Defamation of the University of Belgrade by the highest state authority

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The academic community of Serbia has provided broad support to the current protests against violence, both through direct participation and with around 2,000 signatures. The text of support was read by prof. Dr. Miodrag Jovanović from the Faculty of Law, University of Belgrade. The Network of Academic Solidarity and Engagement (MASA) publicly condemns the pointless attack of the current president of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, directed personally at Prof. Dr. Miodrag Jovanović after reading his support for the protest. Unfortunately, the president of Serbia, in his already known manner, perfidiously and selectively extracts from the past the personal data of his dissidents and presents falsehoods and half-truths in order to discredit those who spoke the truth about himself. However, the truth cannot be hidden with lies. On the example of slander about the salary of Prof. Dr. Miodrag Jovanović, the President of Serbia openly placed himself at the head of those who recklessly belittle anyone who publicly dares to criticize the social and political situation in Serbia. Until a few days ago, actors were in the spotlight, now it's university professors' turn again, and in the meantime, citizens who peacefully express their disagreement with the atmosphere of violence in society are called the most derogatory names.

MASA calls on the University of Belgrade to protect and support its respected professors who should be role models and imperatives in every normal society. We also use this opportunity to greet the students who support their honorable professors who consistently fight to create conditions for their continued life and career in Serbia.

Degradation is followed by the shortening of education

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The Network of Academic Solidarity and Engagement (MASA) condemns the spontaneous and ad-hoc decision-making on the sudden and abrupt end of the current school year, two weeks before the planned end. Such decisions are particularly harmful in crisis situations, when most people need security and a relatively predictable, organized near future. The sudden end of the school year brings with it enormous organizational problems, both in relation to the curriculum and assessment, as well as in the private lives of the families of students and teachers. One of the skills that students acquire during the educational process is the importance of planning and organizing, in connection with following classes, learning, and acquiring work habits. Spontaneous decision-making by the top of the state that changes the plans of all participants in the educational process is completely contrary to what we are trying to teach students. Just as great damage has been done to the education system over the years by not following the five-year educational development plan and by introducing sudden changes unrelated to that plan, such as dual education, so is the sudden interruption of the school year causing damage. 

The method of informing teachers and students about this decision is particularly worrying, since most of them learned about it from the media, and only later received an official announcement. It is scandalous for the state administration that an important and great system, such as education, drastically and suddenly changes its plan, and that students and teachers learn about it from the media. We remind you that the decision to end the school year on June 6 (Tuesday) was announced in the media on June 1 (Thursday) and officially forwarded to school principals on June 2 (Friday), which leaves only 2 or at best 3 working days for teachers and students to complete all duties and complete the curriculum. All of the above testifies to the haste and unprofessionalism of the decision to end the school year. 

MASA demands that the date and minutes of the session of the Ministry of Education, where the decision to end the school year was made, be published. To publish on whose proposal the mentioned decision was made and what are the arguments for that decision. This is very important so that we all have an insight into the decision-making process and see its consequences together. 

In addition, MASA invites all school employees, students as well as their parents, to oppose the decision made and to demand that school activities be completed within the planned period, in an organized and orderly manner. If nothing else, it is important to point out to the decision-makers in the government, and especially to our students, the importance of planning and institutions for the functioning of a well-ordered society, as well as the importance of personal responsibility and integrity in confronting bad, socially disastrous decisions, by whomever they were coming. 

MAS press release regarding the Serbian Prime Minister's pressure on the University of Belgrade

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The Network of Academic Solidarity and Engagement (MASA) strongly condemns the Prime Minister's rhetoric in the Assembly of the Republic of Serbia. After insulting words addressed to one or more MPs of the opposition, for which she did not find it appropriate to issue a public apology to the Serbian public, the Prime Minister of Serbia this time chose the biggest Serbian university as a target. This act only continued the hunt for dissident professors who do not hesitate to publicly criticize the executive. On the other hand, when it comes to like-minded professors, with her statement "Don't touch political analysts, because their job is to say what they think and analyze the work of politicians," the Prime Minister actually suggests that professors are allowed to publicly express their opinions only when they are expressed in support of the same authorities. Therefore, as members of the academic community, we publicly ask the Prime Minister whether she believes that the professors of the University of Belgrade are allowed to say what they think only in the role of a political analyst and only when it is in the interest of that government? In her opinion, should the University publicly condemn all those who think differently and criticize the authorities? 

