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Serbian Unions Step onto Political Stage |
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Thursday, 2 February 2012The Alliance of Independent Unions of Serbia and the Association of Free and Independent Unions will participate, for the first time, in the upcoming general election, expected to be held in May.
The unions have yet to decide what ticket they will join, but have announced that in exchange for support they will ask their future partners for seats in parliament and municipal assemblies.
"There is no other way for us to fight for the rights of workers, which are very endangered in Serbia. Any agreement can be breached, but when we hold a number of mandates, the parties cannot ignore our demands so easily," Association of Free and Independent Unions President Ranka Savic told SETimes.
However, the third biggest union organisation -- Nezavisnost (Independence) said it will not make agreements.
"The unions' participation is the end of union engagement and the beginning of political engagement. We will not go into that kind of trade with political parties," Nezavisnost union leader Branislav Canak told SETimes.
University of Belgrade professor Dejan Vuk Stankovic said he understands the unions' frustration.
"Union leaderships have apparently come to the conclusion that the way unions traditionally fight is not yielding results in Serbia, and have decided to try and improve the workers' situation by taking part in the elections," Stankovic told SETimes.
Centre for Free Elections and Democracy member Marko Blagojevic disagrees.
"Once someone takes part in an election, they stop being a union and turn into a political subject. Politicians and unions cannot and should not always be allies," Blagojevic told SETimes.
He says that according to surveys conducted by his organisations, the unions cannot cross the 5% election threshold on their own, but may tip the scales for the party that wins the majority of the votes.
Stankovic has a similar view.
"The unions' support plays a very symbolic part because the people in question are the representatives of workers. The unions do not have a negative reputation in public and it is clear they will not be a burden to their future partners, but will rather bring them a percentage of votes," he said.
However, this does not cement the unions' victory. There have been cases in Serbian politics of MPs changing parties during their mandate or siding with the ruling majority.
The public now fears that could also happen to the union representatives' mandates.
Savic says her union will do everything to prevent that. "We primarily have faith in our people. And that faith will be key, meaning that only those who will not betray union interests will have a chance of winning a mandate," she said.
Voters have different opinions on the unions' decision to join the election race. Mirjana Radulovic, a saleswoman in Belgrade, says unions should not get involved in politics. "I think it's more likely that they will improve their own position, rather than improve the position of workers," she told SETimes.
However, Belgrade resident Danijel Rovcanin thinks the decision is justified. "People here lack the strength and will for protests and strikes. I think this is now the only way to improve the workers' position," he told SETimes. |
Thursday, 2 February 2012
Setimes
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