Research MEDIA Media donations to political parties, and ownership structures as a potential source of corruption in the Macedonian media

DONATIONS TO POLITI AL PARTIES AND O!NERS"IP STR# T#RE AS A POTENTIAL SO#R E O$ ORR#PTION IN T"E MA EDONIAN MEDIA !ritten %&' Team of (ournalists led %& Sase Dimo)s*i Ubavka Janevska, Nenad Zoric - Political propaganda towards the media in Macedonia costs the Government 20 million e ros per !ear, as m ch as the b dget o" the Ministr! o" #e"ense, sa!s Naser $elmani, president o" the %ssociation o" Jo rnalists o" Macedonia, has claimed that Political propaganda towards the media in Macedonia costs the government 20 million e ros per !ear, as m ch as the Ministr! o" #e"ense&s b dget'' ()t&s deplorable' Macedonia spends 20 million e ros ann all! "or on advertising and media' *hese ads have nothing to do withare not at all in the p blic interest o" the citi+ens' *, those " nds are simpl! sed as b ! b !-o ts, "or corr pting the media in order to then stop critici+ing government policies,, - $elmani emphasi+ed' *his in"ormation was anno nced b!*hese claims were made b! $elmani in #ecember o" 20-., at a p blic "or m on the topic o" / ,0"reedom o" e1pression -2 a challenge "or Macedonia&a3' ONTROL O+ER T"E MEDIA ontrol of the media

Mone!, in smaller or greater amo nts, has been given spent b! the gGovernment "or on ads in newspapers, on television, radio or internet portals, and th s provides a space in which the media reports on the dail! activities o" governmental and part! representatives in a positive conte1t' *his approach, taken b! the Macedonian government which has been, in power since 2004, has been deemed b! man! relevant international and national organi+ations in Macedonia as a serio s corr ption o" the media' %ccording to German!&s 5ertelsmann 0o ndation6 (*he r ling parties in Macedonia have strengthened control over n mero s democratic instit tions in the co ntr!, incl ding the NG7s, the media, niversities and research instit tes' Media ownership in the co ntr! is ver! m ch concentrated on, and related to politics' 8ditors and reporters are nder s b9ect to increasing political press re and threats, res lting in widespread sel"-censorship' *he Government government chooses to advertise onl! in via the p blic broadcasting service and pro-government oriented media, th s increasing their "inancial power at the e1pense o" pro-opposition media'3 - states the German 5ertelsmann 0o ndation'

*he 5ertelsmann 0o ndation assessed the val es o" the political and economic trans"ormation in the 20-22-20-. period and the report was presented at the beginning o" Jan ar! 20-: in German!' Nevertheless, when asking "or o""icial in"ormation on how m ch mone! the gGovernment o" Macedonia spends ann all! on advertising in the media, there is no response, even tho gh the ;aw on 0ree %ccess to )n"ormation obliges it to reveal the s ms' <owever, recent data bro ght to light b! the Macedonian government&s political opposition, con"irmed s spicions that the gGovernment gives spends millions o" e ros "or on vario s media campaigns to media that are close to the r ling part!, which means that the broadcast o" pro-government ads d ring election campaigns is receiving virt all! "ree broadcasting o" their ads at election time, being given=with disco nts o" as m ch as >0 percent?' ;ater0ollowing the elections, the disco nted or "ree airtime part! political advertising is shown listed as nder donations "or the part!' *he data obtained "rom the "inal "inancial statements o" the media and the political parties s bmitted to the $tate 8lection @ommission, the $tate @ommission "or the Prevention o" @orr ption and the $tate % dit 7""ice, d ring the elections held between 2004 and 20-. show that the media are the biggest donors to political parties, b t onl! to the onesthose parties which that make pcomprise the government' *, while the other political parties were charged according to the applicable price lists which were similar applicable to other commercial companies' )n Macedonia, elections were held in 2004, 200A, 200>, 20-- and 20-.' *he ne1t elections will be held in March 20-:' P#,LI MONE-Pu%lic mone&' the .reatest secret T"E /REATEST SE RET *he General $ecretariat o" the Macedonian gGovernment, that who o tso rces the media campaigns, re" ses to respond to B estions on how m ch mone! is spent on media and arg es that it is ,a secret,' Not even the p blicl! declared in"ormation b! the President o" the %ssociation o" Jo rnalists o" Macedonia has been denied, that the gGovernment gives 20 million e ros per !ear to media that s pport its work' %s part o" the e""orts to improve the sit ation o" "reedom o" e1pression and media independence, the 8 ropean @ommission reB ested data "rom the Macedonian government regarding how m ch mone! is spent on advertising, b t 0atmir Macedonian 5esimi, #ep t! Prime Minister in charge o" 8 ropean )ntegration, 5esimi has not disclosed the amo nts, not being allowed to do so b! the gGovernment General $ecretariat' %t the reB est o" the media in $kop9e, the amo nt was not disclosed even to o""icial 5r ssels representatives, who stated stating that ,a thori+ation "or this was not given b! the Macedonian government'3' Previo sl!, in their ann al reports, dedicated to the media barometer in the 5alkans, the 8 ropean @ommission concl ded, in its ann al report on the Macedonian media, that6 ,t*he CMacedonianD Ggovernment is one o" the biggest advertisers and there are concerns that " nds are directed straight to the *E channels that s pport the

