01. 12. 2005

PRIVATISATION IN KRALJEVO

KRALJEVO, December 1, 2005 – The upcoming privatisation of local state-owned media has caused additional discomfort for the employees of the public company “Ibarske novosti”, since nobody knows for certain how to carry it out. The situation in this local media company is further deteriorated with the silent war that goes on for months among the certain groups that have been paving the way for their attempts to get hold of a national good. Interpreting the unclear provisions of the Act and adjusting them to the personal needs, certain individuals called the meeting of the members of the Managing Board and the Union with the director of the company, saying that the newspapers should be separated from the company within ten days and practically “let down the drain”, and then to proceed with the privatisation of the electronic media. The representatives of the Nezavisnost Union opposed this plan, insisting on the privatisation of the entire company as one entity. In search of the most adequate solution, members of the Union demanded the meeting with the representatives of the local government regarding the issue. Public company Ibarske Novosti, with three media operating under one roof, is one of the oldest informative companies in Serbia. On November 29, Ibarske Novosti celebrated its 58 anniversary. During almost sixty years of work, this media company has contributed greatly to providing information to citizens on all social issues and democratic development of Kraljevo municipality and Serbia in general. However, during the last 15 years, Ibarske Novosti was challenged with an unstable financial and overall situation, due to various political games and frequent changes in management and managing board. Beside that, in the moment when many problems have not yet been solved, such as the matter of business facilities, inadequate organisation of work, low salaries and arrears, the company also faces the privatisation and the possibility to be sold under the price to powerful politicians and tycoons. At the meeting held on November 17, the Nezavisnost Union of Ibarske Novosti made several demands regarding the urgent composition and signing of collective agreements to protect the staff and their conduct in the upcoming process of privatisation. They also demanded the absolute uphold of the legal procedures of the privatisation, in order to carry out the process in the best possible way and in the interest of the founders, citizens and workers of the company. The union in fact believes that the company Ibarske Novosti has a predisposition to be one of the rock-steady companies in this part of Serbia.