This duality of standards was further confirmed in the Prime Minister's position that it does not carry the same weight when something is publicly stated by a member of the ruling party or a university professor. In other words, a university professor who is not a member of the ruling party or does not support it should think twice about what he will say publicly, while members of the party can be tolerated even without a thought process before saying something publicly, sometimes in anger. I guess that's why the Prime Minister has not yet seen a reason to condemn the representatives of the ruling majority in the Assembly for all the simplicities and insults that we have heard in previous years.

MASA reminds the Prime Minister of Serbia that the right to freedom of expression is guaranteed in our Constitution, as is the guaranteed equality of all citizens in the enjoyment of those rights. Therefore, the same standards apply to everyone, whether they are politicians of the ruling party or any other party, whether they are university professors or political analysts.

Despite the obvious intimidation of the public, institutions and individuals by the government, MASA condemns any call to violence, from any side that it comes from, but we also believe that the responsibility for the political atmosphere in a society is mostly borne by those who lead that society and that before calling other social actors to account, he must take personal and political responsibility. Any type of sanctioning of public speech, especially that based on pressure or double standards, represents a gross demolition of democratic principles on which a modern civil, not autocratic, society should rest.

Profession before politics, not the other way around

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The Network of Academic Solidarity and Engagement (MASA) expresses its deepest condolences to the families of the tragic victims of two consecutive mass shootings that hit Serbia last week. Based on the reaction of the competent state authorities in the days after these events, one gets the impression that institutions in Serbia are not capable of adequately dealing with the problems that led to these tragic events, as well as the problems that will follow as a direct consequence of them.

What is particularly worrying is that instead of a restrained, well-thought-out and cautious response to the crisis, the state leadership decided to make a series of hasty and unprofessional decisions, which were more aimed at creating an image in the public eye that the state is decisively dealing with the emerging situation rather than actually offer long-term solutions to the problems in which our society found itself after these events. The culture of violence, irresponsible and tabloid media, the complete collapse of the autonomy and expertise of the education sector, but also of the profession in general, and the neglect of the family are just some of the causes of the tragedies that have happened to us, for which the state institutions and their political leadership bear the greatest responsibility. Who will now manage the crisis if those who are eligible are employed instead of those who are experts, those with dubious degrees instead of those who studied hard, those who are appointed to carry out the party's orders instead of those who work in the interest of society?

MASA believes that instead of hastily adopting restrictive measures that can only deepen the crisis, it is necessary to form a crisis headquarters that will be made up of experts from various professions and where their expertise will be the only selection criterion for this body. In the past decade, the scientific community of Serbia has produced a large number of scientific works and practical instructions that, among other things, dealt with issues of security, prevention of violence, breakdown of social values and numerous other issues both in society and in educational institutions. The state of Serbia has invested a lot of money in these projects and it is high time that their results and the authors of these projects are consulted in solving the social crisis of unfathomable proportions that has befallen our society.

Despite the ignorance to which the academic community in Serbia is exposed, the members of MASE, and we believe the rest of our colleagues, are ready to join the professional teams and working groups that, we hope, will be formed to overcome this crisis without delay and within the scope of their qualifications. The only question is whether this time, instead of preserving our society, the ruling political group will choose the path of preserving their political interests and positions, regardless of the price we all pay and, by all accounts, we will still pay it, in the most tragic ways.

