Effort-Results Ratio Remains Unsatisfactory

Over a relatively short period of time, MANS has emerged as one of the most outspoken critics of Montenegro�s approach to transition, especially in the area of privatization. To what extent can the NGO sector contribute to as painless transition as possible? What did MANS do in that regard in the past? We got the answers to these question from Vanja Calovic, MANS Executive Director. �Undoubtedly, the NGO Sector plays an important role in Montenegrin society. Alas, the actual results and achievement remain small, compared to the efforts we invest�.

A person looking from the outside may get the impression of a rather intensive cooperation between the NGO sector and Governmental institutions? What is your opinion? Is that a realistic perception?

Vanja Calovic, MANS Executive Director

The civil sector involvement in the important social development was really unavoidable. Being imposed, to some extent, by the international community, that involvement has led to a situation in which the state institutions were forced to cooperate with the non-governmental organizations, even if only on formal, superficial level. Lamentably, our past experience shows that, in majority of cases, the cooperation was established with the so-called �governmental non-governmental organizations� that lack the capacity, or willingness, to force different solutions upon the state institutions and provided adequate representation for their nominal target groups. Such organizations are mostly used to provide �democratic� cover for the state in front of the international organizations and to simulate inter-sectoral dialogue, which remains at unsatisfactory levels in Montenegro. Another frequently used approach includes state officials establishing their own NGOs, which contributes to the total loss of meaning to the role of the civil sector, while the state officials expose themselves to multiple conflicts of interest. In that way, the influence of the NGOs is reduced to those issues that present no danger to the power of the decision-makers, while attempts to discuss the problems of corruption, crime and catastrophic economic situation brings to the surface not only a resistance, but ostracism of the NGOs that bring up such questions.

Another characteristic of the Montenegrin non-governmental sector is the existence of the so-called �governmental-non-governmental� organizations. Having recognized the good aspects of the decision to organize their work through the NGOs, the political structures also abuse and cause irreparable damage to the public image of the NGO sector in Montenegro. The use of NGOs to conduct political activities, such as the case with both movements involved in the issues of Montenegro�s statehood, is totally opposesed to the very basic postulates of civil sector.

On the other hand, the few organizations that truly work for changes and invest huge efforts to solve the abundance of social problems, have been pushed to the social margins and are force to suffer daily pressure and work in impossible conditions. The case of the civic initiative against the flooding of the Tara River canyon, but also some local initiatives (like the well documented efforts to prevent abuses in urban planning and development in Podgorica) show that the state institutions not only fail to recognize the true role of the NGOs, but are prepared to use all means at their disposal in the �communication� with the organizations that start those initiatives.

MANS is best known in the public for its strong efforts in the fight against corruption. Why did you choose corruption as the focal point of your activities?
As early as 2003, MANS conducted a rather exhaustive survey on causes of poverty in Montenegro, for the purpose of preparation of Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP). The consultations, including over 6000 citizens from all parts of the country, recognized the corruption as one of the key causes of poverty in Montenegro. Although the Government didn�t have much understanding of our recommendations regarding the possible solutions for this problem and didn�t include them in the final version of the PRSP, MANS continues with its activities, so that the fight against corruption entered our Strategic Plan of Activities for the period 2005-2008.

Several campaigns that we have implemented so far showed that the citizens have very little information about corruption and, significantly, the damages it causes. The citizens usually perceive the corruption through those sectors and institutions where corruption is low level, but ever present, while the level and manifestations of corruption in the great transition processes such as the privatization remain a terra incognita for the greater part of the public.

MANS has followed the privatization process for over a year, with the goal to �expose� the Montenegrin privatisation and to offer the citizens a different picture from what is officially available. A big problem in that regard, and in the fight against corruption in general, lies in the fact that Montenegro is the only country in the region that lacks the proper Law on Free Access to Information. Now that the Aluminium Processing Corporation � accounting for the major part of the GDP in its own right, the Telecom and several other industrial capacities, the question is what is the use of such a Law, having in mind that the privatization was completed with total absence of public scrutiny, which created a fertile ground for corruption of the highest order.

Another area of our special interest, especially in terms of corruption, is the system of urban planning and development in Montenegro. Construction is one of the rare branches of the economy that has registered a constant growth over the past several years. Real estate investments and construction of huge business and housing complexes is an excellent way to launder dirty money and return it to the legal financial processes, and the �investors� are helped by the fact that there is almost no control over financial transactions or origin of property and assets. The results of that booming urban �development� are most visible in Podgorica, to the effect that there is almost no available space in the city for new buildings.

Calovic is also the public face of MANS

MANS recently completed the two-year survey of corruption, condensed in the brochure �Corruption in Spatial Planning and Development: Case Study � Montenegro�, including 43 individual studies of cases of corruption and abuse of office. We have submitted the publication to the Office of the Public Prosecutor and, having in mind that each case is well supported with ample evidence and documentation, were this a state of the rule of law, we would expect from the Prosecutor to start investigation on a number of cases. Whether this is, indeed, a state of the rule of Law, we will see on this example.

MANS is known to the public as one of the few NGOs that doesn�t hesitate to present its positions and holds its strong stance in the communication with government officials. Where do you get your information and did your past work create problems for your daily work, financing?
If you try and open up some issues like corruption, conflict of interest, non-transparent privatization, in a society like the Montenegrin, your work is almost certain to �attract� the attention of the state authorities. At the moment, MANS has no major problems, while we try to accept the smaller problems and accept them as facts of life in the society we live in. Nonetheless, there are still individuals and institutions that �don�t understand� what we do and why we do it, especially in terms of conflict of interest of public officials, having in mind that the people here take such things very personally.

In terms of information we have, i.e. the sources of information � we are asked about that quite a lot. The information usually comes from the citizens that are not satisfied with the current situation in the society, which gives us the hope that there is some potential for change in Montenegro. At the beginning of this year, MANS established an SOS phone line for victims of corruption, which proved to be an excellent move, having in mind that we received a lot of useful information through that line. The institutions themselves can be an important source of information, i.e. the whistleblowers who work there and have access to important information.

In terms of financing, one of our principles is to never seek funds/grants on local and municipal level, i.e. funds and budgets financed with tax-payers money. A big part of our research of corruption and conflict of interest is conducted on volunteer basis, to prevent the possibility of outside influence on the data and positions we present.

What is your view of the position of the Montenegrin non-governmental sector in the future?
Comparing the NGO sector in Montenegro in the 1990s and today, even the biggest pessimists will have to conclude that an important progress was made. There is almost no area of social living in the country without non-governmental involvement, either as independent carriers of activities or as partners of the state institutions. Still, if we look at the total achievement of the NGO sector in Montenegrin transition, itself not a great cause of optimism, we could conclude that, with individual exceptions, the NGO sector impact was almost non-existent, having in mind the number of over 3,000 NGOs existing in the country, at least formally.

The recognition of values and capacities of the non-governmental sector, as well as the understanding and full recognition of its role in the transition processes, is just the initial step towards the democratic structuring of Montenegrin society. Although grudgingly, Montenegro will have to start using the human potentials and knowledge of the NGO sector and accept it as an equal partner.