Live Chat with Marko Rakar

(04/16/2010)

  

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10:24

[Standby]  We'll be starting in five minutes! (At 10.30 CET)

10:29

John Heaven:  Okay, it's about time to start now. Friday April 16, 2010 10:29 John Heaven

10:29

[Comment From Sir Zeljko RihaSir Zeljko Riha: ]  Hello Mrak :) Friday April 16, 2010 10:29 Sir Zeljko Riha

10:30

John Heaven:  Does anybody want to ask a question? Friday April 16, 2010 10:30 John Heaven

10:30

Marko Rakar:  good morning to everybody Friday April 16, 2010 10:30 Marko Rakar

10:30

[Comment From MariettaMarietta: ]  good morning Friday April 16, 2010 10:30 Marietta

10:30

John Heaven:  Thanks to Marko for taking part, and welcome to the PEP-NET live chat. Friday April 16, 2010 10:30 John Heaven

10:31

[Comment From Sir Zeljko RihaSir Zeljko Riha: ]  Hi Marko, how do you feel after everything regarding registar branitelja? Friday April 16, 2010 10:31 Sir Zeljko Riha

10:31

Marko Rakar:  well, I have mixed feelings about this Friday April 16, 2010 10:31 Marko Rakar

10:31

Marko Rakar:  my arrest was mildely amusing since this is completely new experience for me Friday April 16, 2010 10:31 Marko Rakar

10:31

Marko Rakar:  but at the same time, this is a role I never thought I will be Friday April 16, 2010 10:31 Marko Rakar

10:32

Marko Rakar:  and of course I did not like media attention Friday April 16, 2010 10:32 Marko Rakar

10:33

John Heaven:  Thanks for telling us about that, and it's good to know that you're okay. So more generally about eParticipation in Central and Eastern Europe: what influence does the internet have on politics in Croatia? Friday April 16, 2010 10:33 John Heaven

10:34

Marko Rakar:  we have done a lot with internet in croatia Friday April 16, 2010 10:34 Marko Rakar

10:34

Marko Rakar:  for example during parliament elections in 2007 internet played significant role Friday April 16, 2010 10:34 Marko Rakar

10:34

Marko Rakar:  anonymous user called bijesprvi made a series of funny videos about interior minister Friday April 16, 2010 10:34 Marko Rakar

10:35

Marko Rakar:  and within a year he was third most unpopular politician in the country Friday April 16, 2010 10:35 Marko Rakar

10:35

Marko Rakar:  he ended up resigning and he was not reelected into parliament Friday April 16, 2010 10:35 Marko Rakar

10:35

Marko Rakar:  we had situation in 2008 when one person alegedly published a picture of our prime minister with nazi uniform Friday April 16, 2010 10:35 Marko Rakar

10:36

Marko Rakar:  he did that on facebook, and facebook populatiojn increased threefold in two weeks :) Friday April 16, 2010 10:36 Marko Rakar

10:36

Marko Rakar:  we had a number of secret contract and government shady dealings exposed on internet Friday April 16, 2010 10:36 Marko Rakar

10:36

Marko Rakar:  and of course, there is a voter fraud which was exposed exactly a year ago Friday April 16, 2010 10:36 Marko Rakar

10:36

Marko Rakar:  this was done by me and my site pollitika.com Friday April 16, 2010 10:36 Marko Rakar

10:37

[Comment From Simon DelakordaSimon Delakorda: ]  Hi Marko, John, everyone! Friday April 16, 2010 10:37 Simon Delakorda

10:37

John Heaven:  We're getting several questions about your recent arrest. I think perhaps we can discuss that later on? Friday April 16, 2010 10:37 John Heaven

10:37

Marko Rakar:  and we ended up winning edemocracy award for 2009 (we were within "top 10 who are changing the world of politics on the internet") Friday April 16, 2010 10:37 Marko Rakar

10:38

Marko Rakar:  so to sum up, yes, internet is quite powerful medium in croatia and we have used it much better then surrounding countries Friday April 16, 2010 10:38 Marko Rakar

10:38

John Heaven:  Is it only during elections that the internet plays an important part in politics? Friday April 16, 2010 10:38 John Heaven

10:38

[Comment From somedsomed: ]  Marko, do think politicians are aware of the political potential of theb web in Croatia? And are they using it proactively? Friday April 16, 2010 10:38 somed

