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Pro and contra forming civil society associations on guild basis Protection against non-professionalism or an easier way to donations?
 

In Macedonia there are five thousand officially registered civil society organizations and associations. 

Many of these associations are on guild basis, architects, medical associations, pedagogues’ associations, of political scientists etc. And while some say that the civil society organizations on guild basis are a good thing, even necessary, other think opposite because in their opinion civil society associations should be established as a result of certain problems in the society that can be solved with the civic sector’s activity. Members of such organizations are people who are like-minded about a certain problem, regardless of the job and the level of education.

However, the essence of democracy is the pluralism, it is good to have different associations, as well as different opinions.

Associations on guild basis: protection of professionals against non-professionalism

According to professor d-r Jovan Tofoski, president of the Macedonian medical association, that has existed for six decades, associations on guild basis should exist in order to protect professionals from non-professionals, as well as for specialized training. Namely, Tofoski thinks that different meetings and seminars of people of the same domain contribute a lot for the development of scientific ideas in all fields.

“Medical associations have existed for a long time”, says Professor d-r Jovan Tofoski. “When it is about doctors, I would say that the associations exist for protection of guild against non-guild, protection against non-professionals. One of the reasons that medical associations started functioning long ago is that in the XVIII and XIX century in the developed countries such as Great Britain, both doctors and barbers treated ill people. Later laws were brought according to which the doctors’ work is proved by an appropriate license, by a degree, and it is certified if someone is qualified to heal people. That is how people with medical degrees defended themselves from the quacks“, explains Tofoski. Tofoski points out that medical associations defend the interests of the doctor’s guild. “Doctors’ interests might be endangered by different sides. A dispute with the patients is possible, doctors’ interests might be attacked by various managerial organizations. Doctors’ interests are also attacked by the Government and when I say this, I think of small payments of services in the health system, I am talking about payment of services, not doctors’ salaries. We do a certain kind of job and no matter if it is done in a private surgery or a state health institution, we want this activity to have its market and social value. This occupation is an occupation where people commit themselves completely to their job, people who have to study all their life. Therefore I think that medical associations are very important, because when joined, doctors can more easily fight for their rights”, adds Tofoski.

Guild basis is not important, the financial independence of the civil society organizations is important

D-r  Dimitar Mirchev, professor at the Faculty of Social Sciences and president of the civil society organization “European movement”, thinks that when it is about the civil society sector, it is not a problem whether the associations are on guild basis or not, but if they are financially independent. When we talk about associating on guild basis, first we need to define what we mean by guild basis. “There are certainly a lot of definitions, but I think that the definition is not the most important, but the fact that we have too many registered civil society organizations, citizens’ associations, various associations”, says professor Mirchev. “In my opinion, many of them depend on the funds provided by foreign donations, which is not bad, but these civil society organizations do not see their base in the citizens’ interest, in the membership, in certain social layers, but in the projects offered by foreign donations. Practically, many of these organizations depend on the foreign foundations’ financing. Our civil society organizations have to emancipate themselves, be independent of the government and governmental structures and foreign foundations”, points out Mirchev, adding that it is good that some grants are at disposal, which is actually a practice all around the world, but it is not good when some associations completely depend on different donations. “It is not a problem that a number of organizations in the civic sector are on guild basis, on ethnical basis, on age, or professional etc., it is actually the sense of the civil society organizations of the whole civic sector that makes the civic society which has to be autonomous. What bothers me is that some organizations in the civic sector are dependent on foundations controlled by the parties and foreign donators that do not have ear for the real needs in Macedonia. I personally support those organizations, maybe small or local, tied to certain projects, that have managed to keep their autonomy. The European movement is one of the independent organizations that do not depend on foreign donators and foundations in Macedonia. A big event and success this year was the creation of a network of European oriented civic associations in Macedonia coordinated by the European movement. Some of these associations are based on ethnic basis, others on gender and there are such that are on professional basis but for all these twenty organizations coordinated by the European movement of Macedonia the political will is common to act on a field of informing our public about the idea for Europe, the prospective of our joining the EU. Our basic objective is certainly to bring closer our country to the EU through the civic sector of Europe, because the civic sector in Europe is independent, autonomous and it has great influence on the crucial decisions of the EU Commission. The activities of our civic sector are not so visible as in Europe and I think that the government and the whole state structure has to pay more attention to the affect of the civil society associations and their influence on the EU structures. In Rome there is the Institute “Euro barometer” and it regularly surveys European citizens’ opinion about the mutual relations in the EU, the new members and candidates for the EU, it regularly issues reports where Macedonia is not ranged very well. And those few positive opinions about Macedonia are more an act of the civic sector’s activities of Macedonia in Europe, rather than of the governmental moves and diplomatic activities. I would personally insist on strengthening our civic sector in the European civic society”, explained professor Dimitar Mirchev.

Student guild in act

One of the civic organizations that can be pointed out for functioning on guild basis is the “Club of political scientists Justinian Prima”, active since November 2003. Target group of this association are the students, above all those from the Law Faculty. “The objective of our grouping was impelled by the need for space and organization that will enable active participation and practical education for all students who are interested in fields directly related to the occupation of political scientists”, says Dragancho Apostolovski from the “Political scientists’ club“, adding that this club is running away from the passive students’ practical opus of work in their education.

Apostolovski thinks that guild civil society organizations are necessary for the clear decision of Macedonia for integrating in the overall social and political life in Europe and the world. “The so far part in the additional training of the high educated personnel was on a really low level and there was no real necessary knowledge and practice required in the international corpus of countries and organizations.”

Otherwise, “The political scientists’ club Justinian Prima” has initiated forming of network of civil society organizations that function at the faculties and universities in our country. “A memorandum will be signed which will enable the work and the start of this network where apart from the members of the AEGEE – Skopje (the Orators’ club), the Club of young historians in Macedonia, AIESEC (organization of the Faculty of Economy), the Macedonian students’ ethnological association, as well as representatives of the Political studies and diplomacy of FSS and students from the University of Southeast Europe (Shtul University) will take part”, adds in the end Dragancho Apostolovski.