Civil society organizations \u2014 the Belgrade Centre for Human Rights, Civic Initiatives, Lawyers\u2019 Committee for Human Rights \u2013 YUCOM, A 11 Initiative, FemPlatz, and CRTA \u2014 have filed a criminal complaint with the Office of the Prosecutor for Organized Crime against unknown perpetrators for suspected acts of terrorism committed on March 15, 2025. The complaint concerns the use of an unidentified and dangerous device during a peaceful protest in Belgrade, which disrupted the gathering held to mark “15 Minutes of Silence.”<\/p>\n
At today\u2019s press conference, the organizations presented the legal and advocacy measures undertaken before domestic and international institutions to protect the human rights of Serbian citizens. These include submissions to United Nations mechanisms, which have triggered special procedures, and an application for interim measures before the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR).<\/p>\n
Following the protest, more than 4,000 citizens reached out to the organizations with testimonies describing the consequences they experienced \u2014 ranging from panic and fear to physical injuries. Over 3,000 anonymized testimonies have been made publicly available on the platform zvuk.labs.rs<\/a>.<\/p>\n Katarina Golubovi\u0107, President of the Lawyers\u2019 Committee for Human Rights \u2013 YUCOM, emphasized that the events of March 15 constituted an attack on the life, bodily integrity, and liberty of a large number of citizens, which is why the complaint was submitted to the Office of the Prosecutor for Organized Crime. She also noted that the organizations are in communication with the First Basic Public Prosecutor\u2019s Office in Belgrade, which is conducting a preliminary investigation into the March 15 incident.<\/p>\n According to Golubovi\u0107, the mass public response and outreach to civil society organizations clearly reflect widespread concern that an attack may have been carried out, as well as deep-rooted public distrust in state institutions.<\/p>\n Vladica Ili\u0107 from the Belgrade Centre for Human Rights informed the media that April 8 marked the deadline by which the Republic of Serbia was obligated to submit its comments to the ECtHR regarding the alleged use of sonic or other devices during the March 15 protest. A notification from the Court is expected later today or tomorrow.<\/p>\n In its submission to the ECtHR, the State denied both the use and possession of any sonic or similar weapon, consistent with its narrative in public communication, Ili\u0107 added.<\/p>\n