Before
the debates the Life in Kosovo team visited local TV stations across
Kosovo, and opened a hotline to collect questions from the
inhabitants of each municipality. Viewers were encouraged to call in
and put their questions to the candidates.
It
was the first time that Kosovo voters had a chance to vote for
individual candidates, in addition to casting their ballots for their
preferred party.
"Life
in Kosovo" truly lived up to its name when the team travelled to
each municipality to record its debates in the presence of local
audiences. The 27 road shows on the municipal elections brought the
audiences face to face with the candidates running in the elections
for local mayors. The candidates had an opportunity to present
their political agenda and explain how they would carry out their
promises.
A grand total of over
10,000 viewers participated in the shows. The debates were broadcast
on Kosovo’s public service television, RTK, and because of the
extraordinary level of interest, each show was repeated twice on the
same day.
Meanwhile,
Life in Kosovo carried on with its regular schedule of televised
debates every Thursday. Well-known public personalities and
leading political analysts discussed and explained the election
programmes of Kosovo’s rival political parties.
During
these five live shows viewers were encouraged to call and answer the
question whether the electoral campaign had influenced their decision
as to who they should vote for. Over 1,500 viewers phoned in to ask
questions or make their views known.
The
five election debates were held with the participation of editors of
Kosovo’s major daily newspapers – Koha Ditore, Bota Sot, Express,
Epoka e Re, Lajm, Zeri, Info Press and Kosova Sot. They shared the
platform with prominent civil society activists.
The
"Life in Kosovo" shows on municipal elections were a
co-production of Balkan Investigative Reporting Network, BIRN,
Kosovo’s public service TV station, RTK, Advocacy Training and
Resource Centre, ATRC, the Balkan Trust for Democracy, BTD and the Group for Policy Analysis, GAP. These
debates were supported by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, the OSCE and
the UNDP. Local organizations have contributed to the production of
these debates as well.