EU Ambassador to Serbia meets Brnabic, calls for restraint from inflammatory rhetoric, disinformation about protests

“This also implies avoiding any kind of violence against political opponents and party premises as a means of political protests,” the press release quoted him as saying.

Beckerath and Quint representatives met Monday with Brnabic upon her request, to discuss the current political situation and reforms in the field of electoral framework and media reform.

The EU Ambassador condemned all acts of hate and violence and called on all sides to de-escalate tension. Dialogue between stakeholders across the political spectrum was emphasized as the only way forward, as well as refraining from inflammatory rhetoric and disinformation on the ongoing protests, the press release said.

Beckerath further emphasized that police action must be proportionate and respect fundamental rights, “any suspicion of excessive use of force needs to be duly investigated, including worrying reports about threats and violence against journalists.”

Ambassador von Beckerath stressed that Serbia’s EU path offers solutions to many of the main challenges Serbia is facing, including reforms in the field of rule of law, media freedom, electoral reforms and creating an enabling environment for civil society.

In this context, the EU Ambassador welcomed the efforts by the Serbian Parliament speaker to make progress on the selection of the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media (REM) Council and on electoral legislation, including by implementing all of the ODIHR recommendations and also stressed the need to ensure an inclusive and transparent process where all relevant stakeholders participate, the press release said.

Brnabic: Brutal violence in the streets

Brnabic briefed the EU Ambassador and Quint representatives on what has been accomplished in the field of rule of law and European integration, emphasizing that opening Cluster 3 and further progress in the European integration process is of crucial importance for Serbia.

She placed special emphasis on the implementation of ODIHR recommendations, noting that “significant progress has already been made in electoral legislation, while the formation of a special Commission for review and revision of voter lists is still ahead, as one of the most complex and demanding recommendations,” a press release quoted her as saying.

Brnabic also indicated that work continues on selecting members of the REM, which is an important step in strengthening rule of law and the functioning of democratic institutions, the press release added.

According to the press release, Brnabic “shared concern over brutal violence unfolding in the streets, especially the open violence in the past seven days.”

“There are daily attacks against police and public institutions, courts and prosecutor’s offices, torching of party offices, primarily of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) but also other political parties, destruction of property, physical endangerment and attacks on journalists, as well as intimidation of family members of government representatives,” Brnabic said.

She said such actions are “a direct assault on the constitutional order, media freedom, and basic citizen security, and cannot be reduced to political disagreement or peaceful protest.”

Brnabic added that a decisive and unambiguous response from the international community was necessary, the press release said.