Equality. Democracy. Rule of Law Responsibility. Education DEMOCRACY. Position of women. Montenegro Professionalism Media. Autonomy of judiciary

Transcription

1 DEMOCRACY Montenegro 2016 INDEX Professionalism Media Transparency of authorities Position of women Rule of Law Responsibility Democracy Availability of legal protection Education Equality Protection of minorities Autonomy of judiciary

2 DEMOCRACY INDEX Montenegro, Podgorica, November 2016.

3 Centre for Democracy and Human Rights (CEDEM) Department for Empirical Research Publisher Centre for Democracy and Human Rights CEDEM ( For the Publisher Nenad Koprivica, MSc Author Milos Besic, PhD Layout, graphic design and print Patent DOO Translation Congress Translation Circulation 100 copies Preparation of the publication is financially supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany on the basis of the Decision of the German Bundestag and published with the support of the Hanns Seidel Foundation Office for Serbia and for Montenegro

4 contents INTRODUCTION, CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK AND METHODOLIOGICAL PLATFORM DEMOCRACY OF POLITICAL PROCESSES Control and Legality of Government Transparency (Publicity) of Authorities Responsibility and Replaceability of Government Professionalism in the Work of Governmental Authorities Summary Indicators for the Area of Democracy of Political Processes RULE OF LAW Equality before Law Accessibility of Legal Protection Autonomy of Courts Efficiency and Professionalism of Courts Control and Transparency of the Work of Judiciary Summary Indicators for the Rule of Law Area ECONOMIC FREEDOM AND ECONOMIC PARTICIPATION Economic Equality of Individuals on the Market Economic Equality and Autonomy of Companies Mechanisms for Protecting Economic Operators and Individuals Summary Indices in the Area of Economic Freedom and Economic Participation...34

5 4. EDUCATION Openness and Participation in Education Autonomy and Efficiency of Education Legality and Control of Education System Pluralism in Education Impact and Effectiveness of Debate about Education Transparency and Availability of Information in Education Summary Indicators for Education MEDIA Autonomy and Independence of the Media Professionalism of Media Non-Existence of Monopolies and Equality of Media Openness of the Media Summary Indicators for the Media NATIONAL AND RELIGIOUS MINORITIES Formal Legal Protection of Minorities Discrimination against Minorities Mechanisms for Protecting Minorities Treatment of Minorities by the Majority and Fairness of Media Coverage Summary Indicators for the Position of National and Religious Minorities POSITION OF WOMEN POSITION OF PERSONS WITH DEMOCRACY INDEX SUMMARY

6 INTRODUCTION, CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK AND METHODOLIOGICAL PLATFORM 1 Democracy Index is a project which CEDEM realised for the first time in Afterwards, since the idea was to conduct a longitudinal research survey, the project was realised in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2012 in succession. Unfortunately, from objective reasons, the project could not have been realised in four years which followed. After pause, thanks to the support of the Hanns Seidel Foundation, Representative Office of Serbia and of Montenegro, we used identical methodology and realised a survey of state of democracy in Montenegro. In this report we present the measured values of democracy for 2016, but at the same time we give the overview of the trend, more precisely we present progressive and regressive trends by all the indicators and measured dimensions. Given the time frame, we established, in the period between the first research and today` s research, which direction democracy has taken in Montenegro over the period of ten years. Much can be said about democracy, there is a fascinating number of definitions of democracy from Ancient times to the modern political theory. Naturally, the very face of democracy can be completely different depending on the number of specific experiences and culture of different societies, and different historical contexts. Our aim is not to elaborate these issues. Our task is more of a methodological than theoretical nature. In that regard, we are prone to understanding democracy more as the process and less as the condition. In other words, we believe that democracy is not a social condition that can be achieved through a universal and methodically unified procedure. Democracy, in its final form, is never an achieved condition, i.e. a social and political system in the 1 This segment of the study is intended for those who encounter INDEX for the first time. In fact, the conceptual framework and methodological platform are the key needed for understanding and interpreting indicators which make a constant in this research that took many years. 5

7 continuous process. Regardless of various theoretical approaches, democracy basically rests on the idea of equality, and it is practically unnecessary to prove that equality cannot be achieved in its full form. The very idea of equality in modern approaches is rather interpreted as equality of opportunities, and not as the relationship equality-outcome. However, practice has shown that equal opportunities, which is not difficult to set in formal shape, are already in the first step subject to significant limitations due to social relations that are primarily manifested through the relations between powers which exist in every society. Also, isonomy as a tendency and work of the possible and isomery as the need and tendency of a large share of public oftentimes result in the faith in democracy being replaced by the tendency for authority and this can be best seen from the experiences of the post-socialist societies. As far as conceptual framework is concerned, we strived for it on one hand not to be harmonised with understanding of democracy in its essential i.e. substantial sense and idea of democracy in procedural sense. Conceptual framework that serves as the basis of the Index is prepared beforehand for the process of operationalisation and later measurement, while epistemological experiences in humanities indicate that differences in theoretical approaches are often lost out of sight once one reaches the field of real social processes and relations. That is also demonstrated by the experience we had during formation of the index, in fact different theoretical approaches we took into account in their operating settings pointed to the relation, while it was not difficult to overcome relevant differences which were manifested as false in empirical outlook. In a specific situation, democracy is the process and the very essence i.e. equality which is to be achieved. The process does not exist in itself and for itself, it is rather directed towards the essence, while the idea of equality in any society may be achieved only through certain procedures and social mechanisms. This is not eclecticism, but necessity of an integrative nature which is defined by the very nature of the process of operationalisation and empirical quantification, and we are convinced that we proved this thesis unambiguously when we defined democracy index. Without pretending to be creators of the new definitions, we see democracy as the form of social and political organisation of the society which ensures equality of all citizens, regardless of their financial and social status, their ethnic backgrounds or political and religious beliefs, which is achieved through efficient institutions, compliance with democratic procedures, public participation in political and overall life and existence of the control mechanisms and replaceability of political power. This definition is not original and probably is not the best possible one, but for our operating needs it is quite sufficient as the baseline and reference point. 6

