Useful, but insufficient suggestions from the dialogues on election conditions
Transparency Serbia points out that the proposals from the two inter-party dialogues on election conditions published so far do not offer clear solutions to some of the most important problems of election campaign financing and the use of public function to promote political entities. Bearing in mind that the precondition for improving the electoral environment is a change in regulations, and that there is less than half a year left until the beginning of the election campaign, there is a real danger that the changes will take place without a public debate. We remind you that in parallel with these dialogues, the working group of the Government of Serbia for cooperation with the OSCE/ODIHR in June this year has already sent the ODIHR a draft amendment to the Law on Financing Political Activities, which has not been published or presented for public discussion, although it is a legal obligation.
Draft working document dated 7.9.2021. developed by the EU Parliament facilitators[1], contains some useful but insufficiently elaborated proposals. As such, the proposal for the media to publish price lists of advertising in the election campaign can be pointed out. It would be equally important to have information on how to calculate the discount, but also clear rules or restrictions for broadcasting promotional materials free of charge. A major shortcoming of the EU parliamentarians' proposal is that it envisages the adoption of a binding rulebook only for RTS and RTV, and only a recommendation for private broadcasters. It is proposed that the rulebook stipulate "which activities of public officials during the election campaign may be considered abuse of their position." However, what is considered an abuse of public function can only be regulated by law. The rulebooks, which should apply to all media and not only to public services, could only regulate the manner of media coverage of the activities of public officials, in order to reduce the harmful effects of an intensive functionary campaign.
It is also insufficiently clear how a “temporary oversight body” consisting of REM representatives and members proposed by dialogue participants could oversee, given REM's legal competence over electronic media and the absence of legal competence of any state oversight body over compliance with obligations by other types of media. For the same reason, it is unclear what would be the consequences if the media monitoring shows out that reporting was unbalanced.
It is good that the proposal of the EU parliamentarians reminds of the need to improve the transparency of campaign financing, for which Transparency Serbia has already given numerous concrete proposals. However, when it comes to campaign financing, there are other, even more important issues that this document does not address - the need to change the way the campaign is financed, to regulate campaign financing by third parties and to improve control over compliance with campaign finance rules. The document proposes a reduction in the amount of allowed contributions for the campaign, while the limitation of the total campaign expenditures, for which there is a greater need, is mentioned only as a possibility.
Significantly, EU parliament facilitators are urging state authorities to provide full protection to whistle-blowers who would point out at the pressure which is on voters and public sector employees. As Transparency Serbia has already pointed out, it is necessary to specify which state authorities’ whistle-blowers should contact in such cases (e.g., REC, public prosecutor's offices, the Agency for Prevention of Corruption), that these bodies promote reporting of irregularities and provide secure channels of communication, and they are obliged to inform the public about the outcome of the examination of applications as soon as possible.
The same document reminds of the obligation for the media to inform the citizens about the election programs of the parties in an adequate way. However, there is currently no legal precondition for fulfilling this obligation - because election participants have no obligation to develop election programs at all.
When it comes to the "proposal of the agreement" which was allegedly offered to the participants in the dialogue without mediators from the EU Parliament[2], an interesting proposal is to limit one type of “functionary campaign” - organizing ceremonial openings or starting construction of infrastructure and other facilities. However, there is no justifiable reason for such a ban to apply only seven days before the election, nor to apply only to presidential candidates and MPs. Namely, the works on the infrastructure can be successfully started and completed without the presence of any politician, both in the election campaign and outside it. In addition, the monitoring of the functionary campaign that TS has been conducting regularly since the 2012 elections shows that public officials are intensifying promotional activities in a number of other ways that should be legally restricted.
