PRESS RELEASES

In Solidarity with Students, Academics, and Civil Society

The Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP) expresses grave concern over the President of Serbia's overreach of constitutional authority through undue pressure on police officers and open violations of the Police Act. We remind the President that they lack the legal mandate to make decisions regarding the appointment or dismissal of police personnel and urge strict adherence to Serbia’s Constitution and legal framework.

On Friday, March 14, activist and student Lazar Dinić was arrested in Belgrade, while in Novi Sad, members of the Free Citizens Movement (PSG) were detained: Lado Jovović, Marija Vasić, Davor Stefanović, Srđan Đurić, and Mladen Cvijetić. On March 16, the Higher Court in Novi Sad ordered a 30-day detention for these six individuals, and today, searches were carried out at the apartments of activists who are currently out of the country.

The Belgrade Centre for Security Policy strongly condemns the unlawful and inhumane deployment of prohibited weapons, such as acoustic devices, against peaceful protesters during a public gathering of hundreds of thousands of citizens paying tribute to victims of the collapsed roof in Novi Sad. This act represents a blatant display of force and an attempt to incite chaos, aiming to delegitimise protests and criminalise peaceful citizens.

In light of yesterday’s events at the rally in front of Radio Television of Serbia (RTS) and in Pioneer Park, the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy strongly condemns the instrumentalisation of the police in defence of the regime and reminds that the abuse of the security sector institutions in Serbia has been a long-standing trend.

We strongly condemn today’s armed police raid on the premises of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) without a proper court warrant.

On 20 February, 2025, the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy presented its latest research, titled “Non-Malign Influence - What Does the Russian Community in Serbia Think and Do,” at the Envoy Conference in Belgrade.

On February 14, regime-controlled tabloids published articles filled with disinformation, accusing Jelena Jovanović, Operations Manager of the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP), of orchestrating local protests allegedly funded through BCSP projects. These accusations are entirely unfounded and represent yet another attempt to criminalise civil society in Serbia.

Since the beginning of the student protests in Serbia, we have publicly and unequivocally supported all their demands. The loss of innocent lives in the collapse of the train station canopy in Novi Sad on November 1st last year deeply shook us, as did the violence we are witnessing and the actions of institutions that, instead of fulfilling their duties, are using various manoeuvres to suppress the student movement.

Civil society in Serbia strongly condemns the targeting of Maja Stojanović and Dragan Popović by the President of the Republic of Serbia, which has directly led to new threats and intimidation through pro-government tabloids.

The Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP) strongly condemns the Serbian authorities’ misuse of digital technologies for surveillance of citizens, as detailed in the Amnesty International report "Digital Prison: Surveillance and Repression of Civil Society in Serbia."

This November, the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP) hosted the third annual Belgrade Security Conference, an event that has grown into a cornerstone for discussing pressing global and regional issues. This year’s conference saw record participation, with over 600 attendees, 80 distinguished panelists, and representation from more than 40 regional and European media outlets.