnjica, production, presentation and publishment of reports encompassing results of findings. Special part relates to raising awareness of the public on importance of political advertising and networking of interested parties, which was addressed through a series of infographics on social networks and on website of Centre for Civic Education (CCE), via which findings of research are additionally presented in a simplified and receptive manner.

SPINoFACT 2020 - Monitoring of media, social networks and comments on online media during parliamentary elections in Montenegro in 2020

Author(s): Danijel Radević,Jelena Mijanović,Jelena Jovanović Marović,Dejana Ponoš,Vesna Rajković Nenadić,Radoš Mušović / Language(s): English

The recently concluded parliamentary elections in Montenegro have brought a series of specificities to the election campaign. Instead of party rallies and door-to-door campaigns, the election race has largely shifted to traditional and new media. Thus, share and like have become a dominant feature of that competition, which was coloured by identity issues and emotional charge. In such an environment, the electoral lists marginalized specific economic programmes, issues of living standard of citizens, specific measures to combat corruption and fight against organized crime, and many other important topics. The two opposing narratives of “endangerment of the state” and “defence of the shrines” have suppressed also both the global threat of the COVID 19 virus pandemic and the worrying economic perspective. The media scene in Montenegro is deeply polarized and this rift is reflected in media coverage of the activities of political entities. Perhaps the most noticeable one daily was via front pages of the printed media, which were almost fan-edited. There was almost no media that reported neutrally and objectively on a certain electoral list, excluding the minority parties towards which a special kind of sensibility was expressed. The list „Decisively for Montenegro – DPS“ was represented in the media more than the three thus far opposition lists together („For the Future of Montenegro“, „Peace Is Our Nation“ and „Black On White“). At the same time, the DPS was the most attacked party, which is logical having in mind that it acted from the position of the government. Once again, the strong involvement of state officials in the campaign was not lacking, which the OSCE Monitoring Mission stated in its preliminary report as an „institutional advantage“. This was supported by the research of the Centre for Civic Education(CCE) through the analysis of media appearances of state officials who used these positions to promote the programmes of their parties and lists. Instead of changing the channel, the citizens of Montenegro preferred to click and scroll, and this is supported by the fact that over 65% of announcements about the elections were on online media, and the remainder on television and in printed media. However, the power of television as a still influential medium among the middle and older generation should not be neglected. Worrying, however, is the trend that approximately 50% of the analysed articles on online portals has had readers’ comments of controversial content, and there were examples that all comments on a certain text contained controversial content - from severe insults to hate speech. The comments comprise of insults to persons on national and gender grounds, but also insulting insinuations on personal grounds. Recently adopted legal solutions, following the initiative of the CCE, concerning comments on online media, must come to life in order to decontaminate the space of online comments from inappropriate content. In this election, Facebook has become perhaps a key arena where the battle for votes is taking place. Announcements have become more creative compared to all previous statements, and there is a visible greater investment in this form of political marketing. In particular, the growing influence of MEME pages is visible, which have openly classified themselves politically and have become agitators of certain political options. CCE has been monitoring election campaigns in the media for several election cycles, and this time on social networks as well and through comments from readers on portals. The objective of the project “SPINoFACT - monitoring of parliamentary elections in Montenegro 2020” is to contribute to the democratization and Europeanization of Montenegro by strengthening professional and independent media coverage. More precisely, the objective is to contribute to the fact-based informative value of media coverage of political campaigns and better informing citizens about the election offer for the 2020 parliamentary elections. We owe a special gratitude to the Embassy of the United Kingdom in Montenegro, which recognized the importance of this topic and supported it through the implementation of this project.

Media in Montenegro - Between the stranglehold of power and the struggle for the profession

Author(s): Duško Vuković,Daliborka Uljarević / Language(s): English

The most important factors at the root of the long-lasting and serious problems in Montenegrin media are the persistent attempts of the authorities to put media under their control. Overall, we can observe serious problems arising out of all three forms of censorship - hard, soft and self-censorship, compounded by deficiencies in the existing framework and practice of self-regulation and public regulation, and by political ‘subjugation’ of public broadcaster RTCG.

Parliamentary elections in Montenegro - 2020 Election programmes of parties and coalitions

Author(s): Miloš Vukanović / Language(s): English

The most important factors at the root of the long-lasting and serious problems in Montenegrin media are the persistent attempts of the authorities to put media under their control. Overall, we can observe serious problems arising out of all three forms of censorship - hard, soft and self-censorship, compounded by deficiencies in the existing framework and practice of self-regulation and public regulation, and by political ‘subjugation’ of public broadcaster RTCG.

