Visuomenės sveikatos koalicija alkoholio politikos įgyvendinimo procese 2007-2011 metais

LT2007–2011 metais vyko aktyvūs alkoholio politikos formavimo, teisėkūros kaitos procesai, tad šiame straipsnyje analizuojama, kaip keitėsi Lietuvos visuomenės sveikatos koalicijos veikla politikos lauke analizuojamuoju laikotarpiu. Tyrimui konceptualizuoti taikytos advokataujančių koalicijų modelio koncepcijos. Metodologijos pagrindu pasirinktas kokybinis tyrimas, derinant jį su dokumentų analize. Tyrimo rezultatai atskleidė, kad 2006–2007 m. pradėjusi telktis visuomenės sveikatos koalicija galutinai struktūravosi alkoholio politikos lauke 2011–2012 m. Lietuvos visuomenės sveikatos koalicijos sutelkimą nulėmė nuoseklus lyderio veikimas ir tinkama komunikacija. 2011 m. susiformavo plati alkoholio pramonės koalicija, lėmusi konfliktą tarp visuomenės sveikatos ir alkoholio pramonės koalicijos. Šia koalicija siekta liberalizuoti alkoholio reklamą ir jai tai pavyko 2011 m. pabaigoje. Nepaisant to visuomenės sveikatos koalicija sėkmingai įgyvendino savo strateginius tikslus – sustiprino ir sutelkė plačią koaliciją, kurdama alkoholio politiką ir ją griežtindama sėkmingai pasitelkė mokslinius įrodymus, jais pagrįsdama savo pozicijas ir siekdama strateginių tinklų. Pagrindiniai žodžiai: alkoholio politika, advokacijų koalicijos modelio teorija, visuomenės sveikatos koalicija, nevyriausybinės organizacijos. [Iš leidinio]

ENThe article analyses changes in the activities of the Lithuanian Public Health Coalition in the political arena from 2007 to 2011. The process of Lithuania’s alcohol policy is almost unexplored in terms of the involvement, contributions and impact of the Public Health Coalition (PHC). Concepts of the model of advocacy coalitions were used in order to conceptualise the study, and based on them, the following qualitative problems were raised: 1) to investigate the ways in which some NGOs and favourably disposed politicians joined the coalition (conditionally called the Public Health Coalition) and acted in the political process under the belief in the harmful social consequences of alcohol; 2) to study the effect of resonance calamities (violent crimes against children and adults committed by drunk people) on the change in the alcohol policy process. This study is focused on the initial stages in the Lithuanian alcohol policy process and the roles of its actors (mainly the PHC, but also politicians, the alcohol industry, and other business interests and executive authorities involved). Due to the harmful effects caused by alcohol drinkers, the greatest attention is focused on NGO involvement in the PHC. The process on Lithuanian alcohol policy is examined thematically. Qualitative research, combined with document analysis, was applied as a basis for the methodology. Semi-structured interviews were carried out in order to help the analysis of attitudes, convictions and actions of alcohol policy actors. In selecting interviewees, most importance was given to the criteria of involvement in Lithuanian alcohol policy, and the corresponding roles assumed. The qualitative research included 36 informants. The research was carried out from March to December 2021.Alongside the interviews, other sources disclosing the performance of the PHC, such as common agreements and statements, documents of public policy analysis and monitoring, communication media, etc, were employed. Document analysis was used to complement interview data relating to the expression of PHC alcohol policy beliefs. The research data revealed that the formation of a professionally functioning PHC was initiated thanks to the joint efforts of organisations supporting the temperance movement (NGOs in the political arena). In the later stages, some state institutions and some of their members (usually on the basis of collaboration in the advocacy process), institutions of the Catholic Church and individual activists became involved. No less important was the PHC partnership with separate political forces: political parties, separate groups of members of parliament, etc. The process of creating a broad coalition was long-lasting, quite dynamic, and depended on the context of alcohol policy. The main actor in creating a collective advocacy operation (the roles of strategy development, leadership, coordination, attracting support, and roles in making tactical solutions) were the National Tobacco and Alcohol Control Coalition and its leaders. They initiated the creation, maintenace, and, if necessary (due to the changing circumstances in alcohol policy), the expansion of the coalition. In the period 2008 to 2011, the coalition made use of four key tactics, responding to the aforementioned strategies: 1) working directly with decision makers (various political institutions) in order to persuade them to change their position, and, in the long-run, expecting their support; 2) active networking in order to take advantage of favourably disposed officials (public policy mediators) and their involvement in networking.3) symbolic politics by exploiting publicity-friendly communication (effective messages, promotions and symbols), thus also aiming indirectly at influencial decision makers; 4) making use of international organisations and their support as a basis for strengthening their communication and overall position. The implementation of PHC strategies is explained by the advocacy campaign of 2011. It was directed against the liberalisation of alcohol advertising. All the events analysed in the study showed quite a high level of conflict (or at least moderate as far as the advocacy model is concerned). This was determined not only by the specific subsystem of alcohol policy, but also by moral values and oppositional networking. Having summarised the results of the study, it was observed that the activitities of the National Tobacco and Alcohol Coalition, being guided and coordinated by the PHC, were neither short-term nor trivial. Starting with the gathering in 2006 and 2007, the PHC was finally structured in the field of alcohol policy in 2011 and 2012. The PHC had applied the following relevant strategies (in terms of the availability of resources, the composition of coalition members, and the organisation of networking): 1) alcohol policy based on scientific evidence; 2) PHC strengthening with the aim of creating a wide network of NGOs and partner organisations (thus building a broad coalition). [...] Keywords: alcohol policy, advocacy coalition, model theory, Public Health Coalition, non-governmental organisations. [From the publication]

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