 

INTERVIEW with Vladan Čokić REGARDING INDICATIONS OF PLAGIARISM OF JELENA TRIVAN'S DOCTORAL DISSERTATION

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- Imagine a country that has had hyperinflation for more than a year, and whose minister of finance with plagiarism has so much free time to re-do his doctorate in Slovakia, and the president of that same country has time to attend university, because he never pursued the profession of the university he graduated from , while half a million citizens left the country for his mandate. If you can't imagine it, well, we live in such an idle state with at least a three-fold increase in the national debt - Dr. Vladan Čokić, scientific advisor and member of the Coordination Board of the Network of Academic Solidarity and Engagement (MASA), one of the signatories of the request, tells Danas for the review of the doctoral dissertation of the former director of the Official Gazette, Jelena Trivan.

When asked how, as a scientist, he explains the need for politicians to have a PhD, Čokić believes that for politicians, a PhD is only for promotion in positions in government positions and that someone with the title would take them more seriously during empty political speeches.

- In addition, various complexes promoted by positions of power are also treated. There used to be actual evening schools, now there are instant diplomas, that is, those who are in government positions get further education in a hurry. With such a lazy approach of state officials, the importance of profession, knowledge and education is consciously devalued and we come to the primitive, i.e. initial level: "Life is the best school", and everything else is a form. Even more, this devalues all those who throughout Serbian history contributed to education and culture in Serbia, and the media promotes sectarian idolatry. A doctorate is only one stage in scientific research work during an academic career, necessary for further advancement and affirmation in research and teaching. This is followed by research through scientific projects and publications.

How did it come about that a number of MASA members filed a request to determine non-academic behavior against Jelena Trivan and what were your motives?

- In the media, plagiarism of various public figures was spread through personal initiatives, and we at the Network of Academic Solidarity and Engagement received applications from colleagues for other doctorates with allegations that plagiarism was involved. Some of them are very well explained. The resistance of the state apparatus to the university-confirmed plagiarism of Siniša Malog raises the question of systemic political defense of all plagiarism. Of the received applications for plagiarism, Jelena Trivan's PhD already had a developed problem, which we processed again in detail and argued and sent a complaint to the Faculty of Philology. We presented obvious arguments, submitted documentation and are waiting to see the decision of the Expert Commission. We have the violation of the university's autonomy, the devaluing of academic work, media and parliamentary attacks on academic colleagues, are these not enough motives for the activities of MASA, including calling for plagiarism according to the established procedure? Let them not feel singled out but called out for plagiarism, they are not the first, and they will not be the last. It is precisely these efforts of MASA that aim to introduce greater responsibility in the performance and defense of doctoral dissertations and ultimately improve the system of their control.

Does it surprise you that the Expert Commission that should review Jelena Trivan's doctorate has not yet been formed? Do you expect further prolongation of the National Council for Higher Education, which should propose one member?

- We now have a conflict of interest in the National Council for Higher Education because its member is Professor Aleksandra Vraneš, who was Jelena Trivan's mentor for the controversial doctorate. I hope that Professor Vraneš will be excluded from the vote, and it is important to emphasize that she was appointed there on the proposal of the Ministry of Education, which also appointed Professor Milija Suknović, former dean of the Faculty of Organizational Sciences (FON) to the same National Council, who did not follow the procedure in in the case of Siniša Malog's doctorate, that is, he did not act according to the decision of the Teaching and Scientific Council of the FON and imposed a measure of public condemnation on Malog. If the plagiarism of Jelena Trivan is confirmed, then her mentor's responsibility will be great, if not greater. Then she no longer has anything to ask for in the National Council, but everything is possible seeing how the National Accreditation Body and the Government of Serbia remained indolent at the request of MASA to withdraw from that body Professor Žika Bujuklić, MP of SNS, and the incriminated Ivan Bulatović. At the public debate on the Law on Higher Education, MASA raised the question of the majority (9:8) that the Ministry and the Chamber of Commerce have in the National Council for Higher Education, in relation to the conference of universities and academies of vocational studies and colleges, and made an objection which of course was not respected. Here we are now at another test of that majority. Gentlemen, here you go - the party or the credibility of the academic institutions in which you originated. When the state does not respect the basic educational authorities in this way, but distributes according to the majority party, then what can we say about the independence of education and personnel solutions.