The proposal to distribute 30% of the money from the budget equally to the participants in the elections would provide somewhat more equal conditions for the presentation of electoral lists (now, in this way, 20% is distributed for parliamentary and 50% for presidential elections). Transparency Serbia, however, reminds that the main problem regarding the distribution of budget money is not the percentages of distribution, but the fact that the purpose of budget allocations is not clearly defined. It would make sense for citizens to finance from the budget costs that are sufficient to enable each electoral list and candidate to be represented in a reasonable manner. In contrast, in the current system, how much each party will get depends on how many electoral lists there will be and what the total budget of the Republic, Province or municipality is, and on the future uncertain circumstance - the number of votes won.
The proposal to increase the remuneration of members of polling stations (from 1,500 to 2,000 dinars) can contribute to better control of elections by participants. However, in order to avoid a significant increase in budget expenditures, Transparency Serbia proposes that those parties that already delegate members of the permanent composition of the polling board do not have the right to appoint another member to the expanded composition of the polling board at the expense of the budget.
The proposals that Transparency Serbia submitted to all participants in this year's dialogues regarding campaign financing can be downloaded here:
https://www.transparentnost.org.rs/images/dokumenti_uz_vesti/Dopis_politickim_strankama_ucesnicima_dijaloga_o_izbornim_uslovima.pdf
Proposals regarding a number of other issues related to election conditions, which the TS gave during the Dialogue 2019, can be downloaded here:
- TS analiza: Pristup medijima i njihova kontrola - ključni problemi i moguća rešenja(August 2019, PDF)
- TS analiza: Finansiranje izborne kampanje u Srbiji – ključni problemi i moguća rešenja(August 2019, PDF)
- Transparentnost izborne administracije –pojedini problemi i moguća rešenja(August 2019)
- TS - prilog za okrugli sto Zaštita biračkog prava (September 2019)
[1] https://rs.n1info.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/07/1631047844-Nacrt-radnog-dokumenta-Medjustranacki-dijalog-7.9.21.docx-KONSOLIIDOVAN-SRPSKI.pdf
[2] https://www.euronews.rs/srbija/politika/15165/predlog-sporazuma-vlasti-i-opozicije-izbori-na-svim-nivoima-3-aprila/vest
News
Unjustified delay in the preparation of the law
Transparency Serbia pointed out today that the ministries have not organized a public debate on any draft law since February. However, there are already significant delays in fulfilling obligations from strategic documents, including the Action Plan for Chapter 23 and the Media Strategy. The "technical government" can therefore only be seen…
... detaljnije ...LTI 2022: Novi Pazar, Sombor and Sokobanja – Transparency Leaders
The most transparent local governments in 2022 are Novi Pazar, Sombor and Sokobanja, according to this year's survey of the Local Transparency Index (LTI 2022), which Transparency Serbia presented at today's press conference. The average transparency index of cities and municipalities in Serbia in 2022 is 49 points - one point…
... detaljnije ...Six years of delay in meeting GRECO recommendations
Transparency Serbia points out that official reactions from Serbia to the new GRECO report are inadequate concerning its content. Although GRECO stated in its report published on March 30, 2022,[1] that a more significant number of recommendations were met when compared to the recommendations from the previous one, it is…
... detaljnije ...Citizens pay 15.7 million euros for the election campaign
Citizens' money for elections The 2022 united presidential and parliamentary elections hit a record for the amount of money the Serbian citizens paid to get convinced by the parties to vote for their lists and candidates. This year, the total budget allocations, which most parties led together for both types of…
... detaljnije ...Distinct media domination of the ruling party and candidates through a functionary campaign and paid advertising
Citizens who are interested in the amount and sources of the party spending on the election campaign have been denied this information this year. Despite the newly introduced obligation to submit preliminary reports less than 12 hours before the "election silence", these reports have not yet been published for nine…
... detaljnije ...Insufficient transparency of election campaign financing
Very little data on the election campaign financing is available to the citizens in the elections 2022, as in the previous ones. The legal changes have brought almost no progress in that regard, Transparency Serbia's research shows. The subject of this research is voluntary transparency, that is, what the political entities…
... detaljnije ...Election 2022 Monitoring - TS presented the first findings
Intensive public officials' campaign, higher participation of state officials in party activities than in previous election cycles and media domination of Aleksandar Vučić and his election list through a combination of public officials' campaign, statements and guest appearances on TV and advertising are the main characteristics of the first four…
... detaljnije ...Proposals for amendments to improve the election process