8 Methodologically speaking, the key thing is obviously the selection of indicators since they are the holders i.e. empirical particles which, in their cumulative form, provide necessary information based on which index is created. Indicators serve to show the state of democracy with regard to the aspects representing operationalisation of the very notion of democracy in the social-political area. In order to identify indicators, we first need to determine the area and then dimensions as generic categories that integrated indicators and, ultimately, each dimension needs to be considered from the perspective of all hypothetic aspects. As far as areas are concerned, this particularly refers to the social fields that can be observed individually, and which later serve as the basis for comparison and production of the summary index. On the basis of analyses of experiences with measurement of democracy across the world and in the region, and also on the basis of a huge number of individual interviews conducted with professional interlocutors, we decided that the following areas of the society were to be measured (and later on indexed): DEMOCRACY OF POLITICAL PROCESSES RULE OF LAW ECONOMIC FREEDOMS AND ECONOMIC PARTICIPATION EDUCATION MEDIA NATIONAL AND RELIGIOUS MINORITIES POSITION OF WOMEN POSITION OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES Therefore, there are eight areas and the selection of these areas in not arbitrary, but is founded on essential characteristics of the society on the basis of democratic criteria and specific needs of the Montenegrin society. Therefore, in the measurement process we will pay special attention to each of these areas and ultimately we will arrive at the single methodological procedure for measuring democracy for each of them respectively. However, in order to quantify each area it was necessary to identify aspects based on which each of them could be considered through various dimensions. Aspects are thus a necessary analytical tool serving as the aspect for determination of the very dimensions from which each individual area consists of. Aspects that were used as criteria for determination dimensions were: 7

9 EQUALITY PARTICIPATION AND PROTECTION TRANSPARENCY CONTROL RESPONSIBILITY REPRESENTATIVENESS EFFICIENCY AND PROFESIONALISM AUTONOMY Therefore, for each of these areas which represent units of observation for the measurement of democracy and society we will establish the level at which a given area ensures equality of citizens, their participation and protection, level at which the area is transparent (public), as well as the level at which there is control of the given area by citizens, and then we will measure the level of accountability in that area, the level of representativeness of citizens, as well as whether and to what extent the given area is efficient and professional in its work and finally we will measure the level of autonomy for individual areas. Furthermore, in order for the methodological procedure to be operational in the form of empirical indicators it was necessary for each area to be considered in a multidimensional way owing to the aspects we identified above. The fact is that dimensions for each area must be different due to their respective nature. In that regard, consequent consideration of each area from the perspective of the described aspects and unified method of quantification lead to compatible information which can later be considered in a complementary manner owing to empirical indicators. The described procedure may seem complex, but we will ultimately demonstrate that it is basically simple and, in our view, necessary in order to achieve the very idea of measurement in a proper and methodologically unified manner. Therefore, in the text below we will elaborate each individual area, show dimensions they consist of and finally demonstrate indicators that are final particles of the measurement that were identified owing to the analytical power of the aspects we discussed. Still, let us mention a few important methodological remarks before that. First, that is the state of democracy based on subjective perception of citizens and secondly it is identification of objective indicators based on the same theoretical and operational criteria. On this occasion, our mandate covers only one 8

10 of these two parts and these are creation of index and measurement based on the perception of citizens. Such approach has one methodological advantage and one crucial methodological disadvantage. The advantage is reflected in the fact that democracy ultimately must be legitimised by citizens since citizens are the ultimate goal of all the democratic reforms. The disadvantage is certainly the fact that in the political constellation, where we primarily refer to the strict political divisions and lack of political and social consensus, one part of public opinion largely and potentially does not correspond to the reality. This happens because critically oriented, but politically uninspired, part of public often instead of evaluating real achievements tends to establish direct balance between democracy and power at the level of perception. Hence the criticism of the power, which is established ad hoc at the level of consciousness, is reflected on each individual view given with regard to the state of democracy. Secondly, it is a fact that there are certain deviations between perception and objective state and we will make an attempt to elaborate this problem in each individual case. Be that as it may, I think that we all must agree that measurement of this type is valid only at this moment. When I say this I primarily refer to the state in institutions of the Montenegrin society which, due to the lack of s systematic collection of data on themselves, are not capable of providing us with the material that can be translated into the Index language. This task is certainly important and we will fulfil it in the coming period. 9

11 1. DEMOCRACY OF POLITICAL PROCESSES We measured democracy of political processes in the aspects we discussed in the introduction. Analytically speaking, we identified four key dimensions that constitute this area and these are: Control and legality of the government Transparency (publicity) of the government Accountability and replaceability of the government Professionalism in the work of governmental authorities Each dimension was subject to separate measurement by means of the network of indicators. In the section below, we will give an overview of each area and indicators that were taken as the measurement units for the given areas. 1.1 Control and Legality of Government Democratic and civil control of elected representatives of citizens, who must act in line with the legal framework, represents conditio sine qua non of any democratic society. In doing so, we believed it was necessary to establish how the citizens of Montenegro assessed the possibility of conducting control and to what extent, according to the citizens of Montenegro, the Montenegrin authorities acted legally in their work. Chart 1 shows measured values by indicators for all the measurement periods. Chart 2 shows cumulative values for the overall dimension. Data show that the state of democracy has not changed in the past four years as far as control and legality of the government 2 is concerned. 2 Values by dimensions and other cumulative values are optimised within the range from 0 (minimum) to 1 (maximum). This applies to this and each following case. 10

