In addition to our program Money, Government and Politics, AIS invites media representatives and reporters to become part of a network committed to transparency in public spending. Open Spending Initiative consist in creating a network of affirmed local reporters engaged in informing the public about the public expenditures of budgetary institutions in Albania. In this initiative AIS will be involved in the organization of a workshop and a Datathon event with the participation of the network members.

The workshop activity purpose will be:

– Finding sources of information about budget expenditures of municipalities.

– Measure the efficiency of such spending in providing public services

– Identify cases of conflict of interest

While Datathon 2015 will provide for network members the opportunity to present their findings on the governance based on the collection and the visualization of data for the respective municipalities.

A number of ICT tools for transparency in public spending will be targeted and will be available for the citizens, in order to engage them in the monitoring and participation process of budgeting.

The first activity within the initiative will take place on the first week of October, 2015. This network aims to promote Open Data Journalism in Albania.

 

Reporters are kindly invited to express their interest upon the registration form:

 

For further information on the initiative contact us at: [email protected]

In the framework of Money, Transparency and Government program, our organization, the Albanian Institute of Sciences is engaged in publishing and visualizations of the data about Electoral Financing , Transactions of the State Budget to the Political Parties, as well as the Party Donors’ List for the campaigns. Following up on this engagement, at the beginning of the electoral campaign of 2015 our organization officially addressed three of the main subjects in this campaign that is the Socialist Party, the Democratic Party and the Socialist Movement for Integration Party. Through this request we intended to inform the public in real time on the donors, amounts of funds donated and the expenses. In more specific terms, in this request we wanted them to provide us:

1. The list of donors of non-public funds obtained between 21 May and 21 June 2015 and which exceed the amount of 100 000 (one hundred thousand) ALL or equivalent amount converted into services or items;
2. The list of all expenses done since 21 May 2015 with annual funds received from the 2015 State Budget.

Although the request was duly sent and was duly received through official mail, we never got an answer on the subject matter of the request. Considering the Political Parties to be important public players, and the transparency with their finances of a particular importance, we have also addressed the Commissioner on the Right to Infomation and Protection of Personal Data with a complaint on the relevant subjects.

We are sending attached a copy of the official requests as well as the complaint sent to the institution.

Our request is based on article, 9, paragraph 3 of the Constitution, article 87/1, article 89 and 90 of the Electoral Code, and on law no. 119/2014 “On the Right to Information” article 2, letter c, article 3 and article 11.

Wishing to give our contribution in establishing the democratic culture of transparency, in the coming weeks or months, in cooperation with one of the best law firms in dealing with public law cases and with expertise in electoral legislation, we will address the institutions and the judiciary with the aim of getting a doctrinal interpretation and regulation of the Right to Information on Electoral Financing. Although the campaing is over, and the auditing reports of the electoral subjects may be published, we deem it appropriate to have a doctrinal interpretation of whether the political parties are subject to the right of information, as well as whether they should make publicly available in real time the data on the campaign donors and campaign expenses.

Having a high regard on the role of the traditional media in covering issues related to electoral transparency and developments, I invite you to follow up on this initiated complaint/case. Should you need further information, please do not hesitate to contact us.

 Please find attached a copy of the Complaint addressed to the Commissioner on the Right to Information and Protection of Personal Data and the request addressed to the Political Subjects.

Request for information PD

Request for information LSI

Complaint for the Commissioner of the right to information

Request for information PS

The ZA’LART platform under the slogan Make Election Count during the period 22 of May- 26 June 2015 reached 411 reports from citizens that contain information and denunciations of abuses in the context of the election campaign during the pre and post elections day of June 21^st. Separated in 12 categories reports has identified cases of Abuse of Administration and Public Sector.Such violations marked a high sensitiveness that corresponds to 29% of cases reported or 121 in number.

Many cases of use of public sector are found, like: Mandatory presence of staff administration in electoral rallies, the demand to declare and vote promising in order to protect the work position. Cases of leave of work place are those of hospital staff and health centres that participated in electoral meetings during official timetable signed in Librazhd, FushëArres, Mirditë and Berat.

Tensions and Election Irregularities occupy11% of the citizens’ reports or 53 in number. Problem encountered during election process is the Vote buying phenomena in exchange of money, services and other benefits, reported 5 times more frequently than in the 2013 elections.

Attempts to manipulate the vote of first time voters, by recruiting them in public schools has been a problem often reported during the election campaign such as in: Vora, Rrëshen, Kukës, Kamza and Lezha. The large concentration of police forces, was reported in 13 cases, in particular the most problematic areas like: Koplik, Kruja and Lezha. Denunciations arrived at ZA’LART for categories like: Irregularities of Election Lists 16 reports and Violation of the Right to Vote in 21 reports.

During the pre-election period the largest number of reports arrived from municipality of Fier and Kamza with 17 reports each, as well as from Kukës with 16 reports. While in the Election Day the highest percentage of reports came from Shkodra29.3% followed by Fier 8.2% and Gramsh 7.1%.

Reports were verified and confirmed from the Ad-Hoc editorial room of ZA’LART in 52% of the cases. Each category of reports have been associated by audio-visual evidences,20 (video)and 257 (photo) reports. On the 21^st of June (Election Day) 90 were submitted to the platform for categories such as Tensions and Election Irregularities with 25% of reports and Irregularities in the Functioning of Electoral Institutions 17%.

Twenty four reports arrived during the post-election days, 11 reports deal with the various problematic of electoral process and 9 reports with the dysfunction of electoral institutions. The broad impact of reported facts has enabled the media and civil society actors to access first-hand information on the entire election process.

 

____________________________________________________

Information and social networks of ZA’LART are:  

➤ WEB: http://zalart.al

➤ FB: ZA’LART – Raised Voice Albania (community)

➤ Twitter – ZA’LART @ZaLartAlbanian

➤ YouTube – ZA’LART 2015

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XpjHdSa0xE