At the sitting held on 28 August, the Industry Committee members considered the request of the Confectionery Factory Ravanica from Cuprija for a resolution of their status problems in the process of privatisation.

The sitting was attended by the representatives of factory workers’ strike committee, Vladislav Cvetkovic, acting director of the Privatisation Agency and associates, representative of the Confectioners Association and representative of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce.

The sixteenth sitting of the Industry Committee was convened in order to discuss the request of the Ravanica Cuprija factory workers’ strike committee which briefed the Industry Committee members on the irregularities in the manner of the attempted privatisation of the public enterprise, underway since 2001. They listed a number of objections to the Agency’s work, the appointment of members of the factory’s Board of Directors who, according to them, are in conflict of interest, and stressed that they stand firm by their demands. The strike committee demands that the decision on the appointment of the factory’s Board of Directors be revoked and requests that the legitimately elected factory director-general be reinstated. They also stressed that the workers do not oppose the privatisation, and that they demand a realistic estimate of the factory’s assets in the process.

On the other hand, the representatives of the Privatisation Agency claimed that the workers obstructed the privatisation process and that the Agency had not acted contrary to the law. They stated that the legitimately elected Government representatives on the Board of Directors and the director had been denied access to the factory, as well as that the state has no insight in the business dealings of this enterprise with 100% state-owned capital. They said that the deadline for the privatisation of all enterprises with state-owned capital had expired on 31 December 2008 and, considering that the Agency had not implemented a privatisation process, the enterprise legally became a candidate for liquidation. The lack of cooperation notwithstanding, the Agency is still interested to implement a privatisation process in the enterprise.

In a long discussion on the strikers’ demands on one side and the Privatisation Agency’s position on the other, the Privatisation Committee members stated that the factory should continue its production process and that the successful enterprise should be enabled to continue functioning. They spoke against the liquidation process and in favour of a successful privatisation of the factory. Considering that there had been no further improvement in the relations between the representatives of the workers and the Privatisation Agency, the Committee members agreed to hold a joint sitting with the Privatisation Committee members next week, to which they shall again invite the representatives of the strikers, Agency, relevant ministry, Confectioners Association and Serbian Chamber of Commerce, with the goal of reaching an agreement and continuing the production process at the factory.

The sitting was chaired by Milorad Buha, Industry Committee Chairman.