::> Transparentnost Srbija

Transparency – Serbia in the desire to bring to concretization of discussion on fight against corruption during election campaign, as well as successful extension of anticorruption reforms in Serbia, sent yesterday to political parties which participate at the parliamentary elections letter with suggestions of activities in 20 clausules. Copy of the letter is in addition.

Organization Transparency Serbia expresses its pleasure because of the fact that fight against corruption is one of the promises of your party's candidate at parliamentary and local elections called for May 11 2008.

Considering that, by our opinion, corruption above all is part of the system or consequence of weakness in that system and not only isolated act of dishonest person, we are of the opinion that fight against corruption can not be based solely on good personnel recruitment, but also on program with clear vision on where that system is invalid and how with reaction of future Government, Parliament and representatives of political parties that system could be improved.

Concrete programs to fight corruption are of great help to voters to choose between several offered political options and to measure performance (how much is fulfilled out of what is promised), but which are also of use to parties which participate at the elections for easier recognizing of similarities with eventual coalition partners or associates in future Parliament and Government.

We are free to suggest you to put following topics in your programs and into the future acting of Parliament and Government of Serbia:

Support to regulatory bodies anticipated in anticorruption Laws, strengthening of their independency and role in conducting of their tasks (Commissioner for Information of Public Importance, Committee for Resolving Conflict of Interest, State Audit Institution, Ombudsman, bodies dealing with public procurements, Anticorruption Council etc.) by: ?) getting adequate premises for work and adequate number of experts; b) Government and Parliament will acknowledge their decisions and recommendations and make sure that other institutions perform so; c) Parliament and Government will reconsider their annual reports and perform everything necessary to remove problems stated in those reports; d) approving by Government and Parliament necessary financial assets for work of this institutions, in accordance with argumented prepositions in their financial plans; e) carrying out by Parliament forehand choice of officials of independent anticorruption institutions.
Changes of the Law on Financing of Political Parties with keeping all important anticorruption provisions of that Law . Changes should specially define deadlines for delivering and publishing of financial reports as well as deadlines for those subjects that don't do so, determine precise limitation of election campaign expenses, correct the way of allocating budget assets, increase limitations for collecting assets at local elections, assign control of respect of the law to independent and expert body, to ensure that data on financing of election campaigns will be available during the campaign (publishing of reports on each seven days during the campaign) and condition verification of mandates and receiving of budget assets for current and following year by submitting regular financial reports.
Continuing of reform in the area of public procurement : adopting the Public Procurement Law, whose text prepared current technical Government, with necessary addition for complete implementation of European standards from that area, securing of independence of Commission for Protection of Rights, proper defining of Public Procurement Office's tasks, lowering of arbitrariness in determining confidential procurements, ensuring of efficient protection of public interest and sanctioning of bidders and procurement entities that doesn't respect the law.
Publicity of data on Government's activities, parliament deputies and deputy groups. That goal is gained by: regular publishing of Governments conclusions (except those whose nature is like that that they have to be protected by certain level of secrecy); necessary informing of public on lobbying with Government, Ministers, deputy groups and political parties; by publishing of all agreements and contracts that Government concludes with additional documentation; publishing of information on activities of deputies and deputy groups (amendments suggested, how they voted by certain issues, data on presence in plenum etc.); enabling insight into transcripts of Governments sessions except in a part which represents state secret; publishing of elaboration of decisions on appointing and resolving (personnel recruitment).
Publicity of Ministries' work and their better communication with interested subjects in society through: organizing of public debates on drafts of laws, providing of elaborated answers to all remarks and initiatives regarding drafts of laws; publishing and updating of Directory in accordance with Commissioner's instruction and through setting of important information to internet presentations.
Timely and argument reacting of Government and other state organs to documented reports which point out to corruption or other related cases of violating of the law, and especially to those who are published e.g. reports of independent state organs, reports of Anticorruption Council, reports of international, nongovernmental and professional organizations and associations, reports of journalists – investigators).
Publicity of data on handling with state property and use of budget assets , including data on property of the Republic of Serbia , sales of capital in enterprises, giving into leas construction land, renting of premises for the purpose of authority organs and similar legal businesses.
Better oversight over process of creating and realization of budget : process of budget preparation would include also receiving of citizens' suggestions and their associations; publishing of financial plans of certain budget users; complete budget would be prepared as program budget; publishing of periodical reports on execution of budget; budget reports would be subject of revision.
Creating all preconditions for reform of courts and prosecutions , which considers their adequate material position, safety and independency, rightful evaluation of judges' and prosecutors' performance and efficient sanctions for incompetent of inefficient work.
Creating conditions for implementation of special investigative techniques in uncovering criminal acts of corruption, after beginning of implementation of Law on Criminal Procedure.
Improvement of work of internal controls in state organs and public services
Decreasing the number of official positions in public enterprises which after victory, ruling parties share. We suggest introducing of public competition for directors . Abandoning the concept of ruling coalition parties to perform „vertical distribution“ of positions in Government (with which would be avoided that one coalition partner controls complete sectors of social activity without control of other coalition partners)
Strict conducting of ratified anticorruption conventions (convention of UN, Criminal Legal and Civil Legal Convention of Council of Europe), which considers certain changes of laws and their implementation, above all in the area of securing compensation of damage to victims of corruption and securing the protection of those who report corruption.
Respect of recommendations of Committee for Resolving Conflict of Interest and creating of system for efficient verification of accuracy and completeness of information on property and incomes of public officials
Agreement that parties should not call for immunity if their deputies and other public officials which enjoy immunity should be charged of corruption
Securing that more simple system for receiving all confirmations and permissions which authority organs issue for the purpose of preventing extortion and corruption
Rationalizing of mechanism for prevention and reporting of corruption in public services, state administration and local self-government – those are the forms of corruption which especially goes to the poorest citizens (health, education)
Efficient monitoring of conducting adopted anticorruption strategy and establishing of the mechanisms of responsibility of those who doesn't perform their obligations which originate from that Strategy and international obligations in fight against corruption (e.g., through adopting of Law on Agency for Fight Against Corruption, which would give to that organ appropriate authorization and establishing of that organ; through prescribing of sanctions for those who disrespect their obligations)
Checking of anticorruption effects and harmonization with Anticorruption Strategy each new regulation which is suggested or brought
Equal handling of authorities in equal situations and informing the public on that, no matter in which position is person whose performing should be checked or sanctioned, how big is its social influence and how close is that person to ruling parties.