[оваа вест на македонски јазик е достапна тука]
Only two working days after the Decision on the Establishment of the Council for Cooperation between the Government and Civil Society was presented to CSOs, the Government adopted the Decision on its regular session on 17th May 2016, without any possibility for additional consultations with civil society. The adoption of the Decision comes unexpectedly, after more than a year since a group of over 75 CSOs lead by BCSDN and MCIC demanded changes, asking for legitimacy and representativeness of the Council. Although some of the previous demands have been partially addressed, new serious concerns have been raised.
On 20th May, 2016 when the Decision was published in the Official Gazette, BCSDN and MCIC sent a reaction to the Government, in which they expressed a series of concerns over the Council’s functionality and implementation. The Decision is certainly an important step forward towards developed civic dialogue and enhanced cooperation between institutions and civil society. However, a Council whose majority is to be formed from representatives of the state administration that, in addition, do not necessarily have a sufficient level of expertise and experience, sheds doubt that the Council will be able to live up to its mission. Even more so, when this Decision has been adopted in an inadequate period of time, having in mind the political instability and the technical Government in place, lacking full citizen legitimacy.
Full reaction (in English language) is available here. More information on the process of drafting, comments by CSOs are available here.