How do you comment on the statement of Jelena Trivan, who accused the business competition of running an orchestrated campaign against her as the director of Telekom Srpska? She was not in that position when you submitted the request.

- A little more than a year ago, MASA started checking Jelena Trivan's doctorate, not being interested in where and what she is currently doing, as it is not important to us now, and whether it will be for those who appointed her is not in our competence. We are all very familiar with the fact that the current party staffing has nothing to do with expertise. It is interesting that in that statement she also states that "you are free to dispute the elementary school." I don't know why the subject is being spun so far, but it is interesting that the current president had the same arguments when he defended Sinisa Mali with the words "he can be a minister even with an elementary school". Another glaring example of neglecting education in the country, I would not dare to say from the state, but from the top of the party, because I hope that the parties are transitory, and the state is not.

Except for Sinisa Malog, all the doctorates and diplomas of politicians that have been contested so far were obtained at private universities. Now we also have Jelena Trivan, who got her doctorate at the state faculty. In your opinion, are these isolated cases or just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to state universities?

- Based on the objections received by MASA, we are not limited to private universities, nor to mentors from private universities. Conformism has crept into the ranks of higher education, mentors and committees do not look at submitted doctorates in detail, everything has turned into a formality and the excuse is lack of time, and on the other hand, they fill out the mentor's resume for further advancement. Often also due to incompetence for the chosen topic of the doctorate, where the essence of the problem is not considered, but perhaps banal details are contested.

It was the MASA research on academic integrity that showed that two thirds of the surveyed scientists know at least one colleague who has plagiarized a scientific work. What does that say about domestic higher education?

- On the one hand, this speaks of the hyperproduction of doctorates without strict criteria and the careerism of mentors, and on the other hand, it speaks of the lack of resources in science. Previously, we had master's degrees before doctorates, while now we have short and formal master's degrees. The master's degree served to train the future doctoral student in research work, to understand the principles and protocols, and then as an already independent and experienced researcher to approach the doctorate, where he will choose the topic of the research work with the mentor, which the mentor will supervise and direct if necessary. Now the field of doctorates is being entered by ignorant researchers who have clearly skipped one level of education and see the doctorate as their capital, when in fact they were technicians for its execution. Representatives in higher education are responsible for this, and by shortening the procedure for doctorates, they opened the door to instant doctorates for politicians. Now, according to the market principle, we are talking about the speed of execution, and not about the quality of the doctorate.

The same research also shows that every second respondent would not report plagiarism. So what does that say about the academic community? On the example of the case of Sinisa Malog, we saw the silence of a large number of members of the academic community. On the other hand, we have also witnessed that individuals who raised their voices were crucified in the tabloids. The silence is explained by the fact that people are afraid, but in the public we also hear the comment: "What should a university professor be afraid of?" How much interest, conformity, or something else is involved?

- Colleagues, don't be afraid! Just as there is no excuse for fear when it comes to solidarity and collegiality. If you do your job responsibly and diligently, I can only fear you. In these conditions, where you feel like you are fighting windmills, it is enough for every other member of the academic community to report plagiarism. Everyone in the academic community knows about Sinisa Mali's plagiarism and looks at it with indignation, and Sinisa Mali is the most responsible for this by persistently reminding the public through the legal denial of university-proven plagiarism. And he simply does not allow the academic and the general public to forget his plagiarism. Sometimes timid whispers are heard further and deeper than empty loud speeches. Kudos to the individuals who preserved academic integrity and brightened the image of the academic community with their public words. MASA is here to support them, as we have done so far through various activities. Excuses like "I don't have time" and "I have better things to do" are just an escape from the dreary reality that sooner or later will knock on your door if we don't solve it together.

The proceedings against Sinisa Mali have been academically completed

Are you surprised by the length of the proceedings against Sinisa Mali? Do you expect him to get an epilogue in due course or will it wait until he is no longer in power? Do you expect a delay in the case of Jelena Trivan?