10:39

Marko Rakar:  John, no internet is used daily, but it is more in the focus during campaigns Friday April 16, 2010 10:39 Marko Rakar

10:39

Marko Rakar:  somed, politicians use internet but unfortunately we are yet to see reall two_way communication with voters on the internet Friday April 16, 2010 10:39 Marko Rakar

10:40

Marko Rakar:  the closest we have been to that goal is local elections in may last year with race for mayor of zagreb (I was leading that campaign) Friday April 16, 2010 10:40 Marko Rakar

10:40

Marko Rakar:  but, for example in latest persidential elections, although internet was major part of the campaign I still feel we were missing a lot Friday April 16, 2010 10:40 Marko Rakar

10:40

[Comment From BenPixelBenPixel: ]  I have question about why didnt you join Croatian President team? Friday April 16, 2010 10:40 BenPixel

10:41

Marko Rakar:  we could do it better Friday April 16, 2010 10:41 Marko Rakar

10:41

Marko Rakar:  ben, to make long story short, about 24 hours before inauguration of new president one court sentence against me was leaked to the media Friday April 16, 2010 10:41 Marko Rakar

10:42

Marko Rakar:  that sentence is about tax audit in one of the companies I was manager in 2003 Friday April 16, 2010 10:42 Marko Rakar

10:42

Marko Rakar:  and some tax debt was detected there and as a result company went to bankrupcy Friday April 16, 2010 10:42 Marko Rakar

10:42

Marko Rakar:  what is not known is that I was asked to bribe tax officers and I refused Friday April 16, 2010 10:42 Marko Rakar

10:42

Marko Rakar:  problem is that I was unable to prove that in court Friday April 16, 2010 10:42 Marko Rakar

10:43

Marko Rakar:  regardless of the fact that at least one person from that team ended up in jail because of very same offence Friday April 16, 2010 10:43 Marko Rakar

10:43

Marko Rakar:  but this is not over and I do not have doubts that I will clean my name Friday April 16, 2010 10:43 Marko Rakar

10:43

[Comment From Simon DelakordaSimon Delakorda: ]  My question for Marko: Croatia is ranked 25th on the world according to the UN e-participation index. What is your opinion about this and what do you think are the reasons for this high rank? Friday April 16, 2010 10:43 Simon Delakorda

10:44

Marko Rakar:  well, I like to think that this is at least partialy because of effort my friends and I make to make politics on the internet more accessible :) Friday April 16, 2010 10:44 Marko Rakar

10:44

Marko Rakar:  but if you monitor our government, you will see that they are completely missing the mark Friday April 16, 2010 10:44 Marko Rakar

10:45

Marko Rakar:  for example, main office for all internet activities is so called "eHrvatska" or "eCroatia" agency Friday April 16, 2010 10:45 Marko Rakar

10:45

Marko Rakar:  and their main achievment is promoting switch from analog to digital tv signal Friday April 16, 2010 10:45 Marko Rakar

10:46

Marko Rakar:  that is to say that I have ability to eParticipate simply because I have microwave with digital display, this is plain silly Friday April 16, 2010 10:46 Marko Rakar

10:47

John Heaven:  I noticed that 12% of homes have internet connections, but mobile penetration is 130%. Is mobile the future in Croatia? Friday April 16, 2010 10:47 John Heaven

10:47

Marko Rakar:  hm, I do not know about that Friday April 16, 2010 10:47 Marko Rakar

10:47

Marko Rakar:  our polls show that approximately 2million people have internet access Friday April 16, 2010 10:47 Marko Rakar

10:47

Marko Rakar:  out of 4.5 million population Friday April 16, 2010 10:47 Marko Rakar

10:48

Marko Rakar:  the problem with that is that the number of internet users is not growing enough Friday April 16, 2010 10:48 Marko Rakar

10:48

somed:  Marko, it has been disussed here that the main the obstacles for eParticipation in CEE is distrust in Governments and the weak participatory tradition. Is that true for Croatia as well? Friday April 16, 2010 10:48 somed

10:48

Marko Rakar:  and mostly existing users are converted to broadband but no new users are added Friday April 16, 2010 10:48 Marko Rakar

10:48

Marko Rakar:  somed, yes, we do not have culture of participation and it will take time to develop that Friday April 16, 2010 10:48 Marko Rakar

10:49

Marko Rakar:  also, our own government does not help and they do not ask for participation Friday April 16, 2010 10:49 Marko Rakar