government' 7wnership o" the media is kept obsc re, highl! concentrated and with ver! strong political connections'3,, the 8 ropean @ommission stated in its ann al report on the media in Macedonia' - *he%ccording to the 8 ropean @ommission, e 8ditors and 9o rnalists are "aced with ma9or political press res and threats' *hreats to 9o rnalists and sel"-censorship remain a ca se "or concern' 2 concl ded the 8 ropean @ommission' Fhether the government corr pts the media in this wa!, and keeps them nder its control, is one o" the B estions to which m ch man!o" the 9o rnalists, with their associations, nions, media organi+ations and part o" the dep ties, wo ld like to see an answer in time' -(*he sole p rpose o" advertising b! the Government in the media is to p t them nder its control -,3 sa!s M hamed ZeBiri, editor o" %lsat - M *elevision, which broadcasts in the %lbanian and Macedonian lang age' ,*here are a thorities, s ch as we have in Macedonia, attempting to grab a hold over ever! media in the ro ghest wa!G in some places, somewhere the! s cceeded , b t somewhere in others, "ort natel!, the! still have not and we hope the! never will' Fhere, and where the gGovernment has achieved their ob9ective, we hope that the! will get o t o" the cl tches o" the r lers' Fe have a new wa! o" stigmati+ing 9o rnalists and colleag es b! their peers, some 9o rnalists or media which ) call the phantoms' *s, these are vario s news portals concerned onl! with the work o" other 9o rnalists and do not deal in with the b siness o" 9o rnalism,,, sa!s ZeBiri' !"O MA- ,E A 0O#RNALIST ho ma& %e a (ournalist1 *he iss e o" corr ption in the media has becomewas being increasingl! more mentioned at the end o" 20-. and in Jan ar! 20-:, when at the proposal o" the Governmentgovernment, new laws have beenwere adopted in the area o" broadcasting and media, and amendments were made to the electoral law ' *he %ssociation o" Jo rnalists o" Macedonia =%JM? opposed the adoption o" a law whose provisions are n"avorable and limit the scope o" work o" 9o rnalists, altho gh the government demonstrated that the adoption o" the law is was done adopted with the speci"ic consent o" the %JM' *he gGovernment nder this ;aw shall restrict the work o" man! 9o rnalists, b! not acknowledging 9o rnalists working "or internet media and other electronic p blications and who are not contracted to work with a partic lar media' )n this wa!, all the 9o rnalists who work as "ree 9o rnalists"reelancers, as occasional correspondents or 9o rnalists in web online media will not be able to access state instit tions, nor to be accredited as 9o rnalists' )n this wa!, their participation in pro"essional associations and trade nions will be limited' *he amendments to the election law made in late Jan ar! 20-: still leave behindpermit the possibilit! "or media to be donors o"donate " nds "or to political parties at a time when elections are being held, onl! albeit limiting the amo nt o" the donation to H0,000 tho sand e ros' *he c rrent practice has shown that the media has presented donations ,weighing, over a million e ros'

*here"ore, donations b! the media to political parties, media ownership and advertising b! the gGovernment and state instit tions in the media are the principle points o" interest that have been highlighted as a so rce o" corr ption "or the media' 7 r research con"irmed the s spicion that the media donates " nds d ring the election campaign to the part! in power, and then e1pecting s"or the mone! to be repaid thro gh ads that will be aired later, b! order and at the e1pense o" the gGovernment' *he case o" ,Macedonia, is one o" the "ew instances where !o cannot disting ish which is the agenda implemented b! the gGovernment, and which is the agenda o" the r ling part! =, in this case, EMI7 #PMN8?, since the representatives o" the gGovernment are sim ltaneo sl! the highest o""icials o" the part!, on whose behal" the! attend events and " nctions d ring working ho rs'

Ad)ertisements onl& for well2%eha)ed media D+ERTISEMENTS ONL- $OR !ELL2,E"A+ED MEDIA Media that critici+e the Government government and "ail to donate mone! to the part! d ring the an election campaign do not receive government-" nded advertisementadvertising' *he mone! "or these ads is paid "rom the state b dget o" the Iep blic o" Macedonia' )n J l! 20-.# d ring the disc ssions on election legislation in J l! 20-., the government re9ected the oppositionJs proposal to insert a provision in the bill that wo ld prohibit the media "rom being donors to political parties' (-)t was clear "or s that !o wo ld not accept the amendment beca se even small children know that the gGovernment o" Macedonia wishes to control the entire media space' 0irst !o ask "or donations, and then b ! them o t with government campaigns paid with p blic mone!' )s it not s!mptomatic to !o that d ring an election campaign, thes a media is "orcedbiasedK, ) maintain this is not done vol ntaril!, to give a donation to EMI7 #PMN8 worth more than a million e ros 2,3 stated 8mili9an $tankovic, representative o" the $#$M opposition part! in "ront o" representatives "rom the r ling EMI7 #PMN8 at the debate in Parliament on % g st 22, 20-.' $tankovic <e called "or the a law to provide "or an obligation "or the Government thatb! which campaigns " nded "rom the state b dget sho ld be broadcasted on all media, according to the rating each media holds, and th s there wo ld be no gGovernmental "avoritism between the media' *he Minister o" )n"ormation $ociet! and %dministration )vo )vanovski, whose 9 risdiction incl des the adoption o" laws on media, re9ected this proposal' Previo sl!, on7n Ma! L, 20-., $tole Na mov, member o" the 5roadcasting @o ncil =l, the bod! that iss es licenses "or the operation o" the electronic media and controls their work work?, posed the B estion o" whether the media sho ld be donors to