- The proceedings against Sinisa Malog were academically concluded by the decision of the Committee for Professional Ethics of the University of Belgrade, which in November 2019 determined his non-academic behavior during the preparation of his doctoral dissertation, i.e. confirmed plagiarism. The abuse of the state and judicial apparatus to challenge the decision speaks more about our judiciary than about Sinisa Mal. Again we have the violation of university autonomy. I don't know if you remember when in 2014, regarding the contested doctorate of Nebojsa Stefanović from Megatrend, the current president stated that he had read it and that it was a professional work?! Well, now we have progressed an octave higher in sophistication when the Administrative and Constitutional Courts are engaged to justify the plagiarism of the Minister of Finance and challenge the decision of the University of Belgrade. Now it's just a question of whether we've hit rock bottom. If the verification of Jelena Trivan's doctorate is delayed and obstructed, we are still in free fall.

Text taken from the site Today: INTERVIEW Dr. Vladan Čokić: Politicians get instant diplomas to promote and treat complexes - Society - Dnevni list Danas

Interview of Oliver Tošković regarding indications of plagiarism in Jelena Trivan's doctoral dissertation

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A request to determine non-academic behavior against the former director of the Official Gazette, and today the director of Telekom Srpska, Jelena Trivan, was submitted by a group of professors from several faculties a year ago. One of them, a professor at the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade, Oliver Tošković, explains to Danas why they decided to take that step and what is disputed in her doctoral dissertation. 

- We received the first information that there is an indication that the doctorate was plagiarized from media, after which it was announced that the procedure for reviewing the dissertation had been initiated. Then we received information that the procedure was suspended because Bosko Obradovic (leader Dveri prim.aut.) submitted incomplete documentation. The Faculty of Philology approached Obradović with a request to submit complete documentation, which he did not do. Then we got together because we had a lot of evidence supporting the suspicion that it was plagiarism and we sent a new request to the Faculty of Philology - says Tošković.

He says that the signatories of the request cannot claim whether Jelena Trivan's doctorate is plagiarized or not, but that the material they collected, printed and submitted with the request indicates that there are serious indications that her doctoral dissertation is not an original scientific work.

 

Tošković says that there are whole chapters, parts or paragraphs in the dissertation that are borrowed from other sources.

- There are parts that, for example, were taken from Wikipedia, it was literally copy-pasted. There are parts taken from some music encyclopedias. Two other people's works were taken over and published as chapters in Jelena Trivan's dissertation. One of those papers on multiculturalism was published in the Proceedings of Matica Srpska and was taken from A to Z. Therefore, it is not a matter of paraphrasing or taking sentences, but the work has been taken over and published from the first to the last letter. The second paper, which is also completely downloaded from a student website with term papers. The entire seminar paper on the globalization of business was included in the doctorate - says Tošković.

He points out that they also found two or three works published in a foreign language, from which passages were translated and taken over. Everything indicates that Trivan copied a huge part of the dissertation, says our interlocutor.

- Almost all of these works were published long before Jelena Trivan submitted her dissertation. For example, the work from the Anthology of Matica Srpska was published in 2010, and she defended her doctoral dissertation in 2013 - says Tošković.

 

Referring to the earlier statement of the former director of the Official Gazette that her education is not questionable, Tošković says that she "agrees that her education up to the level of a doctoral dissertation is not questionable."

- She graduated from university and worked as a teacher. The same as Siniša Mali, who graduated from the Faculty of Economics. To be honest, I'm sorry that such people who have made a certain effort, who are obviously educated, end up stepping on all this. And if Trivan really rewrote her dissertation, in the way she seems to have done, she brought her own education into question - points out Tošković.

He also referred to Jelena Trivan's statement CINS-, on the occasion of that research portal finding out that the Expert Commission of the Faculty of Philology in Belgrade will investigate whether she plagiarized her doctorate.

Trivan told CINS that "it has become a favorite tool of political calculations that destroys Belgrade University, while private faculties protect their interests."

