A War Against Citizens: Who Authorised the Use of Illegal Weapon?

We urge individuals of integrity within state institutions, particularly in the security sector, to refrain from complicity in mass unlawful actions against citizens. We demand they publicly disclose information about the weapons used, who issued the order for their deployment, and who executed it. Furthermore, we emphasise the necessity of establishing an independent commission to objectively investigate the unlawful use of these weapons.

We remind the public that the use of acoustic devices and similar weapons is illegal, as they are not listed among permitted crowd-control measures under the current Police Law. Their deployment is also deeply inhumane, causing immediate and long-term health consequences, including reports of citizens experiencing severly high blood pressure, disorientation, panic attacks, and nausea. The proximity of the “Narodni Front” maternity hospital to the deployment site raises grave concerns.

We stress that no legal conditions existed for deploying crowd-control measures at the time and location in question. Article 106 of the Police Law mandates that police must first order a group to disperse if they are acting unlawfully. Only if the group refuses to comply can police use one of the eight legally permitted measures, which do not include acoustic devices. Even when such conditions are met, measures must be proportionate and targeted exclusively at individuals violating the law—not indiscriminately applied.

We note that the Ministry of Internal Affairs attempted to legalise acoustic devices as crowd-control tools through a 2022 draft law on internal affairs. Following public pressure, the draft was withdrawn. A new draft law is currently under development, though it remains undisclosed to the public. Its adoption is expected by late June 2025.

Belgrade, 16. March 2025.