12 Table 1 Control and Legality of Government Summary by Indicators 3 INDICATORS Efficiency of civilian control of the national government Efficiency of civilian control of local (municipal) government Control over the secret services and security services by the public and the government Legality in the work of the government Absence of corruption and crime in the national government Absence of crime and corruption in local (municipal) government Coefficients range from 1 to 5; in this and each following case we give overview by indicators. 11

13 1.2 Transparency (Publicity) of Authorities Transparency in work is actually that feature which clearly distinguishes between authoritative (such as socialist) and democratic society. This is an extremely important issue particularly due to the fact that Montenegro has the population of 630,000 inhabitants and that alternative communication channels in that regard are becoming increasingly important, which often leads to disavowal of the public and release of wrong information of any kind. The results we obtained over the long period show that positive step forward has been made since socialism, but that is still far from the satisfactory result which is why more should be done to achieve transparency of authorities which exists in the developed Western democracies. The role of NGO and media should be particularly emphasised here since their impact in this regard is crucial. NGO sector is pretty strong in Montenegro and it made huge contribution to the overall democratisation of the society, primarily by inviting authorities to be more public in their work and both, media and NGOs must invest much more efforts to ensure considerable improvement of the situation in this regard. As for the measurement of this dimension, Chart 1 gives an overview for all the indicators for 2016, and the highest value has been measured with regard to media objectivity in reporting on the work of the parliament and availability of information from competent authorities. Table 2 shows outline by indicators and longitudinally, while Chart 4 cumulatively presents longitudinal data for the entire dimension. Data show a modest growth of the measured values compared to

14 Table 2 Transparency (Publicity) of Authorities Summary by Indicators Indicators Publicity in the work of the national government Publicity in the work of the local government Objectivity of media in monitoring the work of the Government and Parliament Citizens` ability to have an insight into the process and adoption of important political decisions Availability of information from competent authorities and service to the journalists Availability of information from competent authorities and service to the citizens Responsibility and Replaceability of Government Replaceability of government is the issue that is extremely important in the context of Montenegro. The fact that one party won all the elections held since democratic changes in early nineties to date is sufficient reason to see what the citizens of Montenegro think about it. Thus, one should bear in mind that replaceability of government is the principle of democratic society, but as a principle it does not mean that government has to be de facto replaced in elections, but it means that democratic mechanisms must ensure of replaceability of government. Therefore, in that regard distinction should be made between the possibility (replaceability) which should be ensured by the political system and facticity (replacement) as a consequence which is not an imperative. 13

15 As for the results of measurement of this dimension, Chart 5 shows data for all the indicators, while Table 3 shows data for various surveys in the given measurement years. Based on Chart 6, we can see that the government is more replaceable today than that was the case in Table 3 Responsibility and Replaceability of Government Summary by Indicators Indicators National government in service of citizens Local government in service of citizens Responsibility and conscientiousness of national government in providing services to citizens Responsibility and conscientiousness of local government in providing services to citizens Responsibility and conscientiousness of MPs

16 Accountability and awareness of the ministries and ministers Replaceability of the national government in elections and in accordance with democratic procedures Replaceability of local government in elections and in accordance with democratic procedures Legitimacy of the government Responsibility of the government and protection of citizens` interest Professionalism in the Work of Governmental Authorities Knowledge and professionalism form basis for efficient functioning of democratic institutions. Consequently, professionalism in work and professional capability of individuals in ruling positions is needed for the society to function properly. That entails that the main principle in filling certain positions should primarily be level of education, instead of nepotism and any other personal interest. Therefore, we believed that it would be good to see what the citizens of Montenegro though about this. Moreover, integral part of this dimension is attitude of the majority towards minority when it comes of professional and competent arguments. Results of the research into this dimension for 2016 show that the most serious problem, as far as professionalism is concerned, is professionalism at the local level (Chart 7). Table 4 gives longitudinal overview for all indicators, while on the basis of Chart 8 we can see that over the last four years a certain progress has been made when it comes to professionalism of authorities. 15

17 Table 4 Professionalism in the Work of Governmental Authorities Summary by Indicators Indicators Professionalism and technical capabilities of employees in governmental services and ministries Professionalism and technical capabilities of employees in the local government Professionalism and technical capabilities of the parliament and its bodies Respect of the majority for the minority at all levels of government

18 1.5. Summary Indicators for the Area of Democracy of Political Processes Chart 9 shows overview for all the four measured dimensions in the area politics and government. Data reveal that the most favourable situation in this area is that related to professionalism, accountability and replaceability of government. Situation is worse when it comes to transparency of government, and the worst when it comes to control and legality of government. Therefore, in order to improve democracy in the area of politics, improvement of the control and legality of government is of vital importance. From the perspective of the analysis of trends (Table 5 and Chart 10), cumulatively, we have measured a modest progress in the entire area. However, crucial data is that progress has been achieved only owing to one dimension, and that is professionalism and competiveness of governmental authorities. Therefore, in all the other dimensions within this area we have measures stagnation compared to