- I think that we are protecting ourselves with such actions, because we are defending our honor and our educational level. Pushing plagiarism under the carpet and justifying plagiarism is not defending one's honor, on the contrary, it is spitting on education and one's own university. Our duty as teachers, as professors and researchers is to clear up such cases and to stand in the way of that, no matter how many such cases there are and no matter who has a doctorate. They received the title of doctor of science at this university, and if they received it dishonestly, it must be taken away from them - Tošković is clear.

Text taken from the site Today: Copied other people's sentences, paragraphs and entire papers: What is controversial in Jelena Trivan's doctoral dissertation? - Society - Dnevni list Danas

Announcement regarding the public attack on three professors of the Faculty of Political Sciences in Belgrade

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MASA strongly condemns the nationalist attack on three professors of the Faculty of Political Sciences of the University of Belgrade (FPN), whose photos were taken on March 16, 2023. year appeared on posters in the Belgrade area, on which they present themselves as traitors to the Serbian people. This was preceded by inscriptions in the yellow press, which, according to the already established model of targeting and spin, falsely accused the FPN of recognizing Kosovo.

Professors FPN, Jelena Lončar, Marko Veković and Stefan Surlić are young, hardworking and respected members of the academic community. Together with several other researchers from Serbia, they participated in the academic exchange project. This project enabled researchers and teachers from Belgrade institutes and faculties to conduct research at Pristina faculties and institutes and vice versa. The project was supposed to end with a final meeting in Belgrade, where all researchers would have the opportunity to present their research. The rally was canceled in the meantime, but that didn't stop the unknown perpetrators from continuing the senseless accusations of treason against our colleagues.

MASA firmly believes that academic exchange is one of the important institutions of modern science, because it allows scientists to follow and learn what other scientists are doing, and learn from each other. Science cannot progress if scientists close themselves within their institutions. University professors and scientists do not have the authority to recognize other countries. Accusing scientists and university professors of treason because they want to get out of their institutions and find out what others are doing is not only offensive and dangerous, but also a crime against honor and reputation.

MASA demands that the police and the prosecutor's office immediately launch an investigation into the aforementioned actions and prosecute the perpetrators.

Coordination Board of MASA

Belgrade, 16.3.2023.

Support for plaintiffs Bojana Savović and Jasmina Paunović

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The Network of Academic Solidarity and Engagement (MASA) sends its public support to prosecutors Bojana Savović and Jasmina Paunović from the Higher Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade, who were removed from the case of corruption in the EPS, as well as to all their colleagues who in the past period due to the arbitrariness of the higher public prosecutor Nenad Stefanović were disparaged and/or persecuted in any way.

The events in the Higher Public Prosecutor's Office represent a brutal manifestation of everything that our organization stands against, namely the fight against incompetence, partiality, lack of independence and unethicality. Removing the prosecutors from the case, who with their knowledge, experience and courage brought it to the very end, is like removing the doctor before the most important part of the operation with the expectation that another, although he does not know anything about the course of the operation, nor is he an expert in its performance, will successfully replace him.

MASA stands for a society in which the best, not the worst, students will occupy key positions in our state institutions and in which teams will be led by individuals of unquestionable expertise, knowledge and experience. Superiors should build their authority on expertise and trust in the knowledge of employees, and not cover up their inexperience by intimidating and belittling them. MASA advocates and will advocate with all its might so that our fate is no longer decided by those who are clearly alien to virtues such as independence, integrity and ethics and who resort to abuse of position, intimidation, demonstration of power, arrogant behavior and breaking the law. Through its activities, MASA strives to create a better society in which trust in the judiciary, healthcare, education, and professionalism of all kinds will be re-established. We see Serbia as a society in which there will no longer be a degradation of the authority of the profession due to the inactivity of politically eligible and professionally insufficiently qualified individuals and individuals, and in which the personal integrity, freedom and independence of each employee in performing professional activities will be valued. Therefore, we demand that the competent authorities do everything in order to prevent the transfer of plaintiffs Savović and Paunović from arbitrariness by individuals, and to enable them to professionally and impartially finish the work they started in connection with the case of corruption in the EPS that was previously entrusted to them. .