10:49

John Heaven:  What is the EU's role? Friday April 16, 2010 10:49 John Heaven

10:49

Marko Rakar:  basically, regardless of the fact that we are 20 years out of communism, this people in power were educated at that time and they do not know better Friday April 16, 2010 10:49 Marko Rakar

10:50

[Comment From Bengt FeilBengt Feil: ]  Some participants of this online discourse have identified social capital to be one of the important factors for successful political engagement. If that is true could a wider use of the internet in Croatia lead to improvement of social capital and therefore political engagement? Friday April 16, 2010 10:50 Bengt Feil

10:50

Marko Rakar:  john, EU role... well the thing is that our government is talking a lot about EU help but when they they talk about infrastructure Friday April 16, 2010 10:50 Marko Rakar

10:51

Marko Rakar:  and infrastructure in croatia means roads, water and sewage pipes; they do not thing in temrs of it infrastructure, broadband penetration, education and other cornerstones of successfull society Friday April 16, 2010 10:51 Marko Rakar

10:51

Marko Rakar:  bengt, the thing is that you have real problems in order to start calling people to participate Friday April 16, 2010 10:51 Marko Rakar

10:52

Marko Rakar:  political parties are financed from state budget and they do not have real incentive to share information and those who hold information are also the ones who draw their power from it Friday April 16, 2010 10:52 Marko Rakar

10:52

Marko Rakar:  our government is unfortunately not transparent and they are not trying to improve that Friday April 16, 2010 10:52 Marko Rakar

10:53

John Heaven:  We've got a question from Simon Delakorda coming in -- I'll publish that now. Marko, let me know if we're going too quickly! Friday April 16, 2010 10:53 John Heaven

10:53

[Comment From Simon DelakordaSimon Delakorda: ]  One more question: Where do you think the internet brings most added value to the political democracy – is this within the representative model of democracy (elections campaign, e-voting, political blogs) or within participatory (deliberative) model of democracy (on-line consultations, e-petitions etc.)? Both? Or somewhere else? Friday April 16, 2010 10:53 Simon Delakorda

10:54

Marko Rakar:  simon, great question and let me sum up what I have done in the past Friday April 16, 2010 10:54 Marko Rakar

10:54

Marko Rakar:  first, i have created group blog pollitika.com which is by far the largest web community dedicated to politics in Croatia Friday April 16, 2010 10:54 Marko Rakar

10:55

Marko Rakar:  this is not a mainstream medium, but it is important enough that one of my most regulars visitors come from government, parliament and military (military because spy agencies are on their link :) Friday April 16, 2010 10:55 Marko Rakar

10:55

Marko Rakar:  also, media houses are regulars and some of their authors participate there too; so if you ahve a message which you want to send to the government pollitika.com is a place to do that Friday April 16, 2010 10:55 Marko Rakar

10:56

Marko Rakar:  second, I have created few ad hoc teams in order to achieve some goals Friday April 16, 2010 10:56 Marko Rakar

10:56

Marko Rakar:  for example I ahve created a web site afere.pollitika.com with interactive google_maps style of map with a list of affairs in Croatia Friday April 16, 2010 10:56 Marko Rakar

10:56

John Heaven:  Okay, a question from Tim Bonnemann if you're ready? Friday April 16, 2010 10:56 John Heaven

10:57

Marko Rakar:  we have created another team which created a request for constitutional court to reexamine election law Friday April 16, 2010 10:57 Marko Rakar

10:57

Marko Rakar:  jonh, just shoot :) Friday April 16, 2010 10:57 Marko Rakar

10:57

[Comment From Tim BonnemannTim Bonnemann: ]  Marko, could you recommend a few Croatian bloggers or Twitterers who cover things like participation and open government there? Thanks. Friday April 16, 2010 10:57 Tim Bonnemann

10:58

Marko Rakar:  huh, basically all of us write in croatian language so it will be a little hard to follow Friday April 16, 2010 10:58 Marko Rakar

10:58

Marko Rakar:  but I would say that easiest would be to follow pollitika.com, most of bloggers who deal with politics are active on pollitika.com Friday April 16, 2010 10:58 Marko Rakar

10:58

John Heaven:  Google Translate is our friend! Friday April 16, 2010 10:58 John Heaven

10:59

[Comment From Tim BonnemannTim Bonnemann: ]  I admit my Croatian is... non-existent. ;-) Friday April 16, 2010 10:59 Tim Bonnemann