19 Table 5 Politics and Government - Summary by Indicators Dimensions T test Control and legality of the government 0.22; p=0.98 Transparency (publicity) of the 0.70; government p=0.48 Responsibility and replaceability of 1.61; government p=0.11 Professionalism and competence in the 1.82; work of the government p=0.069 POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT 1.67; SUMMARY p=

20 2. RULE OF LAW As with all the other areas, we also split this area into several dimensions and within each of these we defined a number of indicators that represented final particles of the measurement. Dimensions in this area are: Equality before law Availability of legal protection Autonomy of judiciary Efficiency and professionalism of judiciary Control and transparency of the work of judiciary 2.1. Equality before Law The results of measurement of this dimensions are shown in Chart 11. They reveal that the lowest measured value is to be found with regard to equality of individuals in power before the law. Analysis of trends (Chart 12 and Table 6), on the other hand, reveal that stagnation has been measured in this area compared to

21 Table 6 Equality before Law Summary by Indicators Indicators Legality of the process of law adoption in the interest of all the citizens, regardless of the differences in terms of their material and social status and regardless of their ethnic, religious and political affiliation Equality in the process of law implementation for all the citizens regardless of their ethnic, national and religious origin Equality in the process of law implementation regardless of the material status of individuals Equality in law implementation regardless of political, ideological and party affiliation of citizens Equality of individuals from the government before the law

22 2.2. Accessibility of Legal Protection The aim of this part of research was to find out to what extent legal protection was available to the citizens of Montenegro, regardless of their financial status, national and religious origin and political orientation. The outline of the state in 2016 shows that political and party affiliation is still the most serious problem (Chart 13). Longitudinally, the results we obtained show that there has been a modest improvement in the entire dimension compared to 2012 (Table 7 and Chart 14). 21

23 Table 7 Accessibility of Legal Protection Summary by All Indicators Legal protection is provided equally to all the citizens regardless of their material status Legal protection is provided equally to all the citizens regardless of their national or religious background Legal protection is provided equally to all the citizens regardless of their political or party affiliation Autonomy of Courts The problem with autonomy of judiciary is also subject of public debates and judiciary is criticised for the lack of autonomy, while the pressure exerted on judiciary by the government and political structures of the government is harshly criticised. Measurements of this dimension show that the most serious problem was and still is the influence of political parties and wealthy individuals on the society (Chart 15). However, analysis of trends (Chart 16 and Table 8) reveals that there has been a modest improvement in the entire dimension. 22

24 Table 8 Autonomy of Courts Summary by Indicators Indicators Independence of the courts from the influence of political parties Independence of the courts from the influence of the government and state services Independence of the courts from the influence of the parliament Independence of the courts from the influence of powerful and wealthy individuals and groups Independence of the courts from the influence of non-governmental organizations Independence of the courts from the influence of religious organizations and churches Independence of the courts from the influence of EU organizations

25 2.4. Efficiency and Professionalism of Courts On the basis of objective indicators, such as average length of proceedings, the problem with efficiency of judiciary is one of the serious problems in all the countries in transition. According to numerous reports, this problem is very much pronounced in Montenegro. Our measurements in the previous research confirmed that we have problems with efficiency of the judiciary. Our research in this year reveals that major problems in this dimension are corruption and actions of courts that serve interests of influential individuals and groups (Chart 17). On the other hand, analysis of trends shows that courts are somewhat more efficient and professional today than it was the case in 2012 (Chart 18 and Table 9). 24

26 Table 9 Efficiency and Professionalism of Courts Summary by Indicators Indicators Efficiency of courts in dispute resolution Professionalism and technical capabilities of judges for efficient law implementation Efficiency and professionalism of the courts in terms of successful protection of the citizens rights Absence of corruption and actions in the interest of influential individuals and groups Control and Transparency of the Work of Judiciary In this dimension we measure several indicators that are extremely important for the existence of control and transparency when it comes to judiciary. Based on data we received by measuring these indicators, Chart 19 shows that the highest values in this dimension are to be found with regard to the control of judicial bodies by the NGO sector. On the other hand, the lowest measured values were identified with regard to the control of judiciary by citizens. Analysis of trends (Charter 20 and Table 10) shows that very modest positive trends characterise the overall dimension. 25

27 Table 10 Control and Transparency of the Work of Judiciary Summary by Indicators Indicators Efficiency of state control of the work of judiciary in the service of protecting the law and legality Transparency of the work of courts and possibility for monitoring by media Availability of information relevant for protecting the rights of citizens to the public Availability of control and impact of citizens on judiciary through organizations and institutions in line with the law Existence of mechanisms of parliamentary control of the work of judicial bodies Monitoring of judicial bodies by the NGO sector

28 2.6. Summary Indicators for the Rule of Law Area Analysis of summary indicators for the rule of law area and of the laws by dimensions shows that efficiency and professionalism of judiciary constitute the highest deficit in the rule of law area (Chart 21). According to the analysis of trends, rule of law, as the area, has not improved considerably since 2012, which means that we are more or less at the same level at which we were four years ago when as far as this area is concerned (Table 11 and Chart 22). 27

29 Table 11 Summary of Rule of Law by Dimensions Dimensions T test Equality before law ; p=0.43 Availability of legal protection Autonomy of courts Efficiency and professionalism of courts Control and transparency of courts RULE OF LAW SUMMARY ; p= ; p= ; p= ; p= ; p=