Transparency Serbia sent to the Serbian Parliament proposals for amendments to the laws that are being changed before the announced April elections, which would significantly improve these regulations, and thus the election process. Proposals for amendments to the Law on Financing Political Activities, the Law on the Election of People's Deputies…
... detaljnije ...The Government missed the opportunity to significantly improve laws that change before elections
Transparency Serbia reckons that the Government missed the opportunity to significantly improve the laws that are being changed before the announced April elections, even though the line ministries received numerous concrete proposals within the public debate. As a result, running a "functionary campaign" will not be prevented once again, the…
... detaljnije ...Press Release on the issue of EPS management
Regarding the issue of Milorad Grcic's responsibility for the situation in the Electric Power Industry of Serbia (EPS), Transparency Serbia calls on the Government of Serbia to ensure at least essential legality of work in public companies and to appoint directors elected at public competitions. We also recall that the Government…
... detaljnije ...
Abolish the obligation to verify signatures for the People's Initiative, not just fees
The proposal for amending the Law on Referendum and People's Initiative, which the Assembly will decide on today, based on the Government's proposal and after the citizens' protest, contains a decision that the costs of signature verification for the People's Initiative will not be charged. The Government proposed a solution…
... detaljnije ...Proposed amendments to the law do not solve the problem of "functionary campaign"
Transparency Serbia points out that the proposed amendments to the Law on Electronic Media and the Law on Prevention of Corruption, although useful, do not solve the problem of intensive "functionary campaign", which is much more represented in the media than presenting election participants programs and paid advertising. According to the…
... detaljnije ...For stronger independence of the judiciary, it is necessary to change the Constitution and the “clerk’s mind” of judges and…
Although amendments to the Constitution lead to positive changes, this is only the first normative step. It’s necessary to change the laws, but also the practice and awareness of both judges and prosecutors, as well as the public, in order to really achieve the goal of judicial independence. That was…
... detaljnije ...Agreement on electoral conditions does not solve all the problems
The political agreement between the two ruling and seven opposition political parties and the President of the National Assembly envisages some measures that can increase the integrity of the election process and the equality of election participants, but many problems are not touched at all or are only seemingly solved…
... detaljnije ...Corruption risks in regulations and lobbying in Serbia
Corruption risks in regulations In most cases, the competent ministries did not respect the obligation to submit draft laws to the Anti-Corruption Agency for an opinion, in order to determine whether they contain corruption risks, is what Transparency Serbia has found in the research "Corrupt risks in regulations and lobbying in…
... detaljnije ...The right to access information is threatened, and the announced changes to the law do not solve all important problems
Press release of the Coalition for Free Access to Information on the occasion of the International Day of the Public's Right to Know The Coalition for Freedom of Access to Information, on the occasion of September 28, the International Day of the Public's Right to Know, points out that the citizens…
... detaljnije ...The Commissioner annulled the decision of the National Fund for Health Insurance which denied access to data on Covid-19 procurements
The Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection annulled the decision by which the National Fund for Health Insurance refused to submit data to Transparency Serbia on the value of conducted procurements to counter the pandemic. TS previously filed a complaint with the Commissioner against the fund…
... detaljnije ...Useful, but insufficient suggestions from the dialogues on election conditions
Transparency Serbia points out that the proposals from the two inter-party dialogues on election conditions published so far do not offer clear solutions to some of the most important problems of election campaign financing and the use of public function to promote political entities. Bearing in mind that the precondition…
... detaljnije ...Press release regarding work on the new law on public information and media
Media Association, Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM), Association of Online Media (AOM), Independent Journalists’ Association of Vojvodina (IJAV), Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia (IJAS), the Business Association of Local and Independent Media “Local Press”, Transparency Serbia and Journalists’ Association of Serbia (JAS), announced today that they sent letters to…
... detaljnije ...Easily verifiable lies of Goran Vesic
Goran Vesic, the deputy mayor of Belgrade, who is not competent for this matter, continued to comment on the procedure of “public bidding” for the lease of sports facilities in Dorcol, which was conducted by the city Commission for Business Premises. He did not hesitate to use lies – very…
... detaljnije ...