10:59

Marko Rakar:  I guess google translation will give you rough picture what is going on and what subjects are currently on the table Friday April 16, 2010 10:59 Marko Rakar

10:59

[Comment From Bengt FeilBengt Feil: ]  If you look at the wider CEE region. Is language the highest barrier for cross country collaberation for example in ecampaigning? Friday April 16, 2010 10:59 Bengt Feil

10:59

Marko Rakar:  bengt, I think that problems croatia have is widely different from the problems other countries have Friday April 16, 2010 10:59 Marko Rakar

11:00

Marko Rakar:  we are on the edge of EU and our problems are non existent in for example bosnia or serbia Friday April 16, 2010 11:00 Marko Rakar

11:00

Marko Rakar:  and their problems are either long forgotten in Croatia or have never existed here Friday April 16, 2010 11:00 Marko Rakar

11:01

Marko Rakar:  but otherwise, with people of bosnia, serbia and montenegro we do not have (significant) language problems Friday April 16, 2010 11:01 Marko Rakar

11:01

Marko Rakar:  as far as internet is concerned, croatia with 4.5mil people is simply too small to support significant internet operation and we have to aim for the region regardless if we want it or not Friday April 16, 2010 11:01 Marko Rakar

11:02

Marko Rakar:  for example, twitter community is more or less regional, facebook less so Friday April 16, 2010 11:02 Marko Rakar

11:03

John Heaven:  Marko: are your fingers tired yet? I'm sure we've got plenty more questions! Friday April 16, 2010 11:03 John Heaven

11:04

[Comment From Bengt FeilBengt Feil: ]  So you would say as long as we do not try to set up Europe wide consultation etc. language is not as big as and issue as it is made out to be sometimes? Friday April 16, 2010 11:04 Bengt Feil

11:04

Marko Rakar:  no problem, I type whole day :) Friday April 16, 2010 11:04 Marko Rakar

11:04

[Comment From petra malesevicpetra malesevic: ]  marko, I think that bengt tought of CEE countries as Hungary, Czech Rep., Slovakia Friday April 16, 2010 11:04 petra malesevic

11:05

Marko Rakar:  well, language is a barrier but I think that our history is bigger obstacle :) Friday April 16, 2010 11:05 Marko Rakar

11:05

[Comment From Michael RemmertMichael Remmert: ]  To follow up on Simon's earlier question about the participatory (deliberative) model of democracy (on-line consultations, e-petitions etc.), could you imagine that for example local authorities in Croatia would use such tools in, say, local planning processes? Or is internet penetration still to low to envisage this ? Friday April 16, 2010 11:05 Michael Remmert

11:06

Marko Rakar:  petra, as far as CEE countries are involved I have to say that we have very limited connections to countries outside of former yugoslavia; I for example is more connected to people from western eu then CEE countries Friday April 16, 2010 11:06 Marko Rakar

11:06

Marko Rakar:  michael, one of my plans with presidents office was to do exactly that Friday April 16, 2010 11:06 Marko Rakar

11:06

Marko Rakar:  I feel that I have tried just about any e_tool which you can imagine from the point of person who is not in power Friday April 16, 2010 11:06 Marko Rakar

11:07

Marko Rakar:  if I were appointed to presidents office my goal would be to dramaticaly increase participation of president on the internet Friday April 16, 2010 11:07 Marko Rakar

11:07

Marko Rakar:  for example, we can publish all our expenses on the internet, we could publish visitors logs Friday April 16, 2010 11:07 Marko Rakar

11:07

Marko Rakar:  we could do something along the lines of epetition or something like google moderator to ask questions (and respond to them) Friday April 16, 2010 11:07 Marko Rakar

11:08

Marko Rakar:  I would really like to open all data to the public and then see what happens Friday April 16, 2010 11:08 Marko Rakar

11:08

Marko Rakar:  and of course, if done right, that project would dramaticaly increase pressure on other government offices, ministries and agencies Friday April 16, 2010 11:08 Marko Rakar

11:09

Marko Rakar:  and we could be used as example on how it is done Friday April 16, 2010 11:09 Marko Rakar

11:09

Marko Rakar:  I actually have a lecture tomorrow on what I wanted to do with presidents office Friday April 16, 2010 11:09 Marko Rakar

11:09

Marko Rakar:  possibilities are huge, and the best part is that IT and transparency is best tool to fight entrenched beaurocracy Friday April 16, 2010 11:09 Marko Rakar