30 3. ECONOMIC FREEDOM AND ECONOMIC PARTICIPATION Concerning economics, from the Index standpoint, three key dimensions were identified, and surveys were conducted following a unique procedure as it was done in previous areas. Dimensions within this area are as follows: Economic equality of individuals on the market Economic equality and autonomy of companies Mechanisms to protect economic operators and individuals Accordingly, dimensions which should not be controversial in terms of importance for the development of democracy were taken, i.e. regardless of the nature and effects of the process of economic transformation of society in the transition process, the level of democratic action in democracy, (non) existence of economic equality of individuals on the market, economic (in) equality of autonomies of companies, and (non) existence of mechanisms for protecting economic operators and individuals Economic Equality of Individuals on the Market The measurement results in this dimension indicate that party affiliation and unequal financial status of participants in the market are a key issue of equality (Chart 23). Trend analysis, however, indicates that in the last four years there was a slight improvement in terms of economic equality of individuals on the market (Table 12 and Chart 24).. 29

31 Table 12 Economic equality of individuals on the market - summary by indicators Indicators Equal treatment in the market regardless of the social origin of citizens Equal treatment in the market regardless of ethnic or religious affiliation Equal treatment in the market regardless of the financial status of individuals Equal treatment in the market regardless of the political and party affiliations of citizens Equality of individuals in terms of participation in the economic life of society under equal conditions

32 3.2. Economic Equality and Autonomy of Companies The survey results indicate that the biggest problem in this area is influence by individual and party interests that threaten economic equality and autonomy of companies (Chart 25). On the other hand, the trend is positive in this area, therefore, autonomy of companies and equality in the market has improved somewhat over the past four years (Chart 26 and Table 13). 31

33 Table 13 Economic equality and autonomy of companies - summary by indicators Indicator Equality of companies in the market, regardless of ownership form Absence of discrimination and favoring of some companies by the state Absence of influence of individual and party interests on companies Equality in the application of the law for all companies Autonomy of companies in the decision-making process Absence of ideology and state pressures in public enterprises Absence of economic monopolies that enjoy the protection of the state and privileged groups Autonomy of inspection services and their nonselectivity in the implementation of laws and regulations Transparency of the Government in terms of effects on the economic life of society Mechanisms for Protecting Economic Operators and Individuals Concerning the measurement within this dimension, the biggest issues are corruption and the gray economy (Chart 27). The trend, however, has been positive in the past four years, therefore, mechanisms for protecting economic operators and individuals are at a somewhat higher level today compared to

34 Table 14 Mechanisms for protecting economic operators and individuals summary by indicators Indicator The existence of institutions guaranteeing the freedom of the market Existence of NGOs that protect participants in economic life from all forms of pressure by the state, parties, powerful individuals and groups Efficiency of the fight against the gray economy Consumer rights are protected by law Existence of organizations through which companies and individuals may influence the overall economic policy of the country Active role of the media in implementing the principle of equality and protection of economic rights and freedoms of individuals, companies and organizations

35 Efficiency of the judiciary in the protection of individuals and enterprises against all forms of violence and violations of their economic rights and freedoms Efficiency of the judiciary in resolving contract disputes Protection of property rights of the state and their bodies Efficiency of the State in terms of protection of property rights Efficiency of government services in the fight against corruption Summary Indices in the Area of Economic Freedom and Economic Participation Analysis of all dimensions in the economy suggests that economic equality of individuals on the market is the biggest problem when it comes to economy (Chart 29). From the point of trend analysis, the only real significant progress has been made in mechanisms for protecting economic operators and individuals (Table 15). As a result of this improvement, improvement is measured at the level of the entire area (Chart 30). 34

36 Table 15 Economic freedom and economic participation - summary by dimensions Indicators T test Economic equality of individuals on 1.68; the market p=0.093 Economic equality and autonomy of 0.93; companies p=0.35 Mechanisms for protecting 2.14; economic operators and individuals p=0.033 INDEX OF ECONOMIC FREEDOM AND ECONOMIC PARTICIPATION ; p=

37 4. EDUCATION The importance of education for democratic practice may be seen in the light of the opinion of the European Court of Human Rights given in 1976 Education is essential for the preservation of democratic society. With great certainty it can be said today that all roads lead to democracy, but that success on this road can be expected only if education and advancement in the education of every individual and society as a whole is given appropriate attention, and if adequate frameworks are created. For this area, the following dimensions were defined and measured: Openness and participation in education Autonomy and efficiency of education Legality and control of education Pluralism in education Impact and effectiveness of public debate on education Transparency and availability of information in education Each dimension was measured by identical and already described methodological procedure, and efforts were made to take all major dimensions into consideration. The results of measurements by dimensions and summary indices are provided below Openness and Participation in Education This dimension aims to examine the extent to which education is open to all social groups. Since the social status is largely a function of the educational process, from the standpoint of democratic society this is a very important 36

38 dimension. The measurement results indicate that the biggest issue of democracy is the level of openness of the education system for suggestions and opinions of citizens (Chart 31). What is worrying, however, is that in this area negative trends are recorded (Chart 32 and Table 16). In other words, the level of democracy in education is now at a lower level than it was four years ago. Table 16 Openness and participation in education - summary by indicators Indicators Availability of education to all citizens regardless of their place of residence/ domicile Openness of education for children who have unfavorable social status, i.e. originating from poor families Equal schooling conditions for the entire student population, regardless of their ethnic or religious affiliation Openness of education for suggestions and opinions of citizens

39 4.2. Autonomy and Efficiency of Education The survey results in this dimension show that two key issues are the pressure by political structures and other centers of power on educational system, and autonomy of the university (Chart 33). The data further show that in this dimension negative trends are recorded in relation to 2012 (Chart 34 and Table 17). 38