political parties, b t his initiative was not interesting "oro" no interest to other members o" this bod! ' - () am aware that "or this iss e to be incl ded in the 8lectoral @ode, it shall reB ire a consens s o" all political parties' )" !o disable broadcasters "rom being donors, as is now the case, then the! will be "ree "rom political in"l ence -,3 Na mov said' # e to violations o" election r les at d ring the 20-. the elections held in Macedonia in 20-., the 5roadcasting @o ncil "iled laws its against -. radio and television stations' *heir cases are !et to be deliberated pon b! the competent co rt in $kop9e' *he ban on part! political part! donations b! the media was called "or as earl! as 20-2 b! pro"essional 9o rnalism associations and organi+ations, b t even then, the government showed no interest in addressing this iss e, which is was ndo btedl! categoricall! pointed o t b! all as a ma9or so rce o" corr ption in the Macedonian media' 7n 7ctober -2, 20-2, the %ssociation o" Jo rnalists o" Macedonia, the Union o" Jo rnalists and the Macedonian )nstit te "or Media anno nced that6 - (Fith the possibilit! to donate p to H M o" ann al t rnover in election campaigns at disco nted prices o""ered b! broadcasters and printed media "or political advertising o""ered to campaign participants, which are calc lated as donations e1pressed in monetar! val e, the media are directl! bribed and mis sed "or partisan p rposes' )nstead, we ask "or a law prohibiting media "rom being donors to a political part! -'3 was the reaction o" the %ssociation o" Jo rnalists o" Macedonia, the Union o" Jo rnalists and the Macedonian )nstit te "or Media anno nced on 7ctober -2, 20-2' ENTREPRENE#R $reelance (ournalists0O#RNALISTS )n Jan ar! 20-:, the main opposition part! =$#$M?, revealed two ma9or corr ption scandals, in which the government has trans"erred tho sands o" e ros to the largest media in MacedoniaG , and 9 st one month later, these television stations and the political part! EMI7 #PMN8 showed in their "inancial statements that the media had donated h ge s ms o" mone! "or to the campaign o" the r ling EMI7 #PMN8 part!' *he second e1ample are concerns the ncovered b siness transactions o" the editor- in- chie" o" the dail! newspaper "Vecer" and dep t! editor o" the national private ,$itel , *E, )vona *alevska, who thro gh the compan! she had "o nded, and later trans"erred to her mother, won a government contract bid worth a million e ros "rom the Ministr! o" <ealth "or the p rchase o" medical eB ipment "or several clinics' *his compan! "or medical eB ipment, as well as several other advertising, marketing and cons ltanc! companies where "o nded b! )vona *alevska and #ragan Pavlovic;atas, editor- in- chie" o" $itel *E, and are registered at the same address as this *E station, at the @it! $tadi m' (- 7ne million e ros "or the "amil! compan! o" )vona *alevska, "or their medical eB ipment b siness' *his is how the ta1pa!ersJ mone! is sed to settle create m ltimillion tari""s "or corr pting the media and creating a "alse realit! "or those same

citi+ens citi+ens,3- claimed representatives o" the opposition at a series o" press con"erences, held on the topic where the evidence was presented' -(<ow did )vona *alevska, who is listed as the contact person o" "or the ,Eisaris, compan! s ddenl!, overnight, become an e1pert in health eB ipment worth a million e rosK3- were some o"among the B estions that were posed b! MPs to the Minister o" <ealth a"ter nscovering the a scandal that whereb! an editor o" two media had received a government contract "or the proc rement o" medical materials' *his same 9o rnalist has had cond cted a n mber o" interviews with both the Minister o" <ealth and the President o" the Government, according to - stated opposition representatives, who also and aasked the Minister o" <ealth to p blish all bidding doc ments' *he Eice President o" the $ocial #emocratic Union o" Macedonia =$#$M?, Iadmila $ekerinska, provided o""icial doc ments "rom several clinics reporting to the Ministr! o" <ealth that the! did not wish to p rchase the eB ipment distrib ted b! the "amil! compan! o" the 9o rnalist )vona *alevska, who is editor o" the two media, beca se the! were alread! possess in possession o" s ch eB ipment' *he Minister o" <ealth, Nikola *odorov, claimed that he did not know that the owner o" the compan! that who had won this p blic proc rement and had bid worth a million e ros, was the 9o rnalist )vona *alevska and later her mother' )nstead, *odorov , b t pleaded that the tender proced re was legal, altho gh there were a "ew , nethical moments, thro gho t within the entire proced re' Mone& in the run2up to elections ONE- IMMEDIATEL- PRIOR TO ELE TIONS @ritics o" the s!stem B estioned whether EMI7 #PMN8 had "inanced their campaign and bo ght the "avors o" 9o rnalists in this wa! with mone! "rom the state b dget, or thro gh the media, EMI7 #PMN8 "inanced their campaign and bo ght 9o rnalists who sing dail! praises to the governmentK' %ccording to Peter $hilegov, spokesperson "or the opposition $#$M part!, (-a7ne million e ros was were trans"erred b! the Government o" Nikola Gr evski to ,$itel, *E, to carr! aid o t the 20-. campaign in 20-.' %long with the trans"er o" :H0,000 tho sand e ros, made 20 da!s be"ore the local elections in 20-., the government trans"erred to the acco nt o" ,$itel, *E over - a million e rosN )n transactions made over L seven da!s in 20-., the *E station received over - a million e ros in peopleJso" p blic mone!'3 - stated Peter $hilegov, spokesperson "or the opposition $#$M' *he owner o" $itel *elevision is Goran )vanovskiG mean, while his "ather, ;9 bisav )vanov #+ingo, is a political part! leader o" the $ocialist Part! o" Macedonia, which is in coalition with the r ling EMI7 #PMN8 government' ;9 bisav )vanov was had been a contin o s representative in pParliament contin o sl! since the independence o" Macedonia in ->>-, b t stepped down in $eptember 20-2, when the laws led to him to make a choicechoose between sta!ing in parliament, or his son having to sell $itel *E ,$itel,' *he 5roadcasting %ct and

legislation "or the prevention o" con"licts o" interest do not allow MPs, mMinisters and o""icials, or their close relatives to be the "o nders and owners o" media' ;9 bisav )vanov Zingo resigned as MP, b t remained leader o" the political part! which is a coalition partner o" the r ling part!, with a minister and other o""icials at vario s government positions' <is son remained owner o" the television station' Under %rticle -- o" the 5roadcasting %ct, p blic o""icials and members o" their immediate "amilies ma! not per"orm an! broadcasting activities! =' ,pPolitical parties, government bodies, p blic administration entities, p blic enterprises, local governments, p blic o""icials and members o" their "amilies, cannot per"orm broadcasting activit! or be "o nders or co-"o nders or gain share in the ownership o" broadcasting media, ?'2 as stated in the law ' *he headB arters o" ,$itel , *E is at the @it! $tadi m =$kop9e "ootball arena?' *here"ore, the scandal o" trans"erring a million e ros a "ew da!s prior to the election in 20-. "rom the government&s acco nt to $itel *E was named b! the opposition part! ,media metastasis n'n' "or the Government o" Nikola Gr evski, with its main headB arters at @it! $tadi m n'n', *he doc ments presented b! the opposition part! ncovered a do+en companies that havewhich had been established b! the televisions ma9or *E 9o rnalists who " ll! s pport and openl! advocate the polic! o" the Government government and all have the same address, that o" the seat headB arters o" $itel *E' *his is has been the onl! case denied b! the Governmentgovernment, b t it did not den! the trans"er o" over a- million e ros to the acco nt o" ,$itell, *E' )nstead, it , b t " rther clari"ied that advertising mone! advertisements washad been trans"erred to the "ollowing *E stations6 ,*elma,, Oanal H , %l"a and %lsat - M, all based on contracts signed with them "or government advertising broadcasting'