11:10

Marko Rakar:  we just need political decision and ethernet cable to the server where all data is already stored Friday April 16, 2010 11:10 Marko Rakar

11:10

Marko Rakar:  this is cheapest way to increase transparency and increase accountability of public officials Friday April 16, 2010 11:10 Marko Rakar

11:11

John Heaven:  Do you think things like open data are more likely in Croatia and the rest of C&E Europe or less likely? Friday April 16, 2010 11:11 John Heaven

11:11

Marko Rakar:  well, it depends, unfortunately I do not see initiatives from current government officials Friday April 16, 2010 11:11 Marko Rakar

11:11

Marko Rakar:  I can just tell you what i would do if given chance Friday April 16, 2010 11:11 Marko Rakar

11:12

Marko Rakar:  but you have to understand that plenty of people in power draw their strength from controling information Friday April 16, 2010 11:12 Marko Rakar

11:12

somed:  Marko in the EU as well as in severela member states like UK, France, Germany, there is a battle going on re surveillance. Lot's of politicans are in favour of blocking people's internet access e.g. in case of copyright infringement. Is that an issue in croatia too? Friday April 16, 2010 11:12 somed

11:12

Marko Rakar:  and giving away that information is going to affect balance of power Friday April 16, 2010 11:12 Marko Rakar

11:12

Marko Rakar:  somed, no we do not have that kind of "problems" here Friday April 16, 2010 11:12 Marko Rakar

11:13

Marko Rakar:  our legal framework is not so strong at the moment, but this will come to croatia as well too Friday April 16, 2010 11:13 Marko Rakar

11:13

Marko Rakar:  it is just question of time and I think it is inevitable Friday April 16, 2010 11:13 Marko Rakar

11:14

Marko Rakar:  better to say "I know" not "I think"; intelectual property should be guarded Friday April 16, 2010 11:14 Marko Rakar

11:14

John Heaven:  Does anybody else have any questions/comments? Friday April 16, 2010 11:14 John Heaven

11:16

[Comment From Bengt FeilBengt Feil: ]  As many surveillance and IP related laws are made on the EU level this topic might come to Croatia pretty soon. Friday April 16, 2010 11:16 Bengt Feil

11:16

Marko Rakar:  it is a grey area at the moment, our spy agencies have ability and legal framework to eavesdrop on citizens (and I know that my internet connection is monitored at the moment) Friday April 16, 2010 11:16 Marko Rakar

11:17

Marko Rakar:  but so far they have not done that in order to find people downloading pirated music, movies or similar (at least not that I know about it) Friday April 16, 2010 11:17 Marko Rakar

11:17

[Comment From Bengt FeilBengt Feil: ]  Open Source software plays an important role in eParticipation. In many cases it is the basis on which successful sites are built. Does Open Source software play a special role in the Central and Eastern European region and in Croatia specifically? Friday April 16, 2010 11:17 Bengt Feil

11:17

[Comment From CsabaCsaba: ]  hello Marko! I have heard, that Croatia is very good in adapting opensource softwares. How do you see that? Friday April 16, 2010 11:17 Csaba

11:18

Marko Rakar:  well, all of my projects are done on open source platforms and I have even returned some of my software and modules to the community (namely drupal community) Friday April 16, 2010 11:18 Marko Rakar

11:18

Marko Rakar:  government itself do not use open source (except for some websites), creative commons usage is rare Friday April 16, 2010 11:18 Marko Rakar

11:18

Marko Rakar:  and government uses microsoft as a platform of choice Friday April 16, 2010 11:18 Marko Rakar

11:19

Marko Rakar:  but we do have lively opensource community and I feel there are a number of great things coming from croatia Friday April 16, 2010 11:19 Marko Rakar

11:20

[Comment From CsabaCsaba: ]  what would you highlight from these? Friday April 16, 2010 11:20 Csaba

11:20

Marko Rakar:  I am personaly founder of two NGOs related to promotion of web businesses (called initium) and one for web developers (croatian web developers association) Friday April 16, 2010 11:20 Marko Rakar

11:20

Marko Rakar:  (one of the founders to be precise) Friday April 16, 2010 11:20 Marko Rakar

11:21

[Comment From nvucinicnvucinic: ]  why is croatian government using microsoft products ? Friday April 16, 2010 11:21 nvucinic

