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Local Level Youth Participation

December 2019

Training for Young Politicians (275kb) >>>

 

The Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia (HCHR), in cooperation with the Czech organization “Agora“, and with the support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, implemented the project "Developing and Promoting Youth Participation at Local Level in Serbia". Through simulation of the local assemblies’ sessions in nine municipalities in Serbia, the high school students got acquainted with the processes of arguments and fact-based discussions and had an opportunity to express their concerns about the problems in their local surroundings.

All sessions were kicked-off with the presentations of the structure, work, and responsibilities of the given local assembly, ideally by representatives of the local administration themselves. After that, under the guidance of the trainer, students dived into the game, which consisted of three parts: intraparty discussion, assembly session, and voting. In the first part, participants worked within their parties with the aim to develop the argumentation on how to resolve the problem of pollution. Second part of the simulation included the debate between political parties on their respective proposals. The final, third part was voting on the tabled proposals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Municipal Politics Simulation Game

During October, three simulations were held. The first two simulation games were conducted in the town of Novi Pazar and in the municipality of Sjenica. Novi Pazar is one of the towns with the youngest population in Europe: its citizens are 33 years old, on average. Sjenica is among the small number of municipalities with positive population growth in Serbia as well. Both towns are located in the Sandzak area (Novi Pazar is a part of Raska region and Sjenica of a Zlatibor region). Third simulation was held in the town of Bor.

 

 

Novi Pazar

The simulation in the Novi Pazar Gymnasium was organized on 28 October 2019, with the participation of 29 students who attend civic education classes in 2nd, 3rd and 4th grade.

The representatives of the Town Assembly, Mr. Esad Mahmutovic and Mr. Ahmedin Binjos opened the simulation game with detailed presentation on the purpose, work and the most important local issues that have been discussed in the Novi Pazar Assembly during 2019. This was an interactive discussion, especially focused on the importance and the tools at disposal for an active civic engagement in local issues. After this part, students were divided in five groups, following the lines of the real power division in the local assembly. The groups included the Social Democratic Party, the Party of Democratic action, the Party of Justice and Reconciliation, the Serbian National Party, and the Serbian Progressive Party.

The students choose to discuss the topic of lack of parking lots in Novi Pazar. This infrastructure problem was met with interest from all sides in the simulation, and their motivation to focus on citizens’ welfare was so evident. The winning proposal suggested to build the big parking lot on several levels that will be central and accessible for all citizens.

Students’ impressions were predominantly positive. They found the simulation game interesting, and an innovative learning tool on resolving problems in the society. They also emphasized that the team work was always a positive way to discuss problems and jointly seek resolutions, which motivated participants to be more creative in thinking new ideas on how to change their town on better. This was the first time for all of them to participate in this kind of workshop, as well as in a non-formal education program generally. The discussion with the opponent political parties and presenting ideas were aspects that were emphasized as the most important and challenging in their work. They felt good and comfortable in the role of local representatives, and satisfied to see how their perspective on the work of the local assembly was different than before the simulation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sjenica

The simulation game in Sjenica was organized on 29 November 2019, in the Technical-Agricultural High School, with 21 students who attend the civic education classes from all four grades. The simulation game was opened by the Secretary of the Sjenica Municipality, Ms. Nermina Karisik, who presented the main responsibilities of this institution, the process of making decisions in the local municipality, and the civic participation in decision making processes. After the introductory part, students were divided in five groups, mirroring the real power division in the local assembly: the Social Democratic Party, the Party of Democratic Action, the Party of Justice and Reconciliation, the Serbian Progressive Party, and the Socialist Party of Serbia.

Students chose the problem of illegal waste dumps across the municipality as a topic for the simulation debate. The interaction during the simulation and the discussion that had followed was interesting; it clearly reflected the real parliamentary behaviour and the importance of strong arguments when discussing important issues. It was obvious that students were aware of the need to find joint solution - the one that best suits to all or majority of citizens - instead of just blindly following the interest of respective parties. The solution that won majority of votes was the one suggesting to build recycling centers at the margins of the municipality area, with the financial contribution of the municipality.

