Get to know the results of the projects supported by the Fund for Transparent Slovakia

Programme manager of the Pontis Foundation, Petra Luptáková, summarised this year’s fund activities at the meeting and introduced some of the supported projects. Representatives of several supported organisations also discussed their results. 

Among the guests was for example the editor-in-chief of the regional daily newspaper Korzár, Jaroslav Vrábeľ, a participant in this year’s Academy of Investigative Journalism. He appreciated the importance of this activity for local investigative journalism, which usually lacks sufficient funding and time in editorial offices. Doing this kind of work in the regions is all the more challenging. 

The Fund for Transparent Slovakia supported the Academy of Investigative Journalism for the third time. “We appreciate the range of topics, from the legal framework through currently available open sources to modern, sophisticated fact-checking tools. Besides new skills and valuable contacts, participants of the Academy also gain inspiration and motivation to work more at a higher quality and choose more challenging topics,” said J. Vrábeľ. The grant within the Academy allowed him to investigate a fresh developer scandal involving land in the Tatra region. 

The Fund for Transparent Slovakia also financially supports the Pontis Foundation’s Impact Lab, a unique program that helps civil society organizations grow and increase their potential. Within this programme, we have contributed to three projects related to democracy and the rule of law. One of them was DEMDIS (Democratic Debate), which focuses on creating a space for balanced debate and finding consensus instead of differences. Their project focuses on creating space for a balanced discussion and seeking consensus instead of differences. The participants come from different opinion camps, and through conversation, they have the opportunity to discover that, apart from different values, we have a lot in common in the first place. “Consensus is born in confrontation with disagreement. However, a polite and factual dialogue mitigates tension,” stated Michal Horský.

The mobilisation campaigns were successful

Samuel Zubo presented the results of the mobilisation campaign At Home at Heart (Srdcom doma). The aim of the project was to increase the participation of Slovaks living abroad in the September parliamentary elections. This goal was achieved, with the number of requests for postal voting from abroad increasing by 32 percent. 

According to S. Zubo, Slovaks living abroad tend to vote mainly for democratic, pro-Western parties. The lost votes, which did not arrive on time, represented approximately one parliamentary mandate. S. Zubo assessed that there is still room for improvement in the system of voting from abroad. 

A significant part of the electorate consists of young people aged 18 to 26 years. The campaign I Want to Stay Here (orig. Chcem tu zostať), aimed primarily at them, was presented by the administrator and executive director of the Pontis Foundation, Michal Kišša. While in April, 52 percent of eligible voters from the mentioned age category expressed interest in voting, according to September data, their share increased to 69 percent.

The value of transparency

Transparency is an integral part of democracy and the rule of law. Transparency International Slovakia has long been drawing attention to the lack of clarity in public processes and finances. Representative Ľuboš Kostelanský presented this year’s media monitoring and the transparency of campaigns of individual parties, which is intended to serve as motivation for politicians to conduct open campaigns. Thanks to the support of the fund, Transparency International Slovakia was also able to strengthen its fundraising potential. 

According to Zuzana Petková, director of the Stop Corruption Foundation (orig. Zastavme korupciu), the conditions for the functioning of watchdog organisations will be challenging, but there are still people for whom transparency is important. “Compared to the past, I see one big light at the end. I perceive that many people care about this topic and are willing to contribute financially to causes of democracy, the rule of law, and the fight against corruption.”

The activities of the Fund will continue to be extremely important. The Pontis Foundation, together with its partners, will continue to support watchdog and analytical organisations, but the protection of democracy and the rule of law requires the participation of each of us.