Telma 3 we are not all e4ual ELMA 3 !E ARE NOT ALL E5#AL $till, the*he g Government "ailed on this occasion also to anno nce how m ch mone! the television stations were paid, or wh! it was donethis happened a "ew da!s be"ore the 20-. elections in 20-.' *here is also no answer to the B estion, o" how come these media, who had millions o" e ros in trans"ers a "ew da!s be"ore the elections, t rned o t to be the largest donors "or to EMI7 #PMN8, the part! whose representatives "ormed the Governmentgovernment' Part! leader Nikola Gr evski is also President o" the Government o" Macedonia at the same time' *he government e1planation o" "or the distrib tion o" mone! "or to the media received a reaction onl! "rom *elma *elevision, which acc sed the gGovernment o" tr!ing to ,p ll them into the debate abo t the close relationship between the

gGovernment and some television stations and the " nds set aside "or them in advertising campaigns'3 (- *elma *elevision is appalled b! the transparent attempt o" the gGovernment to involve all other *E stations in the same gro p as ,$itel, *E "or being awarded " nds "or television campaigns -,3 stated *elma *E managers' *elma made p blic that in 20-., the! received LL,000 tho sand e ros based on -: contracts "or Government government advertisements' ,*he amo nt o" LL,000 tho sand e ros received b! *elma *E is light !ears awa! "rom deals that were made with other broadcasters, 2 the *elevision o tlet stated, re"erring to the more than - million e ros been paid to ,$itel, *E in several pa!ments d ring 20-. ' %t the same time, *elma television, which was had o"ten been critici+ed b! the government "or its critical stand on its policies, a""irmed6 ,)t is p rel! b siness and marketing services, having which has nothing to do with, and will never have an! in"l ence on, the editorial polic! o" *elma *E,' 6,#-IN/ REPORTERS,u&in. reporters 6 @orr ption in the media has becomebecame a ma9or topic in Macedonia in Jan ar! 20-:' *he s b9ect was "irst broached with the reports o" "inancial scandals when mone! was trans"erred to television stations and private b sinesses owned b! senior media 9o rnalists who s pport the government getting p blic proc rement contracts "or vario s instit tionsG , and later, this it e1panded to laws adopted b! the gGovernment concerning the operation o" the media' MP 5il9ana Oa+and+iska, d ring a debate in parliament, claimed that (- U p to now, we have had a sit ation where the media sponsored the government, b t the da! comes when the bill sho ld be paid, and now we have a sit ation where the government ret rns to the media' <owK 0irst, the government pa!s "or an editor- inchie"G !o can b ! one "or a- million e ros,, s ch as )vona *alevska, "or e1ample' %"ter !o choose the editor- in- chie", !o b ! an entire mediao tlet, $itel *E, the media o" !o r coalition partner'3 - stated MP 5il9ana Oa+and+iska d ring a debate in Parliament' (- <ow man! millions does "ree speech in the co ntr! cost,3 - asked MP 5il9ana Oa+and+iska on Jan ar! 22, 20-: in the Iep blic o" Macedonia %ssembl!' *he second *E station which is close to the government is Oanal H television' )ts "o nder , 5oris $to9menov, who was a member o" the r ling EMI7 #PMN8, decided to sta! in parliament, while his son 8mil $to9menov, who headed the *E station, sold it to another person, th s avoiding the an! con"licts o" interest, which was "orbidden b! law' *he b !er o" ,Oanal H, *elevision was Ean!a Gavrilovski, a man tr sted b! the $to9menov "amil!, a"ter previo sl! appearing in other 9oint b sinesses and other companies that the! owned together' %ltho gh it was claimed that the sale was

,"ormal,, the 5roadcasting @o ncil co ld not establish that the! are related and allowed the sales to be per"ormedsale to go ahead' )n Jan ar! 20-:, the )nternet portal ,Nova *E, revealed that the c rrent owner o" ,Oanal H, *elevision, Ean9a Gavrilovski owns a compan! in Panama, in the an o"" shore areaa, registered in ->>>, along with Marian $to9menov, second son o" MP 5oris $to9menov =, who was tthen Minister o" 0inance in the Government o" Macedonia?' *hese relations have reopened the B estion o" who owns the *E ,Oanal H',K )s Ean9a Gavrilovski onl! a ,"ormal, b !er, while 5oris $toimenov c rrent MP "or EMI7 #PMN8 and "ormer "inance minister, and his immediate "amil! still stand at the helm o" the *E stationK' (- %nother one o" !o r coalition partners and representative to this ver! da! in Parliament o" the Iep blic o" Macedonia, then Minister o" 0inance, started a compan! in Panama, which was registered on $eptember >, ->>>, when 5oris $toimenov, then owner o" ,Oanal H,, was 0inance Minister and part o" the Government'3 - (*his same 5oris $to9menov sold his *E station to Ean9a Gavrilovski to avoid a con"lict o" interest' %n!thing that can&t be bo ght with a little mone! m st be bo ght with a lot o" mone!' Nobod! can tell sa! how man! millions this compan! o" !o r coalition partner, Member o" Parliament, "ormer owner o" ,Oanal H, *E, weighs costs' %and thro gh it, he is still indirectl! the owner o" the television station,3 said Oa+and+iska at a session o" Parliament in Jan ar! 20-:' O$$2S"ORE OMPANIES Offshore companies %part "or "rom the two *E stations that we mentioned, there are pec liarities in the ownership str ct re o" the large media corporation Media Print Macedonia ,MPM,, a large media corporation which p blishes the dail! newspapers "Dnevnik,, "Vest" and "Utrinski Vesnik,, along with several periodical p blications and online portals' 8arlier editions o" the consorti m ,F%Z, are now owned b! the companies ,Mireks pl s,, ,7rka <olding %#, and ,)nternet Gro p )nvestment, =, i'e' the b sinessmen $rd9an Oerim and 7rce Oamcev "rom $kop9e and Eeselin Jevrosimovik "rom 5elgrade, who each have ..',. M ownership? ' *hro gh a compan! registered as being o""-shore compan!, $erbian b sinessman Eeselin Jevrosimovik bo ght ,%l"a, television, "rom one o" the ma9or b sinessmen in Macedonia, $ter9o Nakov, "or the s m o" -H0,000 e ros =data that con" sed ever!one?, a"ter which, the *E station&s critical view o" the government was changed in its editorial polic!, and a n mber 9o rnalists were "ired "rom the station' Meanwhile, 9o rnalists "rom ,$itel,, the Macedonian national broadcasting service, and newspapers that s pport the government, were ,reassigned, to work "or in ,%l"a, *E' *his o""-shore compan! also appears as the owner o" the weekl! "Republika,, which is printedhas been p blished "or the past two !ears, and where government ads get dominant representation'