Transparency index of Montenegrin municipalities

Author(s): Mira Popović,Maja Marinović,Ana Nenezić / Language(s): English

Fight against corruption requires a multidisciplinary, continuous and multifaceted approach, and one of the preconditions is a high degree of transparency in the work of public sector bodies. Local self-governments are the closest service to the citizens which is expected to respond directly to their needs. However, openness is still not an integral part of their work, which can to a large degree make it more difficult for citizens to access these services, and for the civil society to monitor public policies at this level. It also does not help to dispel the existing unethical and corrupt patterns and practices. Regular monitoring with annual scores for each Montenegrin municipality can also serve as an incentive to improve the transparency. The Transparency Index of Montenegrin municipalities, which systematically and methodologically frames earlier activities in this area, is a direct contribution in this direction. Several years of close monitoring of municipal websites, presumably the simplest method to inform the citizens about their work, shows that Montenegrin municipalities have made some progress. These websites are today visually better, more functional and richer in content than they were a few years ago. However, they still do not provide sufficient coverage of information and do not publish all of the documents, they are legally obliged to publish, nor many of those which they should be publishing proactively. The Transparency Index of Montenegrin municipalities provides an overview of the current situation, with detailed explanations that can be instructive to each municipality individually. In addition to this information, the Transparency Index of Montenegrin municipalities also presents the findings of public opinion polls that survey citizens’ perceptions of corruption in Montenegro. The Transparency Index of Montenegrin municipalities emerged as part of the project ‘Let’s Put Corruption into Museum’ implemented by the Centre for Civic Education (CCE) with the non-governmental organizations CeMI from Podgorica, Za Druga from Petrovac, Bonum from Pljevlja and UL-info from Ulcinj, in cooperation with the Agency for Prevention of Corruption and the Ministry of Public Administration, and with the support of the EU Delegation to Montenegro and co-financing by the Ministry of Public Administration. We hope that the future annual reviews will find Montenegrin municipalities scoring much better on transparency, and thus contributing to archiving corruption in our society.

Indeksi i transparencës së komunave Malazeze

Author(s): Mira Popović,Maja Marinović,Ana Nenezić / Language(s): Albanian

Eliminimi i korrupsionit kërkon qasje multidisiplinare, të vazhdueshme dhe shtresore, e një nga parakushtet është edhe shkalla e lartë e transparencës në punën e organeve të sektorit publik. Vetëqeverisjet vendore janë shërbimi më i afërt i qytetarëve dhe qytetareve prej të cilit pritet që t’i përgjigjet nevojave të tyre në mënyrë të drejtpërdrejtë. Mirëpo, transparenca vazhdon të mos jetë pjesë përbërëse e punës së tyre që kjo mungesë ia vështirëson, konsiderueshëm, procedurat e ndryshme qytetarëve dhe qytetareve, por edhe mbikëqyrjen e politikave publike nga ana e shoqërisë civile. Po ashtu, në këtë mënyrë nuk kontribuohet as në eliminimin e formave dhe praktikave joetike dhe korruptive. Transparenca e komunave malazeze mund të nxitet edhe me monitorimin i cili si rezultat ka gjendjen vjetore. Indeksi i Transparencës së Komunave Malazeze jep kontributin e drejtpërdrejtë në këtë drejtim duke sistematizuar dhe kornizuar, në aspektin metodologjik, aktivitetet e mëhershme në këtë lëmi. Monitorimi shumëvjeçar i faqeve të internetit të komunave, të cilët duhen të jenë mënyra më e thjeshtë e informimit mbi punën e tyre, tregon se komunat malazeze kanë bërë një hap përpara. Domethënë, sot këto faqe janë më të mira nga ana vizuale, më funksionale dhe më me përmbajtje sesa në periudhën para disa vitesh. Por, ato vazhdojnë të mos ofrojnë sasinë e mjaftueshme të informatave dhe dokumenteve, si të atyre që janë obligim ligjor i komunave, ashtu edhe të atyre që duhet të publikohen në mënyrë proaktive. Indeksi i Transparencës së Komunave Malazeze jep një pasqyrim të gjendjes momentale me shpjegimet e hollësishme të cilët mund të konsiderohen si udhëzime për çdo komunë. Po ashtu, Indeksi i Transparencës së Komunave Malazeze prezanton edhe rezultatet e hulumtimit të opinionit publik i cili ka të bëjë me perceptimin e qytetarëve dhe qytetareve për korrupsionin në Mal të Zi. Indeksi i Transparencës së Komunave Malazeze u krijua në kuadër të projektit “Ta vendosim korrupsionin në muze”, të cilin e realizon Qendra për Arsimim Qytetarë (QAQ) me organizatat joqeveritare QMH nga Podgorica, “Za Druga” nga Petrovaci, Bonum nga Plevla dhe UL-info nga Ulqini, në bashkëpunim me Agjencinë për Parandalimin e Korrupsionit dhe Ministrinë e Administratës Publike. Shpresojmë se në matjet e ardhshme vjetore komunat malazeze do të arrijnë rezultate shumë më të mira sa i përket transparencës, e si rrjedhojë të kontribuojnë kështu edhe në arkivimin e korrupsionit në shoqërinë tonë.