11:21

Marko Rakar:  well, at some point in time they have signed contract with MS and now whole government uses MS products Friday April 16, 2010 11:21 Marko Rakar

11:22

Marko Rakar:  I would not say that this is bad, but what is disturbing is complete lack of government IT strategy, we do not have aim, goals or clear path how to get wherever we are going Friday April 16, 2010 11:22 Marko Rakar

11:23

John Heaven:  We've got a slightly less formal question from Csaba: Friday April 16, 2010 11:23 John Heaven

11:23

[Comment From CsabaCsaba: ]  what is your favourite place in your coutnry? Friday April 16, 2010 11:23 Csaba

11:25

Marko Rakar:  if you wish to visit croatia I would recommend to spre some time and visit plitvica lakes (chain of 30+ lakes connected with beautiful waterfalls), if you go to seaside it would be nice to visit kornati islands (1000+ vulcanic islands in mid dalmatia) and of course dubrovnik, split.... Friday April 16, 2010 11:25 Marko Rakar

11:25

Marko Rakar:  and zagreb, my hometown :) Friday April 16, 2010 11:25 Marko Rakar

11:26

John Heaven:  I haven't been to Croatia, but I know lots of people who have been on holiday there and they always say positive things! Friday April 16, 2010 11:26 John Heaven

11:26

Marko Rakar:  well, I have been traveling all over the world and I am sure that you have not seen sea like ours anywhere else Friday April 16, 2010 11:26 Marko Rakar

11:27

John Heaven:  I think working with people from different countries is great -- on a personal level (like talking about holiday destinations) and on professional level. What do you gain from international contacts? Friday April 16, 2010 11:27 John Heaven

11:27

[Comment From DorotheeDorothee: ]  there are 4.4 million people living in croatia. how can they built up a network to influence government&politics in an efficient way. And how can they gain international support? Friday April 16, 2010 11:27 Dorothee

11:28

Marko Rakar:  I am sure we can do it, only if we work together :) Friday April 16, 2010 11:28 Marko Rakar

11:28

Marko Rakar:  I mean if four youtube movies ousted a government minister then we have powerbase to do even more that that Friday April 16, 2010 11:28 Marko Rakar

11:29

Marko Rakar:  I am really interested at the moment to do something about transparency and eparticipation from government side because I feel that will open a can of worms and public pressure will be increase dramaticaly Friday April 16, 2010 11:29 Marko Rakar

11:30

[Comment From nvucinicnvucinic: ]  is there some initiative right now to influence government over IT ? :) Friday April 16, 2010 11:30 nvucinic

11:30

[Comment From DorotheeDorothee: ]  are there alternative networks to internet networks? Friday April 16, 2010 11:30 Dorothee

11:30

Marko Rakar:  Currently, I am preparing one web site which is supposed to create graphical representation of croatian state budget so that anyone can browse it and seek for unusual items in it Friday April 16, 2010 11:30 Marko Rakar

11:31

Marko Rakar:  nvucinic, the thins is that government does not want to talk to "small people" they will talk with CEO of telecom or of big integrators, but they will not talk with us from web community Friday April 16, 2010 11:31 Marko Rakar

11:32

Marko Rakar:  and my thinking is that inovation will come from us, small developers, activists and similar people; big CEOs just want to increase their share of publci contracts and to keep their market share Friday April 16, 2010 11:32 Marko Rakar

11:32

Marko Rakar:  what we are looking for will inevitably endanger their businesses and we can not expect support from them Friday April 16, 2010 11:32 Marko Rakar

11:33

John Heaven:  A similar criticism -- talking to big companies and not the web community -- was levelled at Birmingham City Council (the local government in my home city) when they released their new website. Friday April 16, 2010 11:33 John Heaven

11:33

Marko Rakar:  dorothee, there is lively NGO scene in croatia but is unfortunately largely fragmented; also we do not have culture of financing NGOs so they have troubled times surviving Friday April 16, 2010 11:33 Marko Rakar

11:34

Marko Rakar:  john, when it was decided that I am not going to work for president journalists asked me what about presidents web site and his ePresidency promise Friday April 16, 2010 11:34 Marko Rakar

11:34

Marko Rakar:  I told them that they will have public tender, cheapest will win and that is that Friday April 16, 2010 11:34 Marko Rakar

11:35

Marko Rakar:  eparticipation is not having a web site for feedback form Friday April 16, 2010 11:35 Marko Rakar