What students liked the most was the knowledge they gained on the functioning of their local assembly, its work, debates between political opponents, and atmosphere generally. Some of them emphasized that they needed the final debate between parties; one student expressed the feeling of being on his own in some arguments and actions, and unable to cooperate with his counterparts in the “party”. Almost 90% of participants said that they have learnt new things about local municipality; for 79,9 % this was new and nice experience.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bor

The simulation of the assembly session has been conducted on 4 November 2019, in the Gymnasium “Bora Stankovic” in Bor. This town is well-known for its mining industry; hence the main topic of the simulation was the air, water and soil pollution.

Despite being timely invited, the representatives of the local municipality did not show up on the simulation in order to present the work of the local institutions. One of the reasons may be “practice of ignorance” of civil society organizations by local governments and their mistrust in their work. Thus, the simulation was opened by the trainer Tamara Miljus who covered this part successfully. She informed students about main principals of work of the local municipality and the assembly, who are citizens’ representatives, what are their main duties, how they make decisions, and most important, how can citizens be involved in the decision-making processes. This part of the simulation was an interactive one, with lot of students’ questions reflecting their interest in the topic. It was of huge importance for the next session in which the participants had simulated the assembly session on the question how to restrict further pollution of the town and its surroundings.

13 students in the 2nd and 4th grade were divided in three groups, following the real political divisions in the local parliament: Serbian Progressive Party, Socialist Party of Serbia, Democratic Party.

It was evidently that the youngsters were enjoying the team work and building arguments. They liked writing proposals and inquires, as well as the internal debate on the best pro- and con- arguments; they also liked making compromise, communicating with others, lobbying for their own ideas, learning new terms and using them in the debate, presenting a proposal to representatives and the atmosphere of real assembly debate. What they did not like was the autocracy behaviour of one leader of the party, and the lack of time for internal debate. Weak sides of this experience for them was making of defence arguments, refraining from sudden reaction on someone’s bad argument, listening to opponents, but the discussion flow in the debate part as well. Some students did not feel ideologically belonging to the party they were part of in the simulation, which they found quite uncomfortable; however, they understood that this was a unique opportunity to practice argumentation in “the others shoes”, the shoes of the opponent. The debate was very interactive, fruitful and full of replicas and questions, with all students actively participating.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

During November, three simulation games were held in two Gymnasiums in Belgrade and one in Paraćin in Central Serbia. Both Belgrade Gymnasiums have discussed the issue of the traffic jam in Belgrade. Participants were divided in three biggest parties that are present in the Belgrade City Assembly: Serbian Progressive Party, Serbian Patriotic Union, and Socialist Party of Serbia. Representatives of City Assembly were unable to come and participate in the introductory part due to the previously taken obligations.

 

 

City of Belgrade

The simulation game in the VI Belgrade Gymnasium was organized on 27 November 2019, with 21 students in 3rd and 4th grade taking part in it. All involved students were active in the school parliament and were attending the civic education classes. Key note speakers included the Executive Director of the HCHR, Ms. Izabela Kisić and Deputy Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Serbia, Mr. Pavel Koblizka. They explained the goals of the simulation, and its importance for learning how to be an active citizen in a society. Students have also heard about the work of the HCHR in Serbia, and the opportunities the activism offers for one’s personal development. Mr. Koblizka spoke about the Czech experience with visits to the local assemblies and simulation games, which were quite common for their Czech peers. This part was interactive, with lot of questions and comments showing that students were very well informed and prepared for the session.

Students pointed to the public transportation and massive traffic jam as being the most urgent problem in their city and the Zvezdara municipality. Hence, the discussion topic for this simulation session was how to resolve this issue permanently. Being aware that lot of citizens from other Belgrade municipalities travel to and from Zvezdara on a daily basis, the proposal drafted by the participants reflected the necessity of cooperation with other municipalities and the City of Belgrade as well. After this part, students were divided in three groups. Students emphasized that they liked the process of drafting and creating the proposals, internal communication, debating, and persuading each other with their own arguments. That way, they have learnt debating rules, active listening, presenting ideas, developing argumentation, and team work. They appreciated activity of colleagues, lots of new ideas and different perspectives, as well as the feeling of being in power and able to influence something. What they did not like was the lack of time for the party work in creating draft proposals, while some had an impression that they did not have enough space to present their ideas; some other participants found it challenging to support suggestions of their own party which they did not find fitting to their idea, as well as to equally appreciate all proposals, suggestions and opinions.

At the end, the solution that won majority of votes suggested creating new lines of public transportation for the Zvezdara municipality, thus making it better connected with the rest of the city. This part of the game was very interesting for students, and they expressed satisfaction with being part of it. The difficult part for some of them was the public speaking, creating and defending arguments, lack of time for answering or justifying proposals.

