NEWS OF THE DAY: Protest for “Public Room”: We need sanctioned perpetrators and we need justice for the victims
“Public Room” is a criminal act!” and “A state that oppresses is a states that rapes!”, was the motto of today’s protest for the “Public Room” case, which started from the Ministry of Interior and ended in front of the Public Prosecutor’s Office”.
Immediate and thorough clearing up of the “Public Room” case, appropriate penalties for the administrators, but also incrimination of sexual harassment through Internet in the Criminal Code are some of the demands.
The organizers of the march demand from the Public Prosecutor’s Office to thoroughly clear up the “Public Room” case, but to also appropriately punish the administrators.
“The Public Prosecutor’s Office is a key institution that has an obligation to prosecute those who have committed criminal acts in the “Public Room” case, which will enable protection from sexual harassment and gender-based violence for all victims. The inefficiency of this institution to punish those who commit gender-based violence is something we have known for a long time, and this conclusion has only been confirmed with the “Public Room” case. The institution is inefficient when it comes to sexual harassment on the Internet, so throughout the years we have been hearing various excuses for not punishing perpetrators. Our reports for online harassment and hate speech end with the reporting, without receiving any response, or in the best case, the basic and higher public prosecutor’s office pass the ball to one another. “Public Room” is a case of mass and organized sexual harassment, with numerous female victims and numerous male perpetrators, which has been lasting for more than a year”, stated Dragana Drndarevska from the “Margins” Coalition.
STATEMENT OF THE DAY: Zaev: If the failure to conduct a census, while we do conduct it, is a frustration, I am announcing right now that the success will be shared
“The census neither restricts rights, nor grants news rights. It will neither change anything, nor will there be any dramas that will take place. We need data for the development of the country, in order to know the scope of the regions with unemployment, where there are locations for new industrial zones, for development of new economic policies, for creating new jobs. We need data like bread, from every possible aspect. If it is a matter of frustration that someone failed to conduct it, and now someone succeeds to conduct it, I announce right now that the success of the census that we will conduct together will be shared. I am referring to the government, opposition, executive power, State President, Parliament, the success will be common. But it is an obligation for all of us to participate in the census”, outlined Prime Minister Zoran Zaev and called for citizens to be responsible and to allow for the census of the population to be carried out in April.
After opposition party VMRO-DPMNE announced collecting of signatures for abolishing the Law on Census that was adopted by the Parliament, Zaev said that this is irresponsible because we are one of the rare countries that have had no census in 20 years.
CIVIL ACTIVITIES
One more fake news from the kitchen of lies, this time the portal “Republika” published a lie that “tens of thousands of Macedonians who live abroad might remain uncounted in the census, because the issuance of Macedonian travel documents is late”.
Zoran Bojarovski, employed in the Sector for communication, accountability and transparency in the government of the Republic of North Macedonia, denied this fake news and says that Macedonian citizens who are abroad will be able to register with their ID number by registering on the web application that will be designed for this purpose.
FLASH NEWS
“I saw also the proposal of the State President for the census to be postponed for a month or two. Everything is worth thinking. But we know that a census is not carried out in the summer time, in September there is a campaign, in October there are local elections. If it is postponed, let’s think about finishing it by mid-June. But as we see, the opposition is rejecting this too”, said Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, replying to a journalist question on the different opinions of the government and opposition regarding the upcoming census. He expressed satisfaction that all stakeholders in society are with the opinion that the census is necessary and that finally after 20 years it has to be conducted.
National Coordinator on Interculturalsim, One Society, Cultural Development and Interdepartmental Cooperation, Robert Alagjozovski, today met with Chairman of the parliamentary Committee on Inter-Community Relations, Arbana Paloshi, where they discussed the role of the Committee in exercising the rights of the communities in the Republic of North Macedonia.
The first quantity of the vaccine against Covid-19 that will arrive in our country in February will be the Chinese vaccines. We will practically start the entire process of immunization, according to the already prepared system, with those vaccines. Soon we will know the date of the delivery, and 200,000 vaccines will arrive with which the vaccination of all priority groups will start, stated Minister of Health Venko Filipce.
Prime Minister Zoran Zaev together with Minister of Labour and Social Policy Jagoda Shahpaska, EU Ambassador in the country, David Geer, MP Latifa Shikovska and representatives of civil society organizations and of municipalities implementers of the projects, announced the start of realization of projects for housing of Roma.
Friday noon, the Committee for education, science and sport has scheduled a public debate on the draft concept for primary education. Minister Mila Carovska today stated that all views will be summarized there, remarks and suggestions that have arrived in the Ministry of Education and Science will be presented, in order to determine what is constructive and acceptable and to promote the concept.
translation: N. Cvetkovska
