How far are we from the society in which the work of public authorities is transparent, the decision-making process inclusive, and citizens informed and active in protecting their rights - this was discussed at the international conference "Citizen participation matters - changes we need". The conference was held on 12 December 2019 in Belgrade and gathered experts in the field of citizen participation and representatives of civic initiatives from Croatia, Montenegro, Slovenia, Spain and Serbia.

Authorities do not listen to citizens and do not encourage their participation in decision-making; information of public importance is not available to the public so we cannot know if the government is acting in public interest; one more regulation was adopted without public debate and participation of civil society in its formulation. These well-known sentences, that we repeat at meetings, in analysis and conversations, could often be heard during the discussion on 12 December.

While analysing the level of citizen participation at the local, national and EU level, the participants agreed that institutions do not work sufficiently in the interest of citizens, and that the establishment, protection and improvement of democratic society is not going in the right direction because public policy-making is done without the participation of civil society and thus is not aligned with public interest.

This leads us to a question: Which steps are necessary for the establishment of a society in which the citizens know whether public interest is protected or not and whether interests of a social group to which they belong are included in public policies?

We cannot speak about open society without a transparent public administration, which is proactive in publishing information of public importance and at the same time effective in addressing citizens' requests. If decisions and regulations are adopted in secrecy, which is justified by defense of national interest or contractual obligations to the investor, citizens must act and be corrective of government.

The next important step is the establishment of  an open and inclusive decision-making process that has functional mechanisms of citizen participation in public policy-making, and through which citizens can articulate their interests and requirements, and point out key problems and potential solutions. Conference participants repeatedly emphasised that the story does not end with legal regulation of these mechanisms, if they are not used in practice or even misused. It is necessary for the authorities to listen carefully to the voice of the citizens, to answer their questions and to reach a mutual agreement between. Communication must be two-way and the door of authorities must be always open.

And what can citizens do in order to help to create a society which they want to be a part of and the system that protects their rights and interests? They must closely monitor the actions of the authorities, announcements, decisions, regulations, activities that may have an effect on the quality of their lives and the lives of the community in which they live. Today we face a discouraging trend of fake news, which even in some situations come from the authorities, which obscure reality and create a narrative which is not based on proven facts but insinuations.

Many citizens' initiatives show that citizens know the facts well, and know how to assess whether their interests are protected, and accordingly, to join together to defend their guaranteed rights. The examples of civic activism in protecting the right to a healthy environment, the right to housing, the right to urban development of a city that is in the interest of the community, and not particular interests of investors, show us that citizens are ready to go out and show their dissatisfaction when all the other channels of communication with the authorities fail.

The representatives of the initiatives "Krov nad glavom" from Serbia (in eng. The Roof), "Čuvamo naš park" from Croatia (in eng. Protecting our Park) and "Držati uspravno" from Montenegro (in eng. Keep Upright) demonstrated by their examples how clear goals, well-organised united citizens and solidarity with other initiatives and movements can bring the awakening of critical civic consciousness without which we cannot speak about protecting democratic values ​​and creating public policies that contribute to the realisation of citizens' rights.

The essence of public authorities should be the work in public interest. Together with the citizens, not without them. Any departure from this principle requires the reaction of civil society. Because the state is here for us, the citizens, and not the other way around.

* "Citizen participation matters - changes we need" conference was organised within the Project "YOU4EU - Citizen Participation 2.0", implemented by Belgrade Open School in collaboration with Access Info Europe (Spain), Gong (Croatia), Institute Alternative (Montenegro) and PiNA (Slovenia), and with the support of Europe for Citizens Programme.