Evropska komisija, Izvještaj o napretku Crne Gore za 2007. - Evropski parlament - Rezolucija o zaključenju Sporazuma o stabilizaciji i pridruživanju

Author(s): / Language(s): Montenegrine

Od marta 2002. godine, Komisija je redovno obavještavala Savjet i Parlament o napretku zemalja zapadnog Balkana. Kako je postala nezavisna država nakon referenduma održanog 21. maja 2006. godine, u oktobru 2006. godine, Komisija je objavila prvi Izvještaj o napretku za Crnu Goru. Ovo je drugi Izvještaj koji je u potpunosti posvećen Crnoj Gori. Ovaj izveštaj: - ukratko opisuje odnose između Crne Gore i Unije; - analizira političku situaciju u Crnoj Gori u domenu demokratije, vladavine prava, ljudskih prava, zaštite manjina i regionalnih pitanja; - analizira ekonomsku situaciju u Crnoj Gori; - procjenjuje kapacitete Crne Gore da primijeni evropske standarde, tj. da postepeno približi zakonodavstvo i politike acquis-u, u skladu sa Sporazumom o stabilizaciji i pridruživanju i prioritetima Evropskog partnerstva. Ovaj Izvještaj pokriva period od 1. oktobra 2006. godine do početka oktobra 2007. godine. Napredak se mjeri na osnovu donijetih odluka, usvojenih zakona i primijenjenih mjera. Prema pravilu, nijesu uzeti u obzir zakoni ili mjere koje su u fazi pripreme ili čekaju na usvajanje u Skupštini. Ovakav pristup omogućava jednak tretman kroz sve izvještaje i dozvoljava objektivnu procjenu. Izvještaj je zasnovan na informacijama koje je sakupila i analizirala Komisija. Korišćeni su mnogi dodatni izvori, uključujući priloge Vlade Crne Gore, država članica, izvještaje Evropskog parlamenta, kao i informacije dobijene od raznih međunarodnih i nevladinih organizacija. Na osnovu tehničke analize koja je sadržana u ovom Izvještaju, Komisija je donijela detaljne zaključke o Crnoj Gori u posebnoj komunikaciji o proširenju.

Politički kriterijumi u procesu stabilizacije i pridruživanja Crne Gore Evropskoj uniji

