26. 1. 2010 – WHO DOES(N’T) WANT TRANSPARENT SCIENCE POLICY AND WHY?

PRESS RELEASE PRAGUE 26. 1. 2010 – WHO DOES(N’T) WANT TRANSPARENT SCIENCE POLICY AND WHY? PRIME MINISTER JAN FISCHER PREPARED A DRAFT PROCEDURE FOR APPOINTING THE NEW COUNCIL FOR RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT AND INNOVATIONS WHICH INCLUDED A PLAN TO ORGANISE TWO-ROUND PUBLIC HEARINGS WITH THE NOMINATED CANDIDATES. SUCH A PROCEDURE WOULD MARK A MAJOR SHIFT AWAY FROM THE EXISTING PRACTICE OF APPOINTMENTS THROUGH CLOSED MEETINGS AND WOULD LEGITIMATE THE NEW COUNCIL FOR RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT AND INNOVATIONS IN THE EYES OF THE WIDER EXPERT PUBLIC. HOWEVER, CRUCIAL ACTORS INVOLVED IN THE NEGOTIATIONS REFUSED THE PRIME MINISTER’S PROPOSAL ON 18 AND 19 JANUARY 2010. Civic association Forum Is Alive! therefore demands that the Czech Rectors’ Conference, Council of Higher Education Institutions, the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, the Confederation of Industry of the Czech Republic, and Minister of Education Kopicova clarify their attitude to the procedure proposed by the Prime Minister. We are especially interested in what arguments they use to refuse transparent nominations procedure and public hearings of the candidates for the Council for Research, Development and Innovations. Furthermore, we demand that the names of all nominated candidates for the Council for Research, Development and Innovations be made public.