PRESS RELEASES

In the last few years, Islamist extremism in Serbia is decreasing but far-right extremism is on the rise. Although there is the will in the community and among the citizens to work on this problem, greater progress is not possible without the assistance of the state, which has not shown interest in this problem so far. These are the main conclusions of the discussion "Towards a better strategic response to extremism in Serbia", organized by the BCSP on February 11 in cooperation with the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, the Lawyers' Committee for Human Rights and the National Convention on the EU.

The year behind us was filled with serious challenges. The pandemic we are facing as humanity has been accompanied by a struggle to preserve the core values we follow. We have defended human rights, democracy, and the principles on which well-ordered state and society must rest. Together with you, we have raised important issues, awakened new energy and influenced change. Thank you for that! We know that in the next year, in which we will celebrate our 25th birthday, you will continue to be our greatest allies in building a safe and free community in solidarity.

A group of civil society organisations and experts hereby points out that the way laws and by-laws are passed, amended and abolished shows a true picture of the catastrophic state of democracy in Serbia. The content, enactment and urgent abolishment of the decree stipulating that scientific and other research of importance for the country's defense, conducted in cooperation with foreign entities, will require the approval of competent authorities, violates all principles of democracy, rule of law and freedom of expression.

The stampede of activities, especially in regard to completing constitutional changes, seeks to show sufficient progress to open new clusters before the elections in the spring of 2022, but the results are lacking. The fight against corruption and organized crime remain critical areas in cluster 1, and anti-immigrant activities and rhetoric contribute to the radicalization of society, representatives of the coalition prEUgovor warned at the online presentation of the new Alarm Report on 18 November.

BCSP warns the public that the draft Law on Foreign Affairs, if it does not undergo profound changes, will increase the power of the President in conducting foreign policy to the detriment of the Government and the discretionary power of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and reduce the transparency of the Ministry, as well as centralize the supervision of all affairs related to foreign relations. Such a law would be another step toward formalizing the President's role beyond his Constitutional competencies, thus taking over the institutions responsible for formulating and implementing foreign policy.

By strengthening civil society, investigative journalism, NGOs and anti-corruption services we can show that the problem of organized criminal can be resolved. There is a lack of political will, so if we can’t tackle this problem necessarily from the top-down, we have to change the approach and tackle it from the bottom-up. This was concluded during the online discussion “Transnational Organized Crime in the Western Balkans: Effects in the Region and Beyond”, organized on October 7, by LSE IDEAS and Ratiu Forum, in cooperation with the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP).

The Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP) warns the public that the Draft Law on Internal Affairs contains numerous provisions that, if left unchanged, will jeopardize citizens' guaranteed rights and security, and despite cosmetic changes, preserve political influence on the police work. Therefore, BCSP asks the Ministry of Interior to consider the comments received from organizations in the public debate and prevent potential damage resulting from the Draft's adoption.

Regarding the frequent official and informal calls on civil society organizations to get involved in the consultation process with the Ministry of Human and Minority Rights and Social Dialogue for drafting The National Strategy for an Enabling Environment for Civil Society Development in the Republic of Serbia, we remind that the intolerant atmosphere towards civil society, due to which civil society organizations made their decision not to participate in this process in April of this year, has not changed.

How did statements of officials and the official policy of Serbia towards the pandemic influence the reduction of individual freedoms and rights, and the undemocratic behavior of the government was the subject of an online discussion organized by the BCSP on June 15, 2021.

Due to the inaction of institutions and all other problems faced by all those who work by the law and call for accountability of the institutions and officials, the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy has established the Civil committee for the protection of human rights defenders and whistleblowers.

One of the key preconditions for a successful fight against organized crime is the cooperation between governments and civil society organizations. This was a conclusion by the panelists of the online discussion "Boosting Resilience to Organized Crime in the Western Balkans," organized by the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP) together with regional partners from the Western Balkans Organized Crime Radar (WB OCR).

The key function of informal education is to represent a bridge between the university and the labor market. Informal education is a very important addition to the knowledge acquired at the faculty - it was pointed out during the online event "Informal knowledge for career advancement".