Donor: Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Belgrade and Dutch Refugee Council Netherlands
Duration: From November 2014 – April 2016
This project sought to improve the asylum system in Serbia by raising awareness about the importance of asylum and migration issues and to set these topics in the context of European integration and regional cooperation – one of Serbia’s political priorities. To further the project’s aims, a study visit of BCHR’s lawyers to the Netherlands was organised by the Dutch Council for Refugees (DCR), two trainings for Serbian, Macedonian and Croatian CSOs were conducted by DCR experts, and a Regional Expert Conference was organised. The project encompassed several meetings with members of Serbian National Parliament and different stakeholders engaged in asylum and migration issues. At these meetings the BCHR briefed MPs and other stakeholders on current problems in the Serbian asylum system and tried to encourage them to tackle these problems within their institutions. The BCHR continues to use the knowledge gained through the study visit to the Netherlands, the two trainings in Belgrade, and the Regional Expert Conference, in order to lobby and to advocate for systematic changes in asylum system in accordance with European acquis. In order to combat the rising xenophobia in Serbia a documentary, portraying the ordeal of asylum seekers, was produced and broadcast within the framework of this project.
