The undersigned Yugoslav non-governmental organizations wish to alert the public to illegal performance by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Serbia, which is reaching the point of the highest concern. The actions of the competent authorities following the incident in Pozarevac indicate to the unhindered and dangerous alliance between the armed state and para-state groups encountering citizens. (more…)

Three Otpor activists have been severely injured, one of them being rushed to the Belgrade Emergency Centre with serious head injuries, as a result of an incident yesterday in Požarevac. It is still not publicly known who is responsible for inflicting these injuries, and there has been no investigation into the matter, while police have named the injured activists as suspects for the attempted murder of two Yugoslav Left (JUL) members. Although the police were informed in advance of the threats against Otpor activists and that such an incident was possible, they did not come to the scene of the clash, instead arresting the Otpor activists in the hospital while they were receiving medical treatment for their injuries. (more…)

The Belgrade Center for Human Rights welcomes the joint decision by the democratic opposition parties to thoroughly and persistently advocate respect for the political rights of all citizens of Serbia. The establishment of a democratic government through free and fair elections is the true way towards establishing respect for all human rights and realising the right to rule. The Center particularly supports the opposition’s stance that, if it comes to power at any level of government, it will not try to control the editorial policy of the media which, as publically-owned companies, belong to that government, but will instead respect their right to report. The Center expects the opposition to honor that promise. (more…)

On the 21st of December 1999, the Serbian National Assembly’s Justice Committee held a meeting where it recommended the government dismiss Slobodan Vučetić, District Court Justice of Serbia, Dr Zoran Ivošević, Supreme Court Justice of Serbia and Boža Prelević, a judge of the Fifth Municipal Court. Today, on the 22nd of December, the Assembly has dismissed these judges, with the explanation that they are unfit to carry out their judicial roles due to their political activities – Justice Vučetić as a member of “G-17 plus” and of the Executive Committee of the Judges’ Association of Serbia; Justice Dr Ivoševića as a member of the Executive Committee of the Judges’ Association of Serbia; and Justice Prelević as the spokesperson of the same Association. The judges learned of their dismissals from newspaper reports. (more…)

Unfortunately we find no reason to celebrate – this is a time contemplate, and to ensure that rights and freedoms are not forgotten in our society. This 10th of December the Belgrade Center for Human Rights would like to remind people of the recently enacted UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders and some of its articles: (more…)

The Belgrade Centre for Human Rights and the NGO Forum of Kraljevo report that today at 8 a.m. 350 Kosovo refugees (IDPs), about 80 families, were expelled from the elementary school “Vuk Karadzic” in the village of Beranovac, near Kraljevo. Those people were located from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m in the town park in front of the Kraljevo railway station. The Civil Defense Headquarters of the Republic of Serbia offered them accommodation in the Culture Centre of the Vitanovac village. (more…)