Author(s): Aleksandar Saša Zeković / Language(s): Montenegrine

Predmet istraživanja ovog rada jesu preduslovi koje zainteresovane zemlje moraju zadovoljiti kako bi pristupile Evropskoj uniji (EU) odnosno politička dimenzija kriterijuma pristupanja, kao i izazova sa kojim se Crna Gora suočava ili se može suočiti u procesu stabilizacije i pridruživanja. EU je utemeljena na principima slobode, demokratije, vladavini prava, poštovanju ljudskih prava i osnovnih sloboda. Od pada Berlinskog zida politikom Evropske unije (EU) dominira ideja o daljem proširenju. Prema osnivačkim dokumentima EU može pristupiti svaka zainteresovana evropska država koja poštuje postavljene temeljne principe. Države koje joj žele pristupiti prije svega su obavezane principima i načelima na kojima počiva sama Unija. Preduslov evropskih integracija je funkcionalno prihvatanje demokratije i ostvarenje njene pune djelotvornosti, što znači da su integracije direktno zavisne od procesa reformi i demokratske stabilnosti društva koje se želi pridružiti EU. Cilj ovog rada je da kroz istorijsku retrospektivu evropskih integracija, predstavljanje ciljeva, politika i institucija EU, iskustava drugih zemalja i analizom dosadašnjih aktivnosti i napora Evropske komisije i Vlade Crne Gore predstavi važnost političkih krtiterijuma u pristupanju EU. Pod političkim uslovima članstva podrazumijeva se istinska i funkcionalna stabilnost institucija koje garantuju demokratiju, vladavinu prava, ljudska prava i poštovanje i zaštitu prava manjina. Proces evropskih integracija pred svakom zemljom postavlja cilj koji traži snažnu odgovornost – održati i ojačati Uniju kao prostor slobode, bezbijednosti i pravde. Prije svega treba zadovoljiti političke uslove i pretpostavke, zato jer je politički i bezbjednosni okvir prostor unutar kojeg funkcioniše ekonomija, pravna i socijalna infrastruktura. Crna Gora dužna je da zadovolji politiku uslovljavanja, odnosno da prihvati temeljne principe na kojima počiva sama EU. Neispunjavanje tih uslova podrazumijeva da EU može pristupiti ograničavanju ili obustavljanju saradnje, odnosno suspenziji ili raskidanju ugovornog odnosa. Zadovoljenje političkih kriterijuma prilika je za istinsko prihvatanje zajedničkih evropskih vrijednosti i prevazilaženje nasljeđa prošlosti, što je za Crnu Goru u pogledu sveobuhvatnih reformi, izgradnje države, društvenog i ekonomskog progresa od ključnog značaja. Kako je Crna Gora u procesu evropskih integracija, intencija ovog rada je da afirmiše važnost i značaj političkih kriterijuma, pa je zato i data opširna analiza značaja političkih kriterijuma u procesu stabilizacije i pridruživanja Crne Gore Evropskoj uniji. Aktuelnost evropskih integracija, nedavna proširenja EU, formirana iskustva i intenzitet procesa stabilizacije i pridruživanja Crne Gore i sama ova publikacija omogućavaju i doprinose formiranju široke i sadržajne dokumentacione osnove za dalja istraživanja i edukaciju.

What kind of government organization for Montenegro? - Comparative analysis and recommendations for a new approach

Author(s): / Language(s): English

Organization, functionality and transparency of the executive branch has an overwhelming influence on the quality of political decisions, and consequently the quality of life of all citizens, via their attitude to and management of the public interest and resources. Every country determines, in accordance with its own legal framework, the structure and organization of its executive, depending on the policy priorities and goals set by the government itself, and preferrably in accordance with the real needs and possibilities. Practices differ, and so do the results. What kind of Government does Montenegro need? What is the role of inner cabinets, what are their advantages and disadvantages? How much do the members of the Government and advisors to the inner cabinet cost? How can we reach an effective organization of the government that is accountable to the citizens? These were some of starting questions that motivated the team of the Centre for Civic Education’s (CCE) to review the current system of organisation of the Montenegrin Government, with a focus on the inner cabinet and number of ministries, and compare them to some of the neighbouring countries, some EU member states, as well as to some third countries that for varous reasons could act be role models to Montenegro. We compared Montenegro to Serbia, Croatia, Slovakia, Germany and Iceland. The choice of these countries follows a clearly defined methodological research framework, in order to include candidate states, members of the European Union, as well as third countries. Specifically, for the purpose of comparative analysis, Serbia was selected as an EU candidate state, Croatia as the last member state that acceded to the EU, Slovakia as the country currently in charge of the EU presidency (since 1 July, 2016) and FR Germany as one of the founders of the EU, but also Iceland as a country that is not currently aspiring to join the EU, but whose size makes for a relevant comparison to Montenegro. This analysis is part of regular activities of the CCE within the sub-programme Accountability and Transparency of Authorities.

