NGO: ECHR says Serbia responded to sonic weapon allegations

A press release said that Serbian human rights NGOs were informed by the ECHR that Serbia submitted its comments on March 31. Serbian NGOs - he Belgrade Centre for Human Rights, CRTA, FemPlatz, Civic Initiatives, the A11 Initiative for Economic and Social Rights, and the Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights (YUCOM) – submitted a filing on behalf of 47 citizens of Serbia over the alleged use of a sonic weapon to disrupt a peaceful protest in Belgrade on March 15. The NGOs alleged the use of a hazardous sonic or similar device, adding that more than 4,000 people contacted civil society organizations to give firsthand accounts and report health issues.

The ECHR invited civil society organizations to submit their comments on the comments submitted by the state of Serbia by April 8. It also invited official Belgrade to submit comments on a March 31 filing by those NGOs informing the court of the health of the 47 people the original filing was made for.

The ECHR called Serbia to respond to allegations of the use of a sonic weapons on March 24, setting a deadline of March 31 for Serbia to state if sonic weapons were used and under which law as well as safeguards to prevent the arbitrary use of force.