Microsoft Macedonia and Public Sector Microsoft CEEIt in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Science of Republic of Macedonia is organizing a Regional Microsoft Education Conference that will be held on December 4th, 2013 at the Aleksandar palace Hotel.
This is an opportunity to learn how to use technology to help improve education and learning, create opportunity, and raise living standards for people in the country.
 
Please join us for an event showcasing solutions and best practices that bring learning to life in and out of the classroom allowing education leaders to reimagine how technology can modernize learning and improve outcomes.The event organizers believe ...

On 24th and 25th October 2013 in Skopje, the Chamber of Information and Communication Technology - MASIT in cooperation with the Ministry of Information Society and Administration of the Republic of Macedonia, Embassy of France in Macedonia, Agency of international Technical cooperation of the French ministries - ADETEF and the French agency for the promotion of export – UBIFRANCE organized the “E - Government and Open Days SEEITA” conference.The conference provided opportunities for various stakeholders to share their insights about the current status of development of e-government systems in Macedonia and the plans for the future. In addition, the conference also provided an overview...

According to the Front for Freedom of Expression, the 4.5-year prison sentence for journalist Tomislav Kezarovski is yet another heavy blow to the freedom of expression and the freedom of media in the Republic of Macedonia.The verdict against Kezarovski is actually a threat to all journalists reporting about the work of the police, the judiciary, and all the other state institutions, so they would be more careful in terms of what they are reporting about, and how they are doing it, because they also may be convicted and get a severe penalty, regardless of whether they were reporting the truth or protecting the citizens’ interests.The Front for freedom of expression requires the higher ...

Metamorphosis Foundation, the Media Development Center (MDC) and NGO Infocenter are joining a huge international coalition in calling upon Macedonia to assess whether national surveillance laws and activities are in line with their international human rights obligations. Our organizations have endorsed a set of international principles against unchecked surveillance. The 13 Principles set out for the first time an evaluative framework for assessing surveillance practices in the context of international human rights obligations.
The 13 principles presented to the Human Rights Council: legality of privacy limitations, limitations should be necessary and have a legitimate aim, the surveillance...

Malicious destruction of civil society’s reputationThe Front for freedom of expression has no intention of participating in a debate when apparently the other side is unwilling to do so. However, we are using this opportunity to indicate that, in his interview for Utrinski vesnik (September 1, 2013) the Minister of Information Society demonstrates a serious lack of knowledge about the civil society concept.
He is also bluntly labeling and accusing the country's NGOs of being deliberately negative towards the media laws, just so they could receive funding. This is completely untrue and we perceive it as a malicious destruction of civil society’s reputation. This behavior is an unpleasant...

The Front for Freedom of Expression, an informal coalition of nine civic associations, demands from the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia to retract the proposed media bills – the Law on Media and the Law on Audio and Audiovisual Media Services, which threaten to further undermine freedom of speech in Macedonia, especially due to the unjustified decision to cover both print and internet-media with new regulations. The majority of issues allegedly resolved with the proposed bills are already covered in the Broadcasting Law, the Criminal Code, the Law on Civil Liability for Defamation. At the same time, the new media legislation disregards completely a number of key measures that permit ...

Press statement of the EU Delegation on behalf of the European Commission on draft media lawsFollowing  this week's debate in Skopje on the draft laws on media and audio- and  audio-visual media services, the European Commission would like to clarify its role in this process.The development of new media legislation to replace the existing Broadcasting Law started in 2011 at the initiative of the national authorities and not at the specific request of the European Commission.For the part of the proposed legislation which aligns with EU law (EU Directive on Audio-visual Media Services), the European Commission has made independent technical expertise available to the government in ...

During the celebration marking Europe Day, the Front for Freedom of Expression held a protest in front of the EU Delegation's building in Skopje under the motto "Death to fascism, freedom of expression".According to the organizers, the reason for the protest on this day (Europe Day and Victory Day over Fascism) is the attempt of the Macedonian government to introduce censorship by improperly adopting a new Law on Media.The protest began at the time when a government delegation was supposed to arrive at the EU headquarters in Skopje to attend the Europe Day celebration.The protesters demanded an end to censorship and pressures on the media.They blamed both the government and the European ...

The National Youth Council of Macedonia was founded on June 29, 2013 in Struga. The Council was founded by 55 organizations (youth organizations, organizations for youth, alliances and youth wings of political parties).As the president of the National Youth Council of Macedonia, Ivana Davidovska noted, its mission is to represent the interests and needs of young people as a liaison with all the stakeholders and to ensure the involvement and active participation of youth in the decision-making process at every level.According to the adopted Statute, the National Youth Council of Macedonia (NYCM) will be managed by the following bodies: General Assembly, Management Board, Supervisory Board and...

Macedonia is one of many countries where citizens struggle for democracy and against measures to control the media and limit freedom of expression and access to information online and offline. The latest of these measures is the proposed new Law on Media and Audiovisual Media Services which will require all media, both print and online, to be filtered through a centralised government agency, effectively allowing the government to legally filter and censor content.On 8 April 2013, the Macedonian Minister of Information Society and Administration presented a draft of the Law and announced a 60-day public consultation period, formally ending 8 June. No consultation with civil ...