On the path towards the EU: Effective and transparent administration in service of citizens

Author(s): Katerina Kolozova,Ana Blazeva,Iskra Gerazova Mujcin,Kalina Lechevska / Language(s): English

Extract from the study:On March 25th, 2020, the European Council adopted a decision to open accession negotiations with North Macedonia, a veteran EU candidate country of 16 years (it acquired its candidate status in March 2004, and therefore before Croatia which is now a member state). The European Commission’s negotiating framework was presented to the European Council on July 1st, 2020. In spite of the changes in the negotiating methodology adopted by the Commission in Spring of 2020, upon France’s proposal, the negotiating chapters 23 and 24 remain the opening ones, covering the European fundamental principles and rights as well as the judiciary. The goal of this study is to demonstrate how interlinked the questions of good administration, according to EU standards, and the values and standards covered by said chapters are, in particular, Ch. 23. At the center of the European Charter of Fundamental Rights lies the principle of the citizen’s dignity. For a state like North Macedonia, that conceives the administration as self-serving, carried out by a centralized executive branch overriding the power of the other two branches in an excessive manner, putting institutional interests before those of the citizens is in direct conflict with the cornerstone of the European Charter of Fundamental Rights. We argue that the legislation in the Republic of North Macedonia, containing procedural administrative details that normally belong in bylaws or good practices, is conceived in a manner that neither puts the citizen at its center nor does it offer efficient and economical procedures. Article 41 of the European Charter of Fundamental Rights states that good administration is part of the fundamental rights that EU citizens are entitled to. Good governance, that is also democratic governance, is expressed through good administration, which, according to the European Charter, consists in efficient procedures. The efficiency at issue is conceived in line with the overarching principle of the Charter – it serves the citizens in a timely and reasonable manner, and not the state institutions. Unlike the case of North Macedonia, as demonstrated in this study, efficiency according to the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is not conceived as a sluggish procedure that serves the administration in order to protect itself from potentially fraudulent citizens, but quite the opposite – to serve the citizen that is presumed to be honest. Inefficiency, lack of clarity, transparency, reasonability of procedure and absence of legal responsibility, i.e., inefficient administrative courts, create fertile ground for corruption. One of our central recommendations at the end of this study is the full digitalization of the administrative procedure. However, unless the notion of good administration is aligned with the principles of the European Charter that is covered by negotiating chapter 23, digitalization alone will not serve the purpose. Our main claim here is that the prevailing notion of “good administration” among the policy makers in the country must be discarded and replaced with that of citizen-centered efficient administration in line with the European Charter of Fundamental Rights and its value system.

De-Capturing Academia, Combatting Brain-Drain

Author(s): Katerina Kolozova / Language(s): English

Резиме на тројна анализа „Македонско-бугарскиот спор како срж на слепата улица во проширувањето на ЕУ.“