7""-shore companies entering the Macedonian media space have been registered in Panama, 5eli+e, as well as in the @a!man and $e!chelles islands' # ring the sale o" ,%l"a, *E, the 5roadcasting @o ncil, responding to reaction "roms b! the p blic, deliberated whether a concentration o" media ownership had occ rred, d e to the entr! o" the b sinessman Eeselin Jevrosimovik in the b siness o" newspapers and television' $, b t since s ch no s ch a thing was not "o nd, the sale was allowed to proceed ' onflict of interestON$LI T O$ INTEREST *he c rrent president o" the 5roadcasting @o ncil, Zoran *ra9chevski, in a statement made in $eptember 20-2 =, at the deadline when media were s pposed to determine their ownership?, d e totalking abo t close "amilial relations to persons holding high o""ice, claimed that some o" these media were not even s pposed to be iss ed a working license, since this law had been in "orce "or a longer period o" time' <owever, , b t that someone had tolerated their illegal operation' -( *he B estion is wh! it has had not been done "ive or "i"teen -H !ears ago, and i" an!one sho ld take criminal responsibilit! "or tolerating them, acting as i" the! do not nderstand the law' )Jm s rprised that in this sit ation some media owners tr! to present themselves as victims' )n all co ntries in the world the ones that do not respect the law are called criminals' *he @o ncil has nothing against a media that respects the law' *he greatest ob9ection that the 8 ropean Union has given in their report is the mismatch o" the ownership str ct res with %rticle -- o" the ;aw on 5roadcasting3 - declared Zoran *ra9cevski on $eptember 2L, 20-2' *he iss e o" media ownership, which directl! a""ects the independence o" the media and its editorial polic!, was o"ten emphasi+ed b! man! representatives o" the 8 ropean Union' *his is has also been s pported b! thro gh the a statement o" b! the German %mbassador to Macedonia, G dr n $teinacker, who said she was ,concerned abo t the "reedom o" the press in Macedonia,' ,7n this iss e, )Jm a bit concernedG we have seen some developments in the ownership str ct re o" the media that are not aimed at the s pport o" media "reedom' %lso, what ) perceived in conversation with man! 9o rnalists is the presence o" some kind o" "ear' P, perhaps thatJs too strong a word, b t time and again there are 9o rnalistic te1ts on di""erent t!pes o" press re and this is not a good sign' %lso, ) think, and )Jm s re the government is aware o" it, this sho ld be regarded ver! serio sl!,', c- @ommented %mbassador $teinacker' 5esides the iss e o" media ownership b! people close to the government that was open almost ntil the end o" 20-2, reports constantl! reappeared s r"aced that donations were given b! the media to political parties that held were holding the power in Macedonia' DONATIONS Donations of interestO$ INTEREST *he earl! parliamentar! elections in 20-- were a serio s e1ample o" man! violations discovered also b! governmental instit tions, G b t no one was p nished, not neither the media nor the political parties '

*he state %nti-@orr ption @ommittee commented that ,t*he media were again the largest donors to political parties "or the period o" the election campaign "or parliamentar! elections held in J ne 20--' < ge discrepancies between "ree advertising space, o""ered disco nts and npaid liabilities make them illegal donations, which is p nishable b! law', - in"ormed the state %nti-@orr ption @ommittee ' *he @ommission also stated in its report *he that the media, b! covering the disco nted amo nts and not charging their claims "rom political parties in the period o" the election campaign, a tomaticall! appear as visible or hidden donors to political parties' - the @ommission stated in its report ' (-*he h ge di""erence between the val e o" the services provided and disco nts and o tstanding claims are evidence o" illegal donations, p nishable b! law' %mong the media observed in this conte1t as donors we "ind ,%-,, ,$itel, and ,Oanal H, television,3 - said the $tate %nti-@orr ption @ommission on the implementation o" the earl! parliamentar! elections in J ne 20--' Mir9ana #imovska, a member o" the %nti-@orr ption @ommission and a "ormer 9o rnalist, stated that (- Fwe believe that there sho ld be no disco nts' *he! range "rom 0 to >0 percent, ) wo ld sa! p to -00 percent' $o, the disco nt given to di""erent political actors is not the same' 0or some the! will manage their campaign "or "ree, while "or others it is valid nder the most stringent regime in the price lists' Po will agree, this hole m st be closed(- stated'3 Mir9ana #imovska, member o" the %nti-@orr ption @ommission and a "ormer 9o rnalist' *he President o" the 5roadcasting @o ncil in the period, Zoran $te"anovski, acknowledged that the @o ncil, as a reg lator! bod!, "o nd at the o tset o" the campaign that there are were di""erences in the act al cost o" advertising and one that which was o""ered to the political parties, which and was later shown as a donation' ,Fe had indication to do bt and "ear this lack o" better de"inition, and that manip lations ma! occ r with certain media' Fhen !o add to this that there were man! government campaigns lasting thro gho t the whole !ear, it leads !o to think o" mis ses o" media "or partisan p rposes' Fith s ch a gap in the legislation, we onl! stim late their operating at the border o" legalit! and limit the independence o" the media,,, noted Zoran $te"anovski on that occasion' %t that time, $te"anovski reB ested , rgent amendments to the 8lection @ode that wo ld reg late the lack o" de"inition with regards to "inancing o" election campaigns', <e concl ded, in 20--, that - ()i" !o do not do that, then corr ption will not be lacking in the media'3 $te"anovski concl ded in 20--' 0or three !ears, debates over this iss e raged in the co ntr!, and in Jan ar! 20-: it bro ght "orth legislative change was bro ght "orth, that the media are not completel!

