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<\/a><\/div>\nJelena Peji\u0107 Niki\u0107 from the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP), the report’s editor and panel moderator, stated that Serbia has begun to reverse previously adopted reforms, pointing in particular to the latest judicial laws.<\/p>\n
She assessed that laws are currently being adopted in Serbia that are not aligned with recommendations, international agreements, and European standards. According to her, this may also contribute to the lack of positive news from Brussels, especially regarding the disbursement of funds from the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans. Peji\u0107 Niki\u0107 welcomed the EU\u2019s sharper responses to negative developments in the country, while highlighting Serbia\u2019s operational membership in the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) as of May this year as a rare positive event.<\/p>\n
Authorities Move to Shut the Public Out of Lawmaking<\/h3>\n
Nemanja Nenadi\u0107 from Transparency Serbia emphasised that the authorities, under the pretext of accelerating the fulfilment of obligations arising from the European integration process, are adopting regulations without prior analysis and consultations. \u201cThe authorities are doing everything to completely exclude the public from consultations and from the process of fulfilling obligations from the Reform Agenda, while preventing access to planning documents, and EU institutions and member states should react to this,\u201d Nenadi\u0107 said.<\/p>\n
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The panel also addressed electoral conditions, which were assessed as deteriorating despite the recommendations of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR). Participants stated that the authorities adopt only those recommendations that do not affect key mechanisms of political control.<\/p>\n
Speaking about the financing of election campaigns, Nenadi\u0107 assessed that the proposed limits are excessively high and further contribute to inequality among political actors. This was particularly evident in the recent local elections, where the ruling party\u2019s reported campaign expenses were between 10 and 50 times higher than those of its competitors, he explained.<\/p>\n
Escalating Hate Speech and Political Discrimination<\/h3>\n
Tanja Ignjatovi\u0107 from the Autonomous Women\u2019s Center assessed that public debates are being concealed from the public and carried out only formally. \u201cThe working group for the amendments to the Family Law met only once, and the draft was presented immediately afterwards, which indicates that the discussion was not genuine. There was no time for comments to be considered,\u201d Ignjatovi\u0107 stated. She added that although the number of femicides decreased in 2025, it is particularly concerning that the proportion of cases in which violence had previously been reported increased, indicating that institutions are still failing to respond adequately.<\/p>\n
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