Announcement of MASA on the occasion of the awarding of this year's "Dr. Zoran Đinđić" awards

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The Network of Academic Solidarity and Engagement (MASA) appeals that the "Dr. Zoran Đinđić" Fund Board as well as the Senate of the University of Novi Sad react to publicly presented indications that during the selection of candidates for this year's "Dr. Zoran Đinđić" award, several ethically questionable procedural decisions were made that question the integrity of the outcome of the competition itself.

Namely, the Award for Young Scientists and Researchers has been awarded since 2004. Initially, the prize was awarded by the "Dr. Zoran Đinđić" Foundation and the Provincial Government of Vojvodina, and since 2015, the award has been entrusted to the University of Novi Sad (UNS), while the Fund's functioning is entrusted to a Board made up of prominent experts from the University of Novi Sad. Provincial governments, Dr. Zoran Đinđić Foundation, SANU Department in Novi Sad and Matica Srpska. In its long tradition, the awarding of this award primarily served to affirm a young scientist, and some of the laureates have since become distinguished domestic and international scientists. However, this year (April 21, 2022), without the recommendation or consent of the Forum, two changes are being made to the Rulebook on awarding the award. The first change refers to the fact that a potential participant in the competition no longer needs the decision of the Scientific and Teaching Council of the parent faculty/institute. Also, in the earlier version of the Rulebook, it was prescribed that candidates must not have reached the age of 35 on the day of the deadline for the public competition, while this year's controversial amendment stipulates that the participant can be no more than 35 years old in the year of the public competition.

We believe that the second change is extremely problematic if we take into account that even two of this year's award winners turned 35 at the time of the contest. From this fact, it is clearly seen that only the subtle changes in the Rulebook on awarding awards made the mentioned two colleagues valid candidates. It is even more worrying that one of the members of the Board of the Fund "Dr. Zoran Đinđić" is at the same time the mentor and project manager of one of this year's laureates. Bearing in mind that the Board makes a decision on the proposal for awarding awards, the issue of conflict of interest in the implementation of the current competition arises - as well as consequential injustice towards other candidates.

Accordingly, considering the importance of adequate development of young scientific staff, as well as the prestige of the award whose regularity is in question, we appeal to all relevant institutions - above all the "Dr. Zoran Đinđić" Fund Board, the UNS Rectorate and the UNS Senate - to express their opinion on the problematic amendments to the Rulebook on awarding the award, potential indications of conflict of interest and protection when making the decision on awarding the "Dr. Zoran Đinđić" award.

The MASA initiative for the correction of the regulations of the Faculty of Medicine on the conditions for the selection of assistants

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The Network of Academic Solidarity and Engagement (MASA) received a complaint against the 2022 MoF Rulebook related to: "Conditions for selection to the position of assistant Article 17."
and items 4) and 5) within that article for the statement: "who completed the appropriate health specialization with an excellent grade on the specialist exam".

We believe that the teaching profession, in addition to expertise and education, should also be based on scientific research work, which often goes to the detriment of the aforementioned. We believe that the conditions for selection into the profession cannot be exclusive according to individual criteria, but that there should be the possibility of compensation in other necessary conditions specified in Article 17, for example:
- for paragraph 4) that if he does not have an excellent specialization success, he should have published at least "10 papers" instead of the existing "5 papers" in extenso in peer-reviewed journals (or be the first and first author in one of them from the category M21-M23).
- for article 5) that if he does not have excellent success in specialization, that he completed the integrated medical studies with an average grade of "at least nine (9)" instead of the existing "at least eight (8)" or to add here also "published at least 10 works in extenso in peer-reviewed journals."
 
Of course, these are only our suggestions, because the Teaching and Research Council of the Ministry of Education certainly takes a better look at the possibilities of candidates for clinical teaching. We would beg you to understand this as a well-intentioned suggestion that individual members of the academic community are not denied promotion if they are exceptional according to other criteria, and of course not diminishing the importance of the specialist exam as the most important but not exclusive criterion.