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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Mandate of negotiating team's expert extremely difficult and demanding

Belgrade/Fribourg, 5 December 2005

The Advisor in the Serbian negotiating team for political talks on the future status of Kosovo-Metohija, Swiss Professor Thomas Fleiner, said today that if any member of the negotiating team still has the slightest legitimate doubt concerning his credibility, he is prepared to immediately withdraw from the position of the team's expert.

Thomas Fleiner

Author: federalism.ch

The Serbian government's official website gives Thomas Fleiner's statement in full.

"It is almost a week now that the media in Belgrade have been raising doubts about my professional and political independence as a foreign expert on the Negotiation Team for K&M. Most notably, that was the case in the Interview given by the President of Serbia and Co-president of the Negotiation Team, Mr. Boris Tadic, given to Nin of 2. December 2005, as well as in the Press Statement of his Cabinet, issued on December 3rd, 2005. With this statement, I want the public in Serbia to be correctly and in full informed about the issues that have obviously been a matter of repeated speculation.

I always assumed that nobody of those who asked me to participate as an expert in the negotiation team had doubted my professional and political independence in this matter, since this is a basic precondition in order to be contacted in this matter. However, if somebody would have previously raised this issue, I would of course have been glad to nswer any suchquestion. In this case, if the slightest doubt with regard to my independence would have been communicated to me, I would have never accepted the mandate. I know very well that I can assume this difficult and most demanding mandate with highest responsibility only if I am an independent expert, committed to the cause of a long lasting peaceful solution in which all people can live peacefully together within a economically prosperous, secure area and healthy environment of Kosovo and Metohija.

Now, that my independence has been openly and repeatedly questioned in the Belgrade media, the public has a right to get full and transparent information on my position. For all those who are interested to get further information, they can consult the website of the Institute of Federalism of which I am the director, and of the chair of Thomas Fleiner integrated in the institute (www.federalism.ch). There they find all my recent conferences and the indication of the publications I have published in recent years in English, German and French including my full CV. Here the information that the public in Serbia has the right to know when they read about me:

1. As a university professor, I receive my full salary from the University and the Canton of Fribourg. All full professors, which I happen to be since 1971, enjoy tenure and can not be removed for their personal opinions. Thus, the Swiss government does not pay my professor’s income as has been suggested in the media.

2. As a director of the Institute of Federalism, I also get an additional salary much smaller than my professor salary for my additional responsibility and mandate to assume the leadership of this institute. 3. For my mandate as an Expert within the negotiation team, I have already orally convened that the Serbian Government and not the Swiss government will pay not to me personally but to the Institute for the work I have to carry out for the mandate. The amount of the payment would be calculated according to the standards and financial capacities in Serbia& Montenegro and would thus be significantly lower than this is the case when expertise mandates are paid by the Swiss government. Until now, there has been no more specific, let alone final decision on the amount.

4. According to Article 20 of the Federal Constitution and to Article 3 of the Law on the University of the Canton of Fribourg, freedom of science, teaching and research is guaranteed. As a University institute, the Institute of Federalism and its collaborators, me included, enjoy this full independence and liberty. According to the Swiss tradition and political culture, a Minister of the Federal Government would never dare directly or indirectly, try to influence scientific opinion and consulting expertise of a professor. Such intention or action would not be tolerated in the public and could be sued in an administrative court. As a university Institute, the Institute of Federalism enjoys this liberty, autonomy and independence without any restrictions.

5. During my entire professional life, I have never accepted any mandate, which would have required me to support a position or opinion against my personal or professional conviction. In fact, during my whole professional life I have permanently and vigorously rejected any attempt to influence my personal or professional opinion by any argument or economic profit external to the public interest. Moreover, with regard to the dissolution process of Yugoslavia, I have always maintained and publicly defended my opinion, firmly convinced that it was an example of objective and unbiased approach, regardless of the main tune of the media, public opinion and official policy in Switzerland.

6. The Institute of Federalism (IFF) is financed partially by the University and partially by mandates based on concrete projects it assumes for different clients (e.g. World Bank, foreign governments, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation -SDC, Council od Europe). It is true though that the SDC being part of the Swiss foreign office ministry is actually one of the most important clients and partners of the Institute of Federalism. The mandate given to the IFF builds on a three-year contract, to be renewed for the beginning of 2007. Here I would like to be clear andstraightforward: the Swiss Foreign Ministry has never tried and would never try to influence the institute in its scientific opinion and research, since it would against basic principles of professionalism and freedom of scientific research, as understood and always supported also by the Swiss Government. This is why, since the beginning of this cooperation, the Agency has always fully respected the scientific opinion of the institute and its members.

7. In our long-term Strategy, formally adopted by the Council of the Institute, we stick to the following principles for our operation: “We are politically independent. Our scientific research is policy oriented. We promote interdisciplinary methods, and look for practical solutions. We respect our local partners, listen to them, learn from them and support them within their proper responsibility” This is also my personal philosophy and behaviour I always felt committed to.

8. As a recognized scholar of international standing, Professor Slobodan Samardzic was invited already in October 2004 to join the Institute as a guest professor. It was then that we agreed that his three-month stay would begin as of October 1st, 2005. Professor Samardzic was asked to provide us with his expertise on conflicting aspects of decentralisation strategies in the Balkans in a form of a policy analysis paper. Again, it would be against freedom of academic research and basic policy of the institute to influence the opinion of Prof. Samardzic; nor has Prof. Samdardzic ever tried to influence the political opinion of the institute and its members.

9. As a lawyer, I enjoy in Switzerland the privilege of professional secrecy legally protected by the courts. Thus, the confidentiality with regard to the negotiation team of my independence and professional support is fully secured.

11. In several publications one has mentioned my wife and additionally my personal relationship to several persons in Serbia. These relationships are correct and I am proud and happy for all my very good friends I have in the area of Ex Yugoslavia. These emotional ties motivate me in my endeavour to help all of them and to contribute with all my forces for a good solution, accaptebaly by all involved in a conflict. These relationships helped me strongly to more understand the situation in the Balkans, but they have never influenced my professional independence in drawing conclusions.

12. In case any member of the negotiation team, notably one of its copresidents, President of the Republic Boris Tadic, would still have the slightest legitimate doubt about my credibility, I am prepared immideately to step down from my position as an expert on the negotiation team."

Thomas Fleiner