11:35

[Comment From Michael RemmertMichael Remmert: ]  One obstacle to people using the internet as a platform for democractic engagement is the relatively low internet penetration in your country and others. But I think that another key resource is information and internet literacy. Is this being addressed in the Croatian educational system? Friday April 16, 2010 11:35 Michael Remmert

11:35

Marko Rakar:  eparticipation is growing culture of two way communication and you can not buy that on public tender Friday April 16, 2010 11:35 Marko Rakar

11:36

Marko Rakar:  micahel, I have a son who is 8.5 years old and to my complete surprise I have discovered that computer classes are NOT obligatory in croatian schools Friday April 16, 2010 11:36 Marko Rakar

11:36

Marko Rakar:  this is disappointing to extreme (at least to me) Friday April 16, 2010 11:36 Marko Rakar

11:36

Marko Rakar:  low penetration is also a problem, but I look at it from two sides Friday April 16, 2010 11:36 Marko Rakar

11:37

Marko Rakar:  you either need to have mass medium power (huge penetration, huge user base) Friday April 16, 2010 11:37 Marko Rakar

11:37

Marko Rakar:  or you need to have relevant public watching you Friday April 16, 2010 11:37 Marko Rakar

11:37

Marko Rakar:  we DO have relevant public, so it is second best Friday April 16, 2010 11:37 Marko Rakar

11:37

Marko Rakar:  but increased internet penetration is a problem and it will take a lot of time to resolve Friday April 16, 2010 11:37 Marko Rakar

11:37

Marko Rakar:  this is structural problem Friday April 16, 2010 11:37 Marko Rakar

11:39

John Heaven:  I've got a question from Bengt about the US Community Fiber programme. Any more questions/comments about "digital literacy", or shall we move on to Bengt's question? Friday April 16, 2010 11:39 John Heaven

11:39

John Heaven:  Okay, another question from Simon. Marko: you choose! Friday April 16, 2010 11:39 John Heaven

11:39

[Comment From Bengt FeilBengt Feil: ]  On the other hand some companies have stated that they make more money if more people use the net. Google for example is trying to push the US government to improve the internet infrastructure through its Community Fiber effort right now. Could that be a model for Croatia too? Friday April 16, 2010 11:39 Bengt Feil

11:39

[Comment From Simon DelakordaSimon Delakorda: ]  Marko,Is funding (finance) for e-participation projects an important issue from both a professional in sustainability view point? Are there any funds available in Croatia (e.g. for NGOs projects) for strengthening e-participation? Friday April 16, 2010 11:39 Simon Delakorda

11:40

Marko Rakar:  I can just mention that my organization CROWD is currently working with croatian ECDL office on the project of eCitizen Friday April 16, 2010 11:40 Marko Rakar

11:40

Marko Rakar:  simon, i am not aware of any project or fund which is helong online projects in croatia Friday April 16, 2010 11:40 Marko Rakar

11:40

Marko Rakar:  i do have some plans but all of them involve foreign donors Friday April 16, 2010 11:40 Marko Rakar

11:41

Marko Rakar:  and you have to understand our unique position Friday April 16, 2010 11:41 Marko Rakar

11:41

Marko Rakar:  foreign donors have decided that croatia is on the door of EU and they withdrew Friday April 16, 2010 11:41 Marko Rakar

11:41

Marko Rakar:  and yet, some basic community infrastructure is not yet built Friday April 16, 2010 11:41 Marko Rakar

11:42

Marko Rakar:  (social inffrastructure) and government uses that advantage on their behalf; croatia is quite unique in some senses Friday April 16, 2010 11:42 Marko Rakar

11:42

Marko Rakar:  even comparing to neighbouring countries Friday April 16, 2010 11:42 Marko Rakar

11:45

John Heaven:  Are your internatioanl networks mostly within the C&E Europe region, or all of Europe, or elsewhere (e.g. US)? Friday April 16, 2010 11:45 John Heaven

11:46

Marko Rakar:  well, I am doing some stuff together with council of europe and organisations which are cooperating with them. so I am more or less known in the region as well (basically as evangelist for internet engagement of politicians and people) Friday April 16, 2010 11:46 Marko Rakar

11:47

Marko Rakar:  but professionaly, I do a lot of work with european and international organizations and most of my contacts are in US Friday April 16, 2010 11:47 Marko Rakar

