We are marking Human Rights Day in Serbia this year in an election atmosphere in the run-up to yet another early election, in a society already staggering under numerous problems and further shattered by the unprecedented tragedies that occurred on 3 and 4 May in the Belgrade primary school Vladislav Ribnikar and in Dubona and Malo Orašje. The loss of almost 20 lives, most of them children and youths, cannot but leave us wondering what kind of a society we are living in, how much all of us have unfortunately become used to violence as a brutal yet integral part of our everyday lives. They also serve as the last reminder that we must never reconcile with such a situation and that we must respond to it as citizens.
The Belgrade Centre for Human Rights has for years been warning that the very foundations on which a democratic society rests have crumbled and that rule of law as the fundamental constitutional principle no longer exists in Serbia. Civic response is a necessity, the last way and the last chance to defend and protect fundamental human rights given that the reason why they are jeopardised lies in the absence of an adequate response by the state institutions and tolerance of violence as acceptable conduct, as well as its daily promotion in public appearances and speech and in most electronic and print media.
In its Serbia Report 2023, the European Commission noted the many problems in the exercise and protection of human rights, pointing out Serbia’s lack of headway in fulfilling its commitments under Chapters 23 and 24. It highlighted problems in the realisation of media freedoms and continued attacks and tabloid campaigns by government representatives and pro-government media on opponents, critical media and civil society organisations. The EC also noted the numerous cases of threats, intimidation, hate speech and violence against journalists, as well as a significant and
worrying increase in strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPP), notably launched by members of national and local authorities, against human rights defenders and media.
The year behind us was also marked by an increase in violence against women. Twenty-eight cases of femicide were registered in 2023. Despite numerous recommendations by international organisations, expert bodies and civil society organisations, the state has not taken specific steps to improve the status of women in Serbia’s society. In 2023, we witnessed violations of the freedom of speech, as well as of the freedom of assembly – many clashes and incidents occurred at protests staged by farmers and environmental activists. In addition to violence, 2023 was also marked by a slump in living standards brought on by inflation and rising prices of the basic foodstuffs and services, which particularly struck the most vulnerable categories of the population and deepened social differences.
Ever since it was founded in 1995, the Belgrade Centre for Human Rights has opposed and refused to accept Serbia as a society without elementary solidarity, tolerance, and respect for and appreciation of others and diversity. This year, when we mark the 75 th anniversary of the adoption of the
Universal Declaration on Human Rights, we call on everyone to recall the first Article of that Declaration every day: that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”