Additional comments of students were mostly focused on the question on why the game had to reflect the real political division in the local assembly. One member of the Serbian Progressive Party group pointed out that only being in this party gave them bad reputation and an automatic confronting attitudes of other towards them. The trainer explained them that the best way to learn is through the simulation of the real-life situations – in this case how to make decisions with the citizens’ best interest at heart. One student emphasized that this was unique and important experience for them, as they do not have so many opportunities to be part of the non-formal education activities in or outside the school.

In the IV Belgrade Gymnasium the simulation game was held on 29 November 2019, with 14 students from 3rd and 4th grade who are active in the school parliament participating. Students were interested to hear more about the civic initiative and the referendum for resolving the local problems. All students enjoyed this part of the game; they particularly liked the process of creating arguments and making compromises, as well as the cooperation between party members and intraparty debates. They too find it difficult to work in such a limited timeframe.

The debate was mostly focused on the measures that have to be taken in order to make easier traffic through Belgrade. The winning proposal suggested introducing the new, mini bus lines especially for the territory of the Savski Venac municipality. The debate was intensive, with lot of questions, arguments and counterarguments. A bit challenging for the students was defending their arguments, and voting. They felt very good in this role, but stressed out on questions and proper argumentation. More than half of them said they have gained new knowledge on the debate rules, on making decisions, on functioning of the local assembly and local municipality, and on the referendum. More than 80% evaluated the game as the very interesting experience.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paraćin

The simulation game was held in the Town Hall of the Municipality of Paraćin on November 28 2019, with 24 students in 3rd and 4th year of the Gymnasium Paraćin. The introductory part was held by the Mayor of Paraćin, Mr. Saša Paunović, who gave a lecture on the work and responsibilities of the local administration in this town, as well as on his role as a Mayor. After that, the students were divided into three parties: the Coalition around Democratic party “Strongly ahead”, the Group of citizens “All for Paraćin-Tomislav Šaletić“, and Serbian progressive party.

This session dealt with the problem of stray dogs in Paraćin, a decade old problem affecting the lives of all citizens. The discussion was fruitful and dynamic, with interesting suggestions on how to sustainably resolve this problem. The suggestions included accommodating all dogs in the regional asylum center in Vrnjačka Banja, vaccinating them, and placing for adoption. The solution that won the majority of voices was the one of promoting the adoption of stray dogs by citizens who want to have pets.

Students liked the making of arguments and developing joint solution within the party, as well as the group work which in their opinion have expressed the diversity of opinions and reflected the real situation in the municipality. Here too some participants did not like being in the given party, but were explained that the goal was to learn to act in the citizens’ and not the political party interest.

The most difficult for students was to lobby for the proposal of their group, to write a proposal, to develop idea and the argumentation. Some found it hard to be in the role of a public speaker, while some found it challenging to express themselves in such a short discussion time. They felt special as councillors; it was an interesting experience for them, enabling them to learn a lot of new things and skills. As the most valuable for them was the very work within the group, the development of the arguments, the insight into the work of the municipality and the local assembly, and learning about the real situation on the stray dogs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Three last simulation games were implemented in December in Petrovac na Mlavi (East Serbia, Braničevo region), Smederevo (Central Serbia, Braničevo region) and Gornji Milanovac (West Serbia, Morava region). In Petrovac na Mlavi and in Smederevo simulation games were implemented in the town halls and welcomed by officials of local governments.

 

 

Petrovac na Mlavi

The simulation game with students of the final year of Gymnasium „Mladost“ in Petrovac na Mlavi was organized on 3 December 2019, in the Town Hall. The participants were greeted by the Secretary of the Assembly of the Municipality of Petrovac na Mlavi, Ms. Milica Marković, who gave a lecture on the local assembly duties, functions, structure, and citizens’ influence. Ms. Marković stayed and participated during the whole simulation game, advising students on how to prepare good proposal or make a discussion argument. After that, the students were divided in two groups: Socialist Party of Serbia and Serbian Progressive Party. The session’s topic was about the traffic jam during the summer period in the city center. The groups proposed 1) building the whole new parking lot in the city center, and 2) toppling the building of the old hotel and building a parking lot on its place. The discussion was dynamic, and polarized between the two options, with huge focus on the budget reallocations and the importance of the old hotel building for Petrovac cultural image.