11:48

Marko Rakar:  US is still on the front of eparticipation, although there are great examples in europe as well Friday April 16, 2010 11:48 Marko Rakar

11:48

Marko Rakar:  I am particulary interested in push promoted by david cameron in UK at the moment, a lot of promises were given Friday April 16, 2010 11:48 Marko Rakar

11:48

Marko Rakar:  I know that france is doing a lot on transparency... Friday April 16, 2010 11:48 Marko Rakar

11:50

[Comment From Simon DelakordaSimon Delakorda: ]  Marko, it was a great pleasure to chat with you. I am sorry, but I have to leave now. Best regards from Slovenia. Friday April 16, 2010 11:50 Simon Delakorda

11:51

John Heaven:  Okay, we've got ten minutes left. Don't forget that you can still discuss eParticipation in Central and Eastern Europe until next Friday on www.internet-discourse.eu. Hille Hinsberg will be live-chatting on Monday at 16.00. And we will put a summary of this chat up soon, as well as the full text. Friday April 16, 2010 11:51 John Heaven

11:53

[Comment From Simon DelakordaSimon Delakorda: ]  Great. Thank you, John. Looking forward to the next live chat. Bye. Friday April 16, 2010 11:53 Simon Delakorda

11:54

[Comment From Bengt FeilBengt Feil: ]  Thanks for you answers Marko. Friday April 16, 2010 11:54 Bengt Feil

11:54

John Heaven:  Okay, so any final questions? Marko: anything else you'd like to add about eParticipation in C&E Europe? A sentence that sums everything up? (No pressure!) Friday April 16, 2010 11:54 John Heaven

11:54

[Comment From nvucinicnvucinic: ]  Thank you for answers Marko :) Friday April 16, 2010 11:54 nvucinic

11:54

somed:  Thanks a lot for participating - it was so interesting... Friday April 16, 2010 11:54 somed

11:55

[Comment From DorotheeDorothee: ]  Marko, thanks for this informative live chat! All the best for your projects! Best regards. Friday April 16, 2010 11:55 Dorothee

11:55

Marko Rakar:  well, I would say that there is a great potential in eparticipation and that all of us can contribute to our societies only we need tools to make this effort usable Friday April 16, 2010 11:55 Marko Rakar

11:55

[Comment From Michael RemmertMichael Remmert: ]  Many thanks to, Marko, this gave us an excellent picture of your work and the situation in Croatia ! Friday April 16, 2010 11:55 Michael Remmert

11:57

John Heaven:  Marko -- many, many thanks on behalf of all of PEP-NET and the participants. That was a really interesting chat, and I look forward to summarising it for the online discourse. All the best to you! Friday April 16, 2010 11:57 John Heaven

11:57

[Comment From Tim BonnemannTim Bonnemann: ]  Very insightful, thanks! Greetings from the Silicon Valley. Friday April 16, 2010 11:57 Tim Bonnemann

11:57

Marko Rakar:  cool, it was great for me too, best of luck to all of you :) Friday April 16, 2010 11:57 Marko Rakar

12:00

Marko Rakar:  one last thing, my alias on twitter is @mrak so you can easily follow :) good day to you all Friday April 16, 2010 12:00 Marko Rakar

12:01

John Heaven:  Okay, it's time to say goodbye to everyone. Thanks to all of you for reading and for asking so many questions. Apologies that I couldn't include all of them! You can still start your own discussions on www.internet-discourse.eu, and the Twitter hashtag #pepnet is always available! Don't forget our other two live chats! See here for details. Friday April 16, 2010 12:01 John Heaven

12:02

John Heaven:  Marko -- you've got a new twitter follower (me). Friday April 16, 2010 12:02 John Heaven

12:02

 

 

Marko's bio, as it appears on eapc.eu, is:

"Marko Rakar (1972) is Chief executive manager of the consulting company MRAK services ltd. Marko has a lifelong experience in working/writing for media as well as dealing with media. He combines his media knowledge with new technologies and was one of the earliest internet adopters in Croatia. He is a recognized lecturer and consultant the subjects of organisation, internet, new media as well as politics. He ran a number of races for national parties and independent candidates on both parliament and muncipal elections. Marko studied Philosophy and Information sciences, University of Zagreb, speaks english fluently and is regular collumnist and author to a number of blogs and web sites in Croatia and internationaly. Marko is a member of EAPC (Europan association of political consultants) and IAPC (International association of political consultants)."