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Vice President Joe Biden
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20500
RE: Human Rights Situation in Serbia
Dear Vice President Biden,
I am writing to you in view of your June 1 meeting
with Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić. The United States
government can play a key role in urging Serbian authorities to
address serious and ongoing human rights concerns in Serbia.
Human Rights Watch has worked extensively on human
rights in Serbia since the disintegration of Former Yugoslavia and
has engaged with Serbian authorities on a range of issues. We would
therefore like to take the opportunity to raise with you the issues
that require the Serbian government’s urgent attention.
Impunity for War Crimes
War crimes prosecutions in Serbia are hampered by
a lack of political will, weak witness protection mechanisms, and
the apparent protection of senior officials who are implicated in
serious crimes.
Since 2003, when the special chamber for war
crimes at the Serbian High Court and the Office of the War Crimes
Prosecutor were established, only 68 people have been convicted for
war crimes committed in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo –
almost all of them low ranking officers.
The International Criminal Tribunal for Former
Yugoslavia (ICTY) has tried and convicted the highest ranking
Serbian officials but, with the exception of three mid-ranking
officers from the Yugoslav National Army, Yugoslav Army and the
police, the Serbian war crimes prosecutor has indicted no senior
military or police officials, and no government officials, despite
credible allegations against some individuals.
The most flagrant case is the organized removal of
more than 900 Albanian bodies from Kosovo to Serbia in 1999 and
their reburial in mass graves, including on the grounds of a police
training center. Some of the people allegedly involved in this crime
were named in the 2011 ICTY judgment against Serbian police chief
Vlastimir Đorđević but, to date, no one has been indicted.
Another case involves the apparent execution in
custody of three U.S. citizens – the brothers Ylli, Agron, and
Mehmet Bytyqi – who were arrested in Serbia in June 1999,
transferred to a police training center, and killed in July 1999.
Despite promises from Prime Minister Vučić, no one has been brought
to justice for this crime. We believe it is more appropriate that
the Serbian prosecuting authorities remain seized of the case, and
they are given full support to conduct a thorough and independent
investigation.
Credible allegations by the Humanitarian Law
Center in regard to war crimes committed in Kosovo levelled against
Serbian Army Chief of Staff Ljubiša Diković are another concern,
especially given U.S. assistance to the Serbian military.
Allegations include killing civilians in the villages of Rezala and
Staro Cikatovo and hiding the bodies in a mass grave in Raška.
The United States government should urge the
Serbian government to take the following steps:
Ensure greater efficiency in war crimes
investigations and prosecutions, particularly against higher ranking
military and police officials who may bear command responsibility;
Ensure an effective investigation into the 1999
transfer of bodies of hundreds of ethnic Albanians from Kosovo to
Serbia; investigations should include the persons named in the 2011
ICTY decision against Vlastimir Đorđević, and lead to prosecution of
the alleged perpetrators;
Ensure an effective investigation into the
apparent extrajudicial executions of the three Bytyqi brothers,
including responsible commanders, and prosecute the alleged
perpetrators;
Ensure an effective investigation into the
allegations against Serbian Army Chief of Staff Diković, and
prosecute him if merited by the facts.
Treatment of Migrants and Asylum seekers
In November 2014, Human Rights Watch documented
the situation of asylum seekers and migrants in Serbia, a majority
of whom were Syrians and Afghans. Those interviewed reported
ill-treatment at the hands of Serbian police, including assaults,
threats, insults, and extortion; denial of the required special
protection for unaccompanied children; and summary returns to the
Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Some families and
unaccompanied children told Human Rights Watch that they had been
turned away when they tried to register as asylum seekers and were
forced to sleep outside during the cold winter months. For more
detail, please see
http://www.hrw.org/news/2015/04/15/serbia-police-abusing-migrants-asylum-seekers.
In a letter to Human Rights Watch, dated April 14, 2015, the Serbian
Ministry of Internal Affairs denied