26.12.2018. – Regional Platform for advocating media freedom and safety of journalists in the Western Balkans has the honor of presenting outputs of Small Grants Programme, which took place during years 2017 and 2018 within the bigger project “Protecting Media Freedom and Freedom of Expression in the Western Balkans”. One of the funded projects was “From Understanding to Protection – project for understanding and protection of freedom of expression and media freedoms in the Republic of Macedonia”.
The project was implemented by CIVIL – Center for Freedom and No to Censorship – Informal group of Journalists and Correspondents, Activists and Citizen Journalists Republic of Macedonia.
The aim was to collect and publicize information on the situation on the ground, throughout the whole country, and contribute to the understanding of the relevant topics. The project generated analysis and recommendations on specific actions and measures to protect freedom of expression and media freedoms. The project included over 150 participants from 10 locations across the country, divided in five categories who served as a source of information on perceptions and on the situation in the areas of freedom of expression and media freedoms. The project generated over 150 pieces of media contents, which were publicized on CIVIL’s media outlets and social profiles.
CIVIL – Center for Freedom is a non-profit and non-governmental national association of citizens, active in the field of human rights, peace and arms control, established on November 25, 1999. Informally, the organization is active since 1996. Election observation is conducted since 2008, introducing new, highly effective methodologies of monitoring and civic education on voting rights. In quest of its vision, the mission of CIVIL is to: actively promote and defend human rights and freedoms; sustainable peace and reconciliation processes; create plans for effective arms control; social justice, rule of law, and freedom of speech.
No to Censorship is an informal group of journalists and correspondents, activists and citizen journalists in Macedonia.
Watch the interview with journalist Monika Taleska HERE.
Watch the interview with a journalism student Martin Nikolovski HERE.
Watch the interview with Executive Director of the Association of Journalists of Macedonia Dragan Sekulovski HERE.
About Small Grants Programme
During 2017. and 2018. 15 projects were funded through the Small Grants Programme in two LOTs (4 regional and 11 national projects) in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo* and Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
The Small Grants Programme supported locally and regionally rooted civil society initiatives, engaging human rights activists, journalists and media, aiming to protect the freedom of expression and freedom of media.
The small grants programme was funded by IPA /EU with co-financing from the Croatian Government Office for NGOs and matching funds from grantees; it is part of a regional project Western Balkan’s Regional Platform for Advocating Media Freedom and Journalists’ Safety implemented through partnership of five regional journalists’ associations and one journalists’ union– Independent Journalists Association of Serbia (IJAS), Association of BH Journalists (BHJ), Croatian Journalists Association (CJA), Association of Journalists of Kosovo (AJK), Association of Journalists of Macedonia (AJM) and the Trade Union of Media of Montenegro (TUMM).
Croatian Journalists’ Association and its regional partner journalists’ associations thank all subgrantees and other participants for their interest and effort in engaging in the Small Grants Programme and for their cooperation throughout the whole application and project implementation process.
