The Human Rights Houses in Belgrade and in Zagreb strongly condemn the actions of the Serbian police, who, yesterday, arrested and deported several participants of the Erste Academy workshop for civil society organizations – organized by the Erste Foundation – including individuals from Croatia, Slovenia, Romania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and North Macedonia. These actions occurred amidst a weeks-long campaign targeting Croatian citizens residing in Serbia, accusing them of involvement in organizing student protests. The police misrepresented these individuals’ participation in the event, framing them as a threat to state security.
Unfortunately, this incident is just the latest in a long list of examples of police abuse for political purposes, to which the citizens of Serbia have been subjected for many years. Recently, these abuses have extended to include Croatian citizens visiting Serbia. This case represents a blatant violation of fundamental human rights, including the right to be informed about the reasons for police action, the right to legal representation, and the right to understand the official documents they are asked to sign. Moreover, the entire police operation was conducted in an unacceptable manner, seemingly intended to intimidate individuals.
In addition to the blatant violation of the right to security, this police action appears designed to intimidate and hinder the normal activities of civil society organizations. Civil society organizations in Serbia are already familiar with attempts at intimidation and delegitimization, but yesterday’s incident has further undermined regional cooperation. Collaborative efforts in fields such as culture, environmental protection, democratization, and the defense of human and minority rights are now at risk. Colleagues from civil society across the region are being targeted by Serbian police, serving as tools to score cheap political points for the ruling regime in Serbia.
This behavior by the police is entirely unacceptable in a democratic society and violates international human rights obligations. We, therefore, call on the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Serbia to promptly conduct an internal investigation to determine accountability for this disgraceful conduct and to put an end to the practice of intimidation and unlawful treatment by the police toward all individuals in Serbia, including foreign citizens visiting for collaboration with civil society organizations. Additionally, we urge the Embassy of the Republic of Croatia in Belgrade to provide comprehensive information regarding the rights of Croatian citizens in Serbia during police actions. We propose that the embassy offer consular assistance, including ensuring the availability of duty lawyers who can represent Croatian citizens upon request during police proceedings.
In the meantime, we wish to inform all activists, human rights defenders, and other colleagues from civil society that the Human Rights House Belgrade and its member organizations are available to provide legal support if you find yourself in a similar situation. Please do not hesitate to contact them if needed.
For media statements, please contact: Human Rights House Belgrade – Dragoslava Barzut at e-mail: dragoslava@gradjanske.org and Human Rights House Zagreb – Ivan Novosel at e-mail: kontakt@kucaljudskihprava.hr.
Tim Kuća ljudskih prava Beograd i Zagreb
Kuća ljudskih prava i demokratije / Human Rights House Belgrade