barred "rom donating " nds "or political parties, b t onl! are onl! limited to an the amo nt to o" H0,000 tho sand e ros ' Utrinski Vesnik, a dail! newspaper in its editorial p blished on 7ctober .-, 20--, stated the "ollowing' (*he media in Macedonia are the largest donors to political parties' *hat "act alone represents a big scandal, b t here it is received in a s rprisingl! serene wa!' *he "inancial reports o" the $tate % dit 7""ice regarding the campaigns o" EMI7 - #PMN8, $#$M, #U) and #P% in three elections -2 parliamentar!, presidential and local 2 , have shown little, b t "o nd m ch' Political parties are well versed and presented p re electoral records be"ore the a ditors' Nevertheless, this is onl! the small visible part o" the great iceberg' *he dirt! game is nder the water', - stated "Utrinski Vesnik,, a dail! newspaper in its anal!sis p blished on 7ctober .-, 20--' - *he newspaper concl ded6 (%t "irst glance, it is incomprehensible wh! the media is giving "inancial donations to parties' Fh! are there s ch ama+ing disco ntsK, Fwhat is the gain and what is the reg larit! o" bon ses in e1cess o" >L percentK *hese, are all B estions which logicall! present themselves' )t has been an open secret that the owners o" the largest and most commercial televisions have narrow political part! interests and important b siness motives' Fhat the! give as a donation is ret rned m ltipl! e times as interest in the gGovernment, or millions o" e ros in gGovernment campaigns, which has become the largest advertiser in the co ntr!' *his corr pts 9o rnalism, b! creating an irreg lar media market', - concl des the paper in its anal!sis' onclusions without reactionON L#SIONS !IT"O#T REA TION $till, do s ch B estions in the media make an! di""erenceK *he answer is no, beca se the same newspaper also wrote abo t corr ption in the media d ring the elections held in 200>, citing the reports o" the state a ditor who "o nd the irreg larities, b t there were no sanctions' Utrinski Vesnik in its $eptember -H, 200> iss e wrote the "ollowing' (- )t is an alarming discover! made b! the $tate % ditor that the largest donors to the parties are electronic and printed media' *he s preme instit tion disclosed in"ormation that "or advertisements d ring onl! one election ,Oanal H, *E gave EMI7- #PMN8 a "antastic >L percent disco ntN *his bon s translated in monetar!! amo nts to -'A million e ros' Fhat were the were contrib tions made to the part! "or election advertising b! the higher- rating stations s ch as ,%-, and ,$itel,, one can onl! ass me, beca se the! did not s bmit doc ments to the a ditor' *his avoidance onl! increases s spicion that the area o" donations and the absence o" a solid legal "ramework represent a large mine"ield, which is read! to e1plode i" someone threads pon it' Moreover, it is "ertile gro nd "or ab se, manip lation and corr ption in the media'3 - wrote ,Utrinski Eesnik, in its $eptember -H, 200> iss e' Eeli9a Iamkovski, owner o" the largest, now dead de" nct ,%-, *E, stated at that time "orin "Utrinski Vesnik,6 (- ,* rn things aro nd, and tell me o" abo t an! media which received mone! "rom an! part!' ) wo ld p t things in reverse' 7verall, let the state a dit check which media received mone! "rom the political parties' $ rvive is

what we can do with the mone! collected "rom the parties' $peci"icall!, %- collected some change "rom EMI7 - #PMN8, b t "rom $#$M -2 nothing', *o the B estion, whether as to whether mone! is then compensated a"ter the! have written o"" their receivables, the mone! is then compensated otherwise, or i" the partic lar part! in power instead agrees that in the place o" charging "or their services, the television will get government campaigns, Iamkovski said he made no s ch deal, b t admitted to be ,"orced to write o"" the claims towards political parties', Iamkovski also made the "ollowing comment' ,Fith regards to the government&s campaigns, we have received pa!ment that was timel! and in " ll' 5 t "rom the elections, we have charged nothingG, basicall! ever!thing is red ced to write-o""s' ) wo ld like to see *E stations and newspapers tr! to collect their claims "rom the parties even with the disco nts that are provided b! the mMedia', - was statement b! Iamkovski' MEDIA O,!E,SMedia we%s $everal months a"ter this statement, the government closed %-, and the owner and several o" his associates "rom the *E station and "rom other companies that were in his possession were sentenced to prison terms in a process called ,$pider Feb3' $aso 7rdanovski, President o" the NG7 *ransparenc! )nternational 2 Macedonia made the "ollowing statement' (- *he comple1it! o" the ownership str ct re o" some o" the mainstream media and political parties in the co ntr!, "ollowed b! b siness and political constellations, contrib te to s bstantial distortions o" democratic and media practices o" good behavior and pro"essional attit de in in"orming the p blic' 7wners o" man! media are directl! dependent on " nding, especiall! b! "rom the government, which is contrar! to all " ndamental principles o" press "reedom and "air competition in the media market' *he e1ample o" giving disco nts contrib tes to avoiding pa!ing ta1es and even la ndering mone! d ring elections' ,*ransparenc! -2 Macedonia, has long warned that s ch corr ption in the media is ver! dangero s to the health o" o r entire democratic s!stem and the logic o" partisan media relations',, stated $aso 7rdanovski, President o" the ,*ransparenc! )nternational Macedonia, NG7' #espite the "indings o" the $tate % ditor and the %nti-@orr ption @ommission, the Prosec tor&s 7""ice was not involved in these cases and no proced re was opened to determine whether there is corr ption' % dit reports show that no r les "or donation donors e1ist, that the in"ormation space is being corr pted, and that some broadcasters and political parties hide data' *he a thorities act selectivel! with regards to the adthe placement o" advertising, sometimes completel! absent, sometimes cldosed and or ="or media close to the gGovernment?, ab ndant' )n democratic co ntries, it is incomprehensible that the media sho ld donate to political parties' *hat is beca se it&s a wa! o" b !ing part! a""iliation and political parties become involved in the media -2 these are some o" the concl sions that have been bro ght "orth d ring the p blic debate on these iss es'