Students liked the team work, the cooperation and communication within party and between parties. Some of them did not agree with the chosen topic, as well as with the argumentation of their colleagues in the group. Students liked the participation of the Assembly Secretary Ms. Markovic, praising her communicativeness, detailed explanations, and presentation skills. What they liked most was creating and defending the arguments in support of their proposal, working in groups, voting time, and new knowledge about the local municipality and assembly. The most difficult part for some was the voting session, developing and agreeing on the joint proposal, and debating specific details with the opposite group. They felt great as councillors, although sometimes stressed out with the replicas and discussion in general.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Smederevo

The simulation in Smederevo was held on 12 December 2019, in the Town Hall, with 23 students in 3rd and 4th grade of the Smederevo Gymnasium. The Mayor of Smederevo, Ms. Jasna Avramović, welcomed students and spoke about the importance of civic activism, non-formal education programs, and the cooperation between the local governments and NGOs. Her speech was followed by the Deputy of Chairman of the City Assembly, Mr. Branče Stojanović, who gave an overview of the work, duties and an everyday dynamic of the Assembly, the purpose and type of regulations made there, and the citizens’ impact on the decision-making processes. The Secretary of the Assembly, Ms. Milica Vračar, held a short lecture on the political structure and the division of power in the current convocation, as well as the decisions which most directly influence the life of citizens. The special key note speech was given by Ms. Ivana Bursikova, Director of Agora, who pointed out the importance of the non-formal education for self-development, presented the similar simulation games in the Czech Republic, and explained the importance of active citizenship.

The students unanimously decided that they want to debate about the air-pollution, given it to be the biggest and longest pressing problem for this town.

After the introductory part, the students were divided into three groups, reflecting the real local assembly structure: Serbian Progressive party, Socialistic Party of Serbia, and Democratic Party. The division was made in order to put them in situation to really simulate discussion on this topic for the first time in Smederevo’s assembly. The debate was really intense, especially because of the urgency of the problem and its drastic impact on health of all citizens. Suggestions were focused on the mid-term mitigation of the consequences of the pollution, such as imposing taxes to highly polluting cars (diesel or petrol based), and planting new trees with special anti-pollution qualities. One proposal was to oblige the biggest polluter “Železara” to put filters on their chimneys. However, the proposal to impose the taxes won over other proposals, stating it to be the best motivation for citizens to stop buying cars which have huge part in the pollution rate.

Students liked the realness of the simulation, the methodology of work, trainer`s explanations, sharing information and knowledge, public speaking, brainstorming on various different ideas, and lobbying. They did not like having only short time for the intraparty discussion, as well as the pressure they felt to have the winning proposal.

As a positive experience, students emphasize working within the group, designing brand new ideas on how to resolve the air-pollution issue in Smederevo, and discussion on different proposals. While for some participants making questions, public speaking and presenting the joint proposal in front of others was interesting and an easy part, for others it was quite challenging. Majority of them felt nice in a councillor’s role. The most valuable benefit of this game for them was the feeling that they can change something for real. As the most important knowledge gained, students single out the debate rules, the local assembly’s work and procedures, the referendum, and a lot of new information on the air-pollution in Smederevo.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gornji Milanovac

The last simulation game was held on 13 December 2019, in the Technical school “Jovan Žujović” in Gornji Milanovac, with the participation of 24 students in the 4th grade. Unfortunately, representatives of the Municipality of Gornji Milanovac could not come, so Tamara Miljus gave a lecture on the processes, structure, responsibilities of the local assembly in this town instead. The discussion was interesting, and full of student’s questions and requests for clarifications.

After being divided in two groups, the Serbian Progressive Party and the Socialist Party of Serbia, the students simulated the local assembly session on the issues of the stray dogs. Two solutions were provided: 1) to build a big asylum center on the territory of the municipality, and 2) vaccinating and sterilizing stray dogs.

Majority of students liked the voting session, lobbying, creating and making arguments, and the feeling of mutual respect. However, for some of them these were the most challenging parts. They expressed feeling good and important, and assessed the simulation game as very good. 60% of them said that they have acquired new knowledge and skills, especially on lobbying, on the work of the assembly, and on the citizens’ direct influence in the decision-making processes. For 55% of them this was an interesting experience, which they enjoyed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EDUCATIONAL OUTREACHES

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