International Conference on the “National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia and Independent State Bodies” was held on 26 and 27 November at the National Assembly House. Opening the Conference, the National Assembly Secretary Veljko Odalovic said that the topic of the conference is part of the project titled “Strengthening the Accountability of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia”, realised by the National Assembly with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Odalovic reminded that as the supreme representative and legislative body in the Republic of Serbia, the National Assembly plays an important control (oversight) role over the executive government. Independent state bodies and regulatory bodies elected by the National Assembly play a key role in achieving control.

The two-day conference covered the following topics: parliamentary control over executive government and the importance of state bodies for its successful implementation, relationship between the parliament and independent state bodies and relationship between the government and independent bodies – allocation of resources, modalities of communication.

Greeting the participants, comprising, among others, Norwegian and Canadian parliamentarians, the National Assembly Speaker, Prof. Dr Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic said that this was the opportunity to discuss various models of cooperation and institutional relations between the Parliament and independent bodies, and then propose that the National Assembly adopt and apply in practice the solutions most appropriate for Serbia’s constitutional and legal order. Respecting public interest and the responsibility of civil servants in managing public property, are principles important for the functioning of democracy and the National Assembly shall, within its jurisdiction, request responsibility of the state organs that do not act accordingly and do not follow the recommendations of independent bodies, Assembly Speaker Djukic-Dejanovic stressed.

In cooperation with independent bodies, the National Assembly should provide the Government with guidelines aimed at increasing efficiency and improvement of the quality of services it provides for the citizens, and also provide it with institutional support in the struggle against corruption, the National Assembly Speaker pointed out.

In his opening address, Ombudsman Sasa Jankovic pointed out that independent regulatory bodies in Serbia face various difficulties and challenges in fulfilling their basic role, viz. improving the lives of the citizens. In so doing, the independent bodies rely on the National Assembly for assistance in their work and overcoming these difficulties.

Rodoljub Sabic, Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection, said that independent bodies in Serbia lack the Parliament’s support, which should pay more attention to these bodies’ reports. “It is unacceptable that an independent body point out a problem for years, and no one reacts”, Sabic stressed.

Dorit Nitzan, Acting Permanent UN Representative in Serbia, stated that the government and independent bodies must act responsibly, and their work and financing should be transparent. They must respect human rights and the right to privacy, and independent regulatory bodies should be enabled an unbiased and objective assessment, Dorit Nitzan pointed out.

During the two-day proceedings, the participants discussed the experiences form the work of independent bodies in Canada, Norway, Slovenia, the United Kingdom and Serbia. They strived to recognise the best examples of cooperation practice between the parliament and independent bodies and recommend how to adapt the practice to Serbia’s constitutional framework. The deputies, chairmen and members of assembly working bodies stated it was necessary to establish a two-way communication between the National Assembly and independent bodies so as to gain better insight into the problems in certain areas. It was particularly emphasised that the new National Assembly Rules of Procedure should introduce the obligation and specify the manner of discussing reports submitted by independent bodies.

After the end of the proceedings, the participants in the Conference adopted the Conclusions presented by Dr Dejan Milenkovic from the Faculty of Political Sciences in Belgrade.

The following took part in the Conference: National Assembly Deputy Speaker Gordana Comic, Director of the Anti-Corruption Agency Zorana Markovic, State Secretary at the Ministry of Finance Slobodan Ilic, representative of the State Audit Institution Zoran Tamas, National Assembly Assistant Secretary Mirjana Radakovic, representative of the Committee on Public Accounts of the Canadian Parliament’s House of Commons John Williams and Director of Operations of the Canadian Parliamentary Centre Sonja Vojnovic, Norwegian Auditor General Jorgen Kosmo and political advisor at the Norwegian Parliament Marien Sep, representative of the United Kingdom State Audit Institution Bill Barnet, Slovenian Commissioner for Information of Public Importance Natasa Pirc Musar, head of the Slovenian Corruption Prevention Commission Drago Kos, Slovenian Deputy Ombudsman Jernej Rovsek, representative of the Slovenian Ministry of Justice Peter Pavlin, as well as representatives of international and non-government organisations.