Author(s): Katerina Kolozova / Language(s): Macedonian

Извршно резимеНие тврдиме дека за да се заобиколи бескрајниот циклус на обиди за решавање на историски спорови, кои, како што научивме преку примерите на земјите од Вишеград (вклучувајќи го и полско-германскиот спор), никогаш не се вистински решени како такви, мора да се транспонираат на политичко ниво и да се решат преку повеќе-тематскиот пристап на студии на политики. Останувањето во историската дискурзивна рамка го оневозможува осмислувањето на политички средства и политики кои можат да го решат проблемот. Дополнително, сметаме дека поставувањето на проблемот како „историски спор“ е погрешно бидејќи спорот го опфаќа и јазикот (македонскиот јазик), на еднакво рамниште со историјата. Така, проблемот со кој се соочуваме е многу сличен како оној помеѓу Северна Македонија и Грција и треба да се води како таков: тоа е конфликт кој се однесува на: историјата, јазикот, наследството и според тоа се сведува на културен конфликт и страв од „културно присвојување“, парафразирајќи го проф. д-р Костас Дузинас на конференцијата „Авении на соработка“ (организирана од ИОХНС на 3 и 4 декември 2021 година), и треба да се адресира како таков. Моделот на политички средства како тоа да се изведе, може да се најде во Членот 7 од Преспанскиот договор. Сепак, процесот на имплементација треба да биде споредлив со тој од Преспа и повеќето држави од Вишеградската група (вклучувајќи ги: полско-германскиот, полско-украинскиот, полско-рускиот, германско-францускиот и останати примери што биле дел од или изградени врз Вишеградските процеси на помирување): а) треба да биде отворен процес на културно помирување, б) како што советуваат нашите експерти од Вишеград, историјата не треба да биде дел од ниту еден правно обврзувачки документ, бидејќи, цитирајќи ја Марта Шпала, „историјата никогаш не се решава, но сепак може да се постигне значителен напредок во помирувањето“, на тој начин единствениот временски ограничен документ од правна природа треба да биде „рамка на помирување“ што ќе содржи историски спор и поврзани ревизии на наставните програми како дел од него, но не се сведува на него. Младинската соработка би можела да биде битен аспект на процесот на културно зближување, а поставена е и добра почетна точка, многу подобра од имплементацијата на Преспанскиот договор во неговата почетна фаза, како што нѐ информираа младинските организации кои беа дел од конференциската програма на „Авении на соработка“.Сумирано, македонско-бугарската „слепа улица“ може да се надмине со формулирање на проблемот во смисла на културен конфликт со неговите политички средства и политики за решавање, со акцент на образовните политики како интердисциплинарно поле (не само фокусирање на историјата) согласно најновите водичи на УНЕСКО, културните политики и политиките на зајакната економска соработка.Нашите препораки се подолу, но ќе ги повториме во ова исто така резиме за да се овозможи полесно следење на разработената анализа.ПрепоракиПрвата препорака е повеќеслојна и презентирана преку 4 под-препораки. Првата препорака ја гледаме како предуслов за кој било функционален Патоказ за имплементација. Двете држави треба да воспостават јасна дистинкција помеѓу културните, историските (колку што се науката или академските институции) и политичките категории на дискусија и соодветните политички решенија кога станува збор за спроведувањето на Договорот, на следниов начин:Треба да се осмислат културни политики во функција на решавање на културниот конфликт и да се понудат решенија во однос на културните и образовните политики низ различните дисциплини (литература, уметност, историја) ;Со цел да се адресираат како политичките така и академските засегнатости вгнездени во наставните програми на двете земји, какви што се проблемот на содржината но и јазикот кои потхрануваат ксенофобија, како и политичката култура на двете земји, треба да се воспостават образовни политики што ја вклучуваат мултиперспективноста како метода;Историографијата или педагогијата не треба да се очекува дека ќе испорачаат решение за конфликтот во прашање, туку современите образовни политики;Применување на образовни и политики од областа на меѓународните односи кои би можеле да ги афирмираат неспорните врски во историјата, без разлика дали таквата историја се нарекува споделена или заедничка – потврдувајќи ги како врска на континуитет помеѓу заедничкото минато, но исто така, се надеваме, и заедничката иднина;Бинационалната мултидисциплинарна комисија и креаторите на политики треба да бидат потпомогнати во ревидирањето на наставните програми од страна на образовни експерти усогласени со УНЕСКО; згора на тоа, Комисијата треба да се реформира и да сe замени со панел за образовни политики и разрешување културни конфликти наместо комисија за „историски вистини“.Бугарското собрание треба да биде свесно дека член 1 алинеја 5 од неговата Декларација од октомври 2019 година е во спротивност со реалноста што произлегува од Преспанскиот договор потпишан во 2018 година, кој не е само билатерален, туку erga omnes правен акт, направен со авторитетот на Обединетите нации. Друга причина за оваа препорака произлегува од вредноста на добрососедството – дури и ако правниот erga omnes аргумент не постоеше, именувањето на јазикот на соседот со името што му го дале е предуслов за добра волја наместо избегнувањето на неговата употреба (особено кога терминот „уставен јазик“ нема јасна референца како што е објаснето понатаму во анализата.) Затоа, и двете страни треба да го третираат овој акт како ништовен.Резолуцијата на македонското Собрание, изгласана на 29 јули 2021, треба да се поништи или да биде заменета со друга која би содржела политички формулации – наместо националистичка проза и да биде во духот на добрососедските односи како предуслов за приклучување на Европската унија, целосно ослободена од опасниот и непријателски дискурс на романтичниот национализам.Двата парламенти треба да се воздржат од изгласувања декларации, резолуции, декрети и други документи што ја определуваат „историската вистина“ со што директно се нарушува академската слобода на научните заедници во двете земји.Наместо тоа, двата парламенти и државните институции треба да се фокусираат на политиките за решавање културни конфликти, кои не се сведуваат само на културата туку се поврзани и со инфраструктурни проекти проекти кои ќе овозможат забрзана комуникација (патување) преку границите, притоа помагајќи во имплементацијата на другите аспекти од договорот како што е подобрена економска соработка.Треба да се стави силен акцент на младинската соработка како најефикасната и најефективната форма на културно помирување.