Gong’s two-day educational training – Anticorruption module for interested citizens was premiered in Zagreb on the 12th and 13th November for 16 participants from all over Croatia.
The goals of educational module were that the participants gain knowledge on causes and consequences of corruption as an everyday practice in peoples’ lives. We wanted them to know how to recognize the position of national and European institutions in the fight against corruption, to recognise the right of access to information as a tool available to all the citizens in the fight against corruption, and to gain insight in the role of civil society in strengthening the fight against corruption.
The extent of the corruption represents the reflection of the behaviour patterns that are widespread in the Croatian society, the scope of individual responsibility in fighting corruption, and to what extent the corruption represents an important legal and political phenomenon which, in its scope, needs collective, institutionalised solutions - we responded to those questions through a series of lectures and presentations by prominent experts from the academic community: professor Zdravko Petak from Faculty of Political Science of Zagreb University, associate professor Sunčana Roksandić and associate professor Dario Čepo from Faculty of Law of the University of Zagreb.
The anti-corruption module focused on the role of the media and civil society. They can be powerful allies for citizens in the fight against corruption for a more just and solidary society. Award-winning investigative journalist Đurđica Klancir addressed the topic of media coverage of corruption and corruption in the media. The expert for Gong’s digital platforms and the public sector data opening Melisa Skender explained how the right to access the information can be a tool in the fight against corruption, while the Gong executive director and anti-corruption expert Oriana Ivković Novokmet and the head of the educational programme Dražen Hoffmann talked about the watchdog role of the civil society.
The educational module lasted for 15 hours over two days. 16 interested citizens actively participated in the sessions, with the mentorship of the head of the educational programme Dražen Hoffmann and expert associate on Gong’s educational programmes Damira Brunac.
Gong’s educational programme for civic literacy was developed in 2012 with the financial support of the National Foundation for Civil Society Development through Knowledge centres for social development and is continuously implemented since then. The programme is revised and updated every year, and this year this new, anti-corruption module was designed. The creation of the programme and its implementation in 2021 were made possible with the financial support of the European Union – Europe for Citizens.