With lies and insults, Vesic defends circumventing the law
The program director of Transparency of Serbia, Nemanja Nenadic, reacted to the insinuation, lie and insult made by the deputy mayor in a statement for one of Belgrade tabloids: The deputy mayor of Belgrade, Goran Vesić, stated: “Nemanja Nenadic will go down in history as a person who would like to…
... detaljnije ...Rigged public bidding for the lease of a sports complex in Dorcol
The City of Belgrade has announced an advertisement for the lease of a sports complex in Dorcol with conditions that abuse the purpose of public bidding because it can be met by a single company, which has organised this year’s tennis tournaments ATP and WTA 250 series. On 10 July 2021…
... detaljnije ...A new blow to the legal system and order in Serbia
The Ministry of Economy has stricken a new blow to the legal system and order in Serbia by trying to present that persons whose term of office as acting directors of public companies has expired continue to perform those functions legally. In the report from the public debate on the Draft…
... detaljnije ...Suggestions for improving access to information
The existing draft amendments to the Law on Free Access to Information must be significantly improved so that citizens can effectively exercise their rights and the authorities are adequately controlled. In addition, the provisions of other regulations must be changed at the same time, which is not foreseen at all…
... detaljnije ...Letter to the President of the National Assembly – On the occasion of the amendment of the Constitution
On 14 June 2021, the Judicial Subgroup of the Working Group of the National Convention on the European Union sent a letter to the speakers of the National Assembly and the Committee on Constitutional Affairs and Legislation on the occasion of the Committee’s future work on amending the Constitution. Dear Mr…
... detaljnije ...Public procurement and public-private partnerships - between solid regulations and poor practice
Public procurement in Serbia is ever less public even though basic regulations in this area are mostly harmonized with the European standards. This is the main conclusion of the research Transparency Serbia has performed, and presented at today’s media conference. As poor as the situation in public procurement is, it is…
... detaljnije ...Amendments to the Law on Free Access to Information of Public Importance - the new draft endangers the achieved level…
Specific solutions from the Draft Amendments to the Law on Free Access to Information of Public Importance are unacceptable because they lower the existing citizens’ right to access information, a group of civil society organisations announced. On the other hand, the draft does not contain solutions to some of the biggest…
... detaljnije ...Serbia ranks low in the transparency of anti-crisis measures
Serbia is among the countries that did not bring packages of urgent economic and fiscal measures related to the COVID-19 pandemic in a sufficiently transparent way - show the results of the International Budget Partnership (IBP) survey from Washington Transparency Serbia transmits. None of the 120 observed countries, according to the…
... detaljnije ...A call to the prosecution to react to the illegal appointment of the acting director
Transparency Serbia called on the Republic Public Prosecutor's Office (RPPO) to file a lawsuit against the violation of the law to the detriment of the public interest, i.e. to initiate an administrative dispute to challenge the legality of the decision on the retroactive appointment of Filip Radović as acting director…
... detaljnije ...In memoriam: Danilo Pejović (1965-2021)
We are sad to inform our associates that our friend and financial director of the organization, Danilo Pejović, suddenly left us. With his dedicated work in the past two decades, Danilo has made an immeasurable contribution to the establishment, strengthening and stable functioning of Transparency Serbia. In addition, Danilo left an indelible…
... detaljnije ...
- 1
- 2
- 3