40 Table 17 Autonomy and efficiency of education - summary by indicators Indicator Existence of University autonomy Development of personal autonomy, freedom and creativity of students in the education system Absence of pressure by political structures and other centers of power on educational system Absence of ideological contents in curricula Efficiency of the education system with respect to the implementation of key education goals Legality and Control of Education System The biggest issue in terms of legality and control of the education system is the lack of efficiency in the fight against corruption in education (Chart 35). When it comes to the whole dimension, negative trends are also recorded in relation to the situation four years ago (Chart 36 and Table 18). 39

41 Table 18 Legality and control of education system summary by indicators Indicator Effectiveness of the law in the combat of corruption in the education system Effectiveness of the law in amending bad and poor quality regulations Existence of developed national criteria for education quality assessment Compliance by state bodies in assessing the quality of educational institutions Possibility of evaluating the work of teachers and institutions by students

42 4.4. Pluralism in Education This dimension accepted all key principles on which pluralism in this dimension should rest. The survey results show that the biggest issue is the very educational system, namely (non) existence of a large number of teaching methods in the educational process (Chart 37). The biggest issue in this regard, however, is an extremely negative trend (Chart 38 and Table 19). Data show that pluralism in education is at a significantly lower level today than it was four years ago, or more precisely, it is close to the record low measured value, which was identified in Table 19 Pluralism in education - summary by indicators Indicator Developing tolerance among students to all forms of diversity in the system of education Acceptance of gender, physical, cultural, ethnic and religious diversity of society in curricula Existence and use of a large number of teaching methods in the educational process Possibility of choosing educational content by pupils/students

43 4.5 Impact and Effectiveness of Debate about Education Public consultations provide a number of important information which is more than useful for the successful transformation of particular social areas. In a given constellation, a network of indicators was defined aiming to measure both the impact and effectiveness of public consultations on the education system. Measurement results indicate that the biggest issue in this dimension is insufficient influence by teachers/professors in terms of initiating changes in the education system (Chart 39). Also, longitudinal data indicate negative trends in this dimension, that is, public consultations are less influential and effective today than four years ago (Chart 40 and Table 20). 42

44 Table 20 Impact and effectiveness of public debate on education - summary by indicators Indicators Possibility of initiation of concrete changes in educational system by teachers / professors Respecting the opinion of experts of NGOs, prominent individuals and other stakeholders in the process of drafting laws and regulations on education Existence of a dialogue between the relevant state institutions and social organizations that deal with educational issues Participation of national minorities in designing curricula which are intended for national minorities Possibility to initiate concrete changes in higher education by students, aimed at improving the quality of higher education Transparency and Availability of Information in Education When measuring this dimension, a series of structurally interconnected indicators were defined. The measurement results indicate that the largest deficit in this dimension is the lack of systematic public information on all issues related to the issues of education by the State and their bodies (Chart 41). On the other hand, and when it comes to most dimensions in the field of education, a negative trend is recorded compared to data from 2012 (Chart 42 and Table 21) 43

45 Table 21 Transparency and availability of information in education - summary by indicators Indicator Existence of public and transparent control of educational institutions Certification and testing of textbooks Availability of relevant information on curricula to the public (citizens and media) Availability of relevant information on the results of the student population to the public (citizens and media) Systematic public information on all issues related to the problems of education by the state and their bodies (ministries)

46 4.7 Summary Indicators for Education Key information on measurements of democracy in education is that significant negative trends were identified. Thus, the data indicate that the democracy in the field of education in all measured dimensions is at the significantly lower level compared to 2012 (Table 22 and Chart 44). Comparatively, comparing the dimensions, the data indicate that there are two key issues in the field of education, and these are insufficient influence of public consultations on the education system, and the issue of transparency and availability of information in education (Chart 43) Table 22 Democracy in the educational process - summary by dimensions Indicator T test Openness and participation in 1.66; education p=0.097 Autonomy and efficiency of education ; p=0.007 Legality and control of education ; p=0.29 Pluralism in education ; p=0.04 Impact and effectiveness of public 0.88; debate on education p=

47 Transparency and access to information INDEX: DEMOCRACY IN EDUCATION ; p= ; p=

48 5. MEDIA The media scene in Montenegro is nowadays completely different from the one that characterized the period before transition. In real-socialism period, media represented an important element of ideological reproduction of the society. This kind of situation in the media was declarative at that time, and information in the service of maintaining a socialist society and their truth cannot be characterized as censorship, rather as a system that rested on a unique matrix. After the beginning of social transformation, the situation on the media scene has been changing day after day. First, in addition to the national dominant media, private media emerged which, by definition, did not represent an extended arm of the government and their policies. This applies to both electronic and print media. Also, the state media changed their position and role. With the disappearance of the communist party from the political scene and the establishment of a large number of new parties, media which were still under the control of structures of the government had to show a certain amount of elasticity and therefore reflect changes that had occurred. It is true that the state media at the time, like presently, favored political parties in power, but there are equally obvious efforts to establish some kind of balance between the positions of governing structures and opposing opinions. Finally, it is very important to see the effect of transformation of the state television of Montenegro into the public broadcaster on the position of citizens, which is extremely important given the epithet of the most powerful electronic media, or how important it is for the democratization of society in general. On the other hand, appearance of private media additionally democratized social relationships and relaxed the overall political communication. Although the process of establishing new media was intermediated by individual and group interests of certain structures, however, the process was diversified so that today private media, led by different interest structures, favor opposing political options, which is certainly good from the standpoint of democrati- 47

