EU Funds: Abuses and the Political Consequences

When: Monday, 22 June2020, 9:00-11:00
Tuesday, 23 June 2020, 9:00-11:00
Where: Concordia Cloud
Registration deadline: Saturday, 20 June 2020.

Register now.

Registration is mandatory. Registered participants will receive a Zoom link one day before the event.

                 

Background

EU funds abuses have been prominent in several Visegrad Four states. Slovak journalist Ján Kuciak was assassinated because of his investigative work related to the corruption involving these funds. Hungary’s Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán, allegedly channels EU funded contracts to the companies belonging to his family and friends. Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš was accused of conflict of interests: his companies allegedly profited from the EU funds. These practices have political consequences. Some analysts argue that they even contribute to the rising authoritarianism in the region. What can be done to stop the abuse?

Investigative journalists, political analysts and European Commission experts explain the patterns of abuse, explore the political consequences, and suggest solutions.

Speakers

22 June 2020, 9:00-11:00. EU Funds: Patterns of Abuse

Blanka Zöldi, investigative journalist, Direkt36, Hungary

Jiří Nádoba, staff writer, Respekt, Czech Republic

Peter Sabo, investigative reporter, Aktuality, Slovakia

Grzegorz Makowski, sociologist, expert on corruption, Stefan Batory Foundation, Poland.

Judy Dempsey, non-resident senior fellow at Carnegie Europe; editor in chief of the Strategic Europe blog. Former Brussels correspondent for the Financial Times. Europe’s Futures Fellow.

Moderator: Mirjana Tomić, fjum, Vienna

23 June 2020, 9:00-11:00. Political Consequences and Possible Solutions

Political Consequences

Péter Krekó, political scientist, executive director, Political Capital, Budapest, Hungary. Europe’s Futures Fellow.

Michal Vašečka, sociologist, program director, Bratislava Policy Institute.

 Possible Solutions

Anne Vitrey de Gardebosc, specialist in European public finances, professor, College of Europe (Bruges, Belgium). Former Director of Budgetary Affairs, European Parliament.

Peter Csonka, lawyer, expert in the European criminal law, Head of General Criminal Law and Judicial Training in DG Justice, Brussels.

Moderator: Ivan Vejvoda, Europe’s Futures, IWM, Vienna

Target Groups

Vienna-based journalists, as well as journalists from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia. International journalists covering Central Europe.

Number of participants: Maximum 30

Format

Short presentations and interactive discussion.

Further Questions

For additional information about the session, contact Mirjana Tomic, seminar manager, mirjana.tomic@fjum-wien.at, or call 0676 365 26 93

European Contexts

Upon request by the Austrian and Central European media representatives to create an informal regional platform/network of journalists who could cooperate on common projects or simply consult each other on the latest developments in their respective countries, four organisations decided to support this initiative, aimed at strengthening quality journalism. The initiative consists of seminars that address themes of common interest and enable journalists to meet and discuss.