XHABIR DERALLA

Ahead of the elections, it’s important to distinguish the areas of action of all those who in any way have influence on the public. Let it be clear:

ELECTION MONITORING IS JUST PART OF CIVIL’S WORK

As a big and influential organization, CIVIL dedicates only part of its resources to election monitoring. The election monitoring is far from being the only, and even less, the basic activity of the organization that has close to thousand members and supporters and broad range of activities and projects, topics and areas of action.

And on the very topic of ELECTIONS, CIVIL’s activities and topics are various: participation in the electoral reforms and civic education on the right to vote, on the one hand, and election monitoring, on the other hand. The analyses and media reporting on the elections are something completely different from the monitoring and reporting on election topics. The media content often stems from the work of the monitoring team, but in essence are different processes and activities.

STRICT DIVISION OF TEAMS AND AREAS OF ACION

In CIVIL, there is a precise division of teams and areas in which they are involved. It is from those positions that this text has derived.

The monitoring itself, as an operation is complex and completely independent from the work of the other teams and areas of action.

PRINCIPLES OF OBJECTIVITY AND IMPARTIALITY

Ahead of the local elections 2021 as well, CIVIL will conduct election monitoring, comprehensive, independent and impartial. Regardless of personal beliefs and determinations, each member of CIVIL’s team working on election monitoring has a strict obligation to comply to the principles of objectivity ad impartiality in their work.

Certainly, these principles absolutely apply to all other aspects of work and areas of action of every individual or team working within CIVIL.

Personal views are respected and published in the section FREE ZONE. In that “zone” there are various views from authors with all kinds of different beliefs, views and

determinations, from left-wing to right-wing. Everyone’s opinion is respected and published. The only limitation is that spreading hatred on any grounds is not allowed.

A PROGRESSIVE AND ANTI-NATIONALIST ORGANIZATION

It should also be clear: CIVIL is a progressive anti-nationalist civil society organization that advocates for European and green values, whose main mandate is to promote, advocate and defend human rights and freedoms.

For 22 years, CIVIL has been advocating for freedom, equality, multiculturalism and non-discrimination.

Hence, CIVIL has clear views and commitments, while the editorial policy of its media platform is clear and open, by reflecting the commitments and positions of the Organization.

WE FIGHT FOR VALUES

We don’t support politicians, political parties or other centers of power. We practice, support and advocate, we fight for values. Every individual, group or structure that advocates for these values is our ally as long as they support and practice these values.

We work in the service of the public interest, in protection of European and green values, as well as the commitments for protection of human rights regulated by international law and the Constitution of North Macedonia. It’s also good to know that CIVIL’s Statute also implies on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

CALL TO ALL CITIZENS

Lastly, I would like, as President of CIVIL and editor-in-chief of the Organization’s media platform, to call on all citizens to report disinformation, hate speech, violation of human rights and election irregularities.

I urge them to constantly be alert and active and to ask questions, no matter how much one thinks they are “awkward” or “untimely”.

I also call on them to help us with proposals on how best to serve the public interest, and in this period to also contribute to holding free, fair and democratic elections.

Translation: N. Cvetkovska