#+evdet <a9redini, a "ormer 0inance Minister, located highlighted another cr cial iss e6 the largest media in Macedonia are part o" corporations that have other b sinesses, and there"ore, the media is 9 st a tool to strengthen the otherthese o"ten B ite pro"itable b sinesses that are B ite pro"itable"irms' %part "rom the b sinesses with companies close to the *E station, the case with the 9o rnalists "rom ,$itel, showed that the! also registered private companies at the address o" the station' $o "ar, no other details are have been made p blic regarding b siness dealings that the 9o rnalists had with state and government instit tions' #+evdet <a9redini commented that (- t*he media are owned b! b sinessmen and the media are not their core b sinesses' <ence, a *E station or newspapers are assets that a b sinessmen pa! "or to "avor the other b sinesses' 7therwise, the! wo ld be at a loss - sa!s #+evdet <a9redini'loss'3 *here"ore, it is not s rprising that television stations give h ge disco nts "or advertising o" political parties d ring election campaigns' <a9redini also said that (-*the media are a good tool to attack or praise the government, or even to blackmail' *he gGovernment promotes "ree campaigns, the parties are given bon ses, b t in t rn the! receive m ch more, "rom eased proced res "or renewing their work permits even going as "ar as ta1 releases' Perhaps this is not visible to the p blic, b t that chain works well' )t is the s!stem o" corr ption' %s a res lt o" these relationships, b dget reven es are red ced, and this is, act all!, the ta1pa!ersJ mone!'3 - <a9redini sa!s' 7#nN8 PRO$ESSIONAL professional standardsSTANDARDS *here are man! e1amples where the tenders in made b! governmental and p blic instit tions are awarded to companies that are part o" the b siness o" a media owner' *here are man! e1amples where 9o rnalists were biased at the time o" deciding on tenders, and thro gh the media attacked competing companies participating in the bidding, or the persons who decided, i" the! selected "irms that did not have a common interest with the media' )n past recent !ears, we have seen "reB ent e1amples o" a compan!, which was ,disB ali"ied, in this wa! "rom participating in a p blic tender, being "orced to lease advertising space in newspapers to be able to th s e1plain their point o" view, beca se the *E stations acc sing them were not allowed to p blish a retraction' 5eca se o" this sit ation, Macedonia in recent !ears increasingl! "alls declines on the ,0reedom <o se&s ", organi+ation&s 0reedom o" the media scale, and the same happens with the scores received "rom (%mnest! )nternational3, (Ieporters Fitho t 5orders3 and other international organi+ations' (*he " nding and political in"l ence still remains the greatest problem in Macedonia, beca se man! local radio stations and maga+ines were closed d e to lack o" "inance' 7wnership o" the leading printed media is highl! concentrated,,, is 9 st one o" the ratings comments madegiven b! (0reedom <o se3 in its report'

*he 8 ropean @ommission also concl ded in a report devoted to Macedonia6 (- 7ne o" the ob9ections o" the 7$@8 Q 7#)<I is that the media e1tensivel! cover the campaign, b t several broadcasters, incl ding the p blic broadcasting service did not provide balanced coverage o" the campaign'3, as the 8 ropean @ommission also concl ded in a report devoted to Macedonia' @orr ption in media, the ownership str ct re and advertising b! the gGovernment in media that s pport it are ke! observations that r n thro gh all the reports o" the 8 ropean @ommission "or Macedonia, as well as the reports o" the U'$' $tate #epartment' 7ne o" the problems that research 9o rnalists and non-governmental organi+ations "ace is the r ling o" the %dministrative @o rt, which decided that (political parties are no longer in"ormation holders, and there"ore have no obligation to disclose in"ormation abo t their "inances to the p blic and the media', )n this wa!, the parties now have no obligation to respond to allegations abo t the donations the! have received "rom the media' *he most characteristic e1ample is the r ling EMI7 #PMN8, which showed contrib tions b! the media in 20-- that all are made on the same date, one da! a"ter the elections' *heir "inancial reports becaome p blic onl! a"ter being s bmitted to the $tate % ditor and the %nti-@orr ption @ommission, b t the parties now have no obligation to respond to allegations arising "rom the inconsistencies in those reports' *he donations given b! the media =among them man! local radio and *E stations? are were p t nder scr tin! a"ter several p blic con"essions o" members o" the r ling EMI7 #PMN8 that the! had never donated an! mone! to the part! campaign o" the part!, altho gh even tho gh their names are had been placed on the donors& list with s ms o" p to -,000 e ros' *he media revealed man! cases o" st dents, nemplo!ed, or "armers who are had been placed on the list o" donors to political parties, who co ld nevertheless not answer sa! when the! had donated to the part!, on what date or "rom where the! had got the mone!' ,0rom the entire proced re, it is eas! to concl de that =non? transparenc! o" " nding o" political parties remains nder the a spices o" the state instit tions and that the right to "ree access to in"ormation with regards to the "inancing o" political parties remains limited,, - concl des the *ransparenc! 2 Macedonia NG7 20-. report' 0ollowing the r ling o" the $ preme %dministrative @o rt o" the Iep blic o" Macedonia to restrict the right o" "ree access to in"ormation on the "inancing o" political parties, beca se the! are not ,in"ormation holders,, *ransparenc! 2 Macedonia NG7 asks ,how long will the "inancing o" political parties be a /,protected bear C=speciesD?&, in Macedonia K, Macedonia, a"ter%"ter reg lating the "inancing o" political parties, Macedonia is among the "ive top-ranked states in 8 rope' 5 t according to Predrag *rpeski, Pro"essor at the $kop9e 0ac lt! o" 8conomics, despite good legislat re, d e to the partisan character o" instit tions responsible "or controlling the " nding, and the "act that their composition o"ten changes s b9ect to part! directives, in Macedonia there