49 zation. Making this statement, first and foremost, we have in mind the fact that the existence of alternative information is one of the key conditions for formation of polyarchy (v. R. Dal). Addressing this area, we defined the following dimensions as the object of measurement: Autonomy and independence of measurement Professionalism of media No monopolies and equality of media Openness of the media Methodologically, the same procedure was used as in the previous cases, and it was cumulatively possible, based on all dimensions, to synthesize a unique assessment for the entire area Autonomy and Independence of the Media The first dimension, which is the subject of measurement in this area, is the autonomy and independence of the media. In this regard, we tried to measure the level of achieved autonomy separately for printed and electronic media. Before starting to analyze the results it is important to say that it is hard to assess an ideal situation in this area, because even in most democratic societies some structures of power are de facto able to influence the media. In other words, it is not advisable to imagine an ideal type of media independence in any society, including Montenegro, because interest structures almost always find a way to influence media. The survey results for this dimension suggest that the biggest issues of media democracy are reflected in the existence of pressure on the media by political organizations, wealthy individuals and groups, as well as by the government (Chart 45). A bigger issue, however, is the fact that negative trends are recorded in this dimension (Table 23 and Chart 46). Thus, it is estimated that the situation in the media is at a worse level than in

50 Table 23 Autonomy and independence of media - summary by indicators Indicator Absence of pressure on the media by the government and state institutions Absence of pressure on the media by parties and political organizations Absence of pressure on the media by wealthy individuals and groups Absence of pressure on the media by religious and ethnic communities Absence of pressure on the media by organizations and institutions from Serbia Autonomy of print media Autonomy of radio stations Autonomy of TV stations 49

51 5.2. Professionalism of Media For the media to effectively fulfill their role in a democratic society, on the one hand they have to be independent, and on the other hand they have to respect the professional standards that apply to the media scene. This was the subject of measurements of this dimension. The survey results indicate that professionalism of TV stations is the biggest issue in this regard, as well as professional public information (Chart 47). Negative trends are indicated by the analysis, therefore, the professionalism of the media is at a lower level compared to 2012 (Chart 48 and Table 24). 50

52 Table 24 Professionalism of media summary by indicators Indicator Professional public information Objective public information Timely public information Professionalism of print media Professionalism of radio stations Professionalism of TV stations Non-Existence of Monopolies and Equality of Media The existence of a monopoly in any segment of a democratic society is a serious obstacle from the point of realization of democratic principles. When it comes to the media, this issue is particularly pronounced, simply because in such a situation the overall political communication may be dominated only by a single political discourse, and this is the one responsible for monopoly in the media. As regards the measurement of indicators only for this dimension, data suggest that the biggest issue is equality of TV stations (Chart 49). Comparatively, in relation to 2012, the measured values were slightly lower in the current moment (Chart 50 and Table 25) 51

53 Table 25 Non-existence of monopoly and equality of media summary by indicators Indicator Equality of print media Equality of radio stations Equality of TV stations Absence of a monopoly of certain media in relation to other media

54 5.4. Openness of the Media Measuring this dimension through defined indicators, the largest deficit was found in the openness of the media to different political opinions and different ideologies (Chart 51). The trend in this area currently shows a higher degree of openness of the media in relation to the period of four years ago (Chart 52 and Table 26) Table 26 Openness of the media summary by indicators Indicator Media openness to different political opinions and different ideologies Media openness to different religious and ethnic groups living in Montenegro Media openness to citizens, civic organizations and prominent individuals Openness and freedom to criticize authorities and other institutions and individuals

55 5.5 Summary Indicators for the Media The analysis of all the indicators and dimensions related to the media showed that the existence of a monopoly and media inequality was the biggest issue in that area (Chart 53). The key fact is, however, that the media situation is worse today than back in 2012 (Chart 54 and Table 27). 54

56 Table 27 Media democracy - summary by dimensions Dimensions T test Autonomy and independence of 2.83; media p= ; Professionalism of media p=0.002 Non-existence of monopolies and equality of media Openness of the media INDEX MEDIA ; p= ; p= ; p=

57 6. NATIONAL AND RELIGIOUS MINORITIES A stable legal position of national minorities requires that the protection of their rights is an integral and functional part of the overall positive legal system, including free access to all political, social, economic, cultural and state activities and possibility of election at all levels of social selection. Constitutional and legal solutions set the basis for creating mechanisms for protecting both individual and collective rights of minorities and developing practices of affirmative action. Montenegro is in the final phase of creating a legal environment which will guarantee the preservation and development of national and religious pluralism by the standards of modern Europe. Without national and religious pluralism, even if there is real political pluralism, it is impossible to imagine a modern democratic society. The issue of the status of national minorities and the degree of their participation in political processes is certainly an issue of overall democracy of the society. The current state of Montenegrin society on this issue will be shown by the following measurement. When measuring the level of democracy achieved in this area, the following dimensions were defined. Formal legal protection of minorities Discrimination against minorities Existence of mechanisms for protection of minorities Treatment of minorities by the majority and fairness of media coverage. The survey was carried out by dimensions, according to standardized methodological procedure and in the same way as in other areas, thus enabling comparison of any kind. The choice of dimensions is theoretically and practically justified and a unique and synthetic index is obtained as a result of their summary. 56

