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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Campaign “For the Benefit of Serbia” positive and informative

Belgrade, 11 October 2006

Director of the Serbian government's Office of Media Relations Srdjan Djuric said today that the campaign being conducted by this office is to promote the new Constitution of Serbia, and to explain to citizens which benefits the Constitution can bring and why they should vote at the referendum being held at the end of the month.

In a statement to the news agency Tanjug, Djuric said that the campaign being conducted under the slogan “For the Benefit of Serbia” is a reflection of what happened in parliament on September 30, and added that it is a unique campaign because this was the first time that all parliament members, regardless of their political views, voted for the text of the Constitution.

We are acting as promoters of a good idea for the benefit of this country and a better life, due to that this campaign is special because it is intended for everyone, and is without any intention of promoting a person, to provoke or to be misused, said Djruic.

He explained that the Office of Media Relations has therefore designed a positive and informative campaign, on several levels of communication, so that citizens can get to know what the new Constitution will bring and in which way it will be implemented.

It is our wish that October 28 and 29 prove to be good days for Serbia, and even if some solutions offered are not the best and not suitable for all, they are certainly better than what we had earlier, stressed Djruic and added that the entire Office of Media Relations is working and will continue to do so until the end of the campaign.

According to Djuric, the promotion campaign is based on communication through the print and electronic media, as well as billboards. There is also cooperation with television stations which have been forwarded the request to broadcast on the theme of the Constitution as much as possible, so that citizens can bring an informed decision regarding the supreme legal act.

Djuric pointed to the fact that this campaign is also a kind of public debate, so that the first thing which was done, before any kind of promotion, was the publication of the text of the Constitution in daily newspapers, and that will be done also through other media by the end of the campaign.

He said that the media, each in their own way, have joined the campaign and acknowledged the idea and the necessity to inform citizens as much as possible on what the Constitution offers which is new and good for Serbia, therefore this promotion will not be conducted as commercial or political advertising.

Djuric stressed that the campaign will be unique also in the sense that it will not carry the brand of the government, nor will it focus on any political party, or politician because it is in the interest of all citizens.

However, a number of people who are not from the political sphere are already engaged in the effort of calling upon the public to vote at the referendum, including members of the Serbian national football team who voluntarily offered to promote the supreme legal act through television appearances, said Djuric.

He said that the promotion campaign will be intensified in the upcoming days through various activities and television commercials, and will be particularly focused on the young, so that it can be explained to them how the Constitution will be of great benefit in the long term.

Similarly, he said, it has been left to the political parties which favour the Constitution to decide how they will organise the referendum campaign, for which purpose funds have been allocated through rebalancing the budget.

The government has 120 million dinars at its disposal for conducting the campaign, and due to short deadlines it has been decided that the Office of Media Relations lead the campaign on its own and negotiates with the media, so no agency will be engaged, stressed Djuric. He added that at the end of the campaign the public will be informed on all contracts and expenditures made.