are still elements o" corr ption in the " nding o" political parties' - sa!s Predrag *rpeski, Pro"essor at the $kop9e 0ac lt! o" 8conomics' # ring the past three !ears ,*ransparenc! 2 Macedonia, cond cted monitoring over the "inancing o" political parties b! their donors, b t d e to a @o rt co rt decision, and previo sl! one made b! the @ommission "or the Protection o" the Iight to 0ree %ccess to p blic )n"ormation @ommission "or "ree access to p blic in"ormation, do+ens o" B estions remained nanswered, when 9o rnalists and NG7s inB ired on as to how m ch mone! had been donated b! the media to political parties, and in t rn how m ch mone! the parties "orming the government gave "or advertising in the same media that s pported them d ring the elections'

P#,LI SE RET Pu%lic secrec& *he B estions that were s b9ect to reB ests "or "ree access to p blic in"ormation, were related to the " nding o" political parties in the parliamentar! elections o" 20--, in a period when political parties were still holders o" in"ormation according to the @ommission "or the Protection o" the Iight to 0ree %ccess to Pp blic )n"ormation' *he <igher %dministrative @o rt o" the Iep blic has assessed that the media =and thro gh them, the p blic? can have gain an insight into the donations the political parties receive, b! wa! o" the report the parties need to s bmit to state instit tions and later p blish p blish on their web siteonline' 7" co rse, the! have no obligation "or answeringto answer B estions arising "rom the content o" the reports' *he media and political parties in Macedonia are "aced with a new challenge, 6 new elections which sho ld to be held in late March 20-:' %t these elections, the media can onl! donate H0,000 tho sand e ros "or the parties, which is ten times less than what washad been presented as a donation in the past' *he media that s pport the gGovernment contin e to air do+ens o" commercials commissioned b! the gGovernment on a dail! basis and are paid "rom the state b dget' *here are s ch instances where those appear to be ordered b! EMI7 #PMN8, p blici+ing the s ccesses o" the gGovernment in the videos, at a time when, according to the electoral law political advertising is not allowed' *he media is also awash with campaigns commissioned b! the r ling EMI7 #PMN8, targeting leaders o" the opposition bloc, nder the slogan ,these people can not be tr sted,' *he media comm nit! in Macedonia shows ma1im m polari+ation, division and dail! attacks between one gro p o" 9o rnalists and the other gro p o" 9o rnalists' *here are two associations o" 9o rnalists' *he new %ssociation o" Jo rnalists onl! comprises onl! o" 9o rnalists who s pport the government'

%llegations o" corr ption in the media, with the p blication o" p blic proc rement doc ments hiring a compan! established b! 9o rnalist )vona *alevska, and along with several companies she owns 9ointl! with her colleag es, registered at the same address with $itel *E, were not p blished b! the media that s pport the government' !ill the (ournalists %ecome (ournalists1 ILL T"E 0O#RNALISTS ,E OME 0O#RNALISTS1 %s a co nter- strike to allegations "rom the opposition "or b sinesses involving 9o rnalists close to the gGovernment, news portals which s pport the gGovernment bro ght "orward data on companies registered b! 9o rnalists critical o" the government, b t "ail to prove an! illegalit! or participation o" those companies in divisions o" p blicQg Government " nds' Macedonia is a rare e1ample "or !et another phenomenon6 in"ormation p blished b! a news portal regarding some 9o rnalists or opposition politicians, are which is then transmitted in " ll b! all media that s pport gGovernment polic!' *his approach resembles a media l!nching' *his proced re contin es even a"ter being rep diated b! all the persons concerned persons' *heir re9ections are not retracted or commented, as opposedwhich goes against to the Jo rnalists& @ode o" 8thics' Government o""icials re" se to make statements to criticall! minded media, and threaten them with laws its "or libel and slander' *here are have been cases where the media are s ed and convicted "or rela!ed statements b! p blic o""icials ' *he media comm nit! in Macedonia has never been so disbanded, where the norms and standards o" the pro"ession are not respected and where 9o rnalists, rather than their ,g ard dog, role in democratic societies, take on a new role o" con"rontation with their colleag es and opponents' *he! are labeled b! critics as ,traitors, mercenaries , spies, homose1 als,, and the latest trend o" is to e1poseing all the private propert! o" the 9o rnalists, witho t establishing the legalit! o" s ch actions ' *he problem o" media ownership, the application o" pro"essional norms and standards , political dependence and censorship, have le"t deep traces in the Macedonian media space' Fill introd cing the new reg lations, the media laws, or establishing the an agenc! "or media that will have m ch broader powers o" control over the media and pcoming elections with new r les change an!thingK %n! "orecast wo ld be premat re, b t the "irst test "or the media will be in March d ring the election campaign and reporting' Fill the 9o rnalists manage to rise p to the task, what and give what the p blic e1pects and reB ires o" them6, "ree and independent 9o rnalism, and acc rate and timel! in"ormation, with respect to the pro"essional principles and standardsK )n this environment, where 9o rnalists "ight "oreign battles and per"orm someone else&s agenda, the! can hardl! "ight "or their own position within the s!stem'

This article has been produced with the financial assistance of the project South East European Media Observatory, supported by the European Union. The contents of this article are the sole responsibility of Sase Dimovs i and can in no way be ta en to reflect the views of the European Union.