58 6.1. Formal Legal Protection of Minorities The first dimension of the survey is legal protection of minorities. The aim of this dimension is to examine to what extent the rights of national minorities are protected by legislation itself. This is an important issue, simply because of the fact that this aspect of minority rights protection is a basic prerequisite for all other aspects and forms of equalization and integration of minorities into democratic structure and functioning of the whole society. The survey results indicate that the greatest deficiency in this dimension is the lack of concrete actions of government that are intended to protect the rights of minorities (Chart 55). From the aspect of trend analysis, data show that in the past four years there was no improvement in this dimension, that is, values are more or less at the same level as four years ago. Table 28 Formal legal protection of minorities - summary by indicators Indicators Legal protection of national minorities Legal protection of religious communities Freedom of expression of religious affiliation Freedom of expression of political and cultural characteristics of national minorities Existence of specific actions of government intended to protect the rights of minorities

59 6.2. Discrimination against Minorities The survey results in this dimension indicate that the biggest issues relate to the absence of concerns about economic and social development of the regions in which religious and ethnic minorities live (Chart 57). However, measurements under this dimension recorded a stagnation compared to 2012, and therefore, the measured values are at approximately the same level (Table 29 and Chart 58). 58

60 Table 29 Discrimination against minorities summary by indicators Indicators Equality of employment and promotion of national minorities and the majority population Representative representation and advancement of national minorities in public services Impartial judiciary in processes involving ethnic and religious minorities Relationship of trust towards the authorities that there will be no discrimination of national minorities in judicial proceedings Non-discrimination of ethnic and religious minorities by the government apparatus and civil servants Government care of economic and social development of regions populated by ethnic and religious minorities Mechanisms for Protecting Minorities The research results in this regard indicate the biggest lack of efficiency of the government apparatus in cases of violations of the rights of national minorities (Chart 59). The trend analysis indicate that the mechanisms for protecting minorities have slightly improved over the past four years (Chart 60 and Table 30) 59

61 Table 30 Existence of a mechanism for protecting minorities summary by indicators Indicators Development of state institutions that protect the rights of ethnic and religious minorities Development of civil society institutions that protect the rights of ethnic and religious minorities Existence of public reaction to cases of violations of the rights of minorities Willingness and ability of the authorities to protect the rights of ethnic and religious minorities in all parts of the country Effectiveness of state apparatus in cases of violations of the rights of national minorities

62 6.4. Treatment of Minorities by the Majority and Fairness of Media Coverage The survey results of this dimension indicate that there is a lack of government action even when it comes to establishing contacts of national minorities with their home countries, and when it comes to state support to actions that ensure better treatment of ethnic and religious minorities (Chart 61). On the other hand, positive trends are longitudinally recorded in terms of this dimension. Accordingly, in the past four years there has been an improvement in the treatment of minorities by the majority (Table 31 and Chart 62). 61

63 Table 31 Treatment of minorities by the majority and fairness of media - summary by indicators Indicators Absence of hate speech in the media towards ,31 3,34 3,33 1,098 national and religious minorities Assistance to authorities in establishing ,41 3,26 3,22 1,060 contacts and fostering cooperation between national minorities and their motherlands State participation and support to activities ,46 3,30 3,22 1,111 that provide better treatment of ethnic and religious minorities Involvement of national and religious minorities in the activities of organizations that protect their rights ,66 3,44 3,32 1, Summary Indicators for the Position of National and Religious Minorities When analyzing summary data on the issues of national and religious minorities, it is first noted that all values are comparatively high. Accordingly, generally, it is assessed that the treatment of minorities in Montenegro is at a high level (Chart 63). Comparatively, the lowest values are recorded when it comes to discrimination against minorities. However, in this respect, the most significant information is that there has been no improvement in this area in the past four years (Chart 64 and Table 32). All measured values are more or less at the same level as four years ago. Simple diagnosis would be: treatment 62

64 of national and religious minorities is at a satisfactory level, and yet there has been no progress in the past four years. Table 32 Democracy in the field of national and religious minorities - summary by dimensions Dimensions T test Formal legal protection 0.25; of minorities p=0.81 Discrimination against minorities 0.14; p=0.89 Existence of mechanisms 0.72; for protecting minorities p=0.47 Treatment of minorities by the majority and fairness of public information ; p=0.17 INDEX: TREATMENT OF MINORITIES ; p=

65 64 DEMOCRACY INDEX Montenegro 2016.

66 7. POSITION OF WOMEN Gender equality, as an aspect, was definitely of special concern also from the standpoint of methodology that was defined. Gender relations and gender inequality, which definitely exist in Montenegro, are given a different meaning in subjective transcription, and it is quite obvious that the possibility of objective assessment is limited under such circumstances. Therefore, it is quite understandable that in gender theory, before any assessment of the position of women, a process of gender deconstruction is demanded at the level of culture and consciousness, thus creating necessary but not sufficient conditions for objective assessment. The survey results indicate that the biggest issue of gender inequality is discrimination that occurs in the family (Chart 65). In addition, identified issues include discrimination against women in employment and participation in politics. However, the biggest issue is the fact that negative trends are recorded in this area. Thus, it is estimated that the position of women has worsened in the past four years (Chart 66 and Table 33) 65

67 Table 33 Position of women - summary by indicators Indicators Equal participation of women in all aspects of social life Equal participation of women in government Absence of discrimination against women in advancement and employment Absence of discrimination of women in enterprises, institutions and organizations Absence of discrimination against women in the family Activities of organizations and institutions that protect the rights of women Absence of hate speech against women in the media

68 8. POSITION OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES Concerning the measurements in this area, the measured values are quite similar for all indicators (Chart 67). Comparatively, the lowest value was measured related to adaptation of school facilities to the needs of persons with disabilities. However, the same as when it comes to gender equality, negative trends are recorded in this regard as well (Chart 68 and Table 34). Thus, it is estimated that the treatment of persons with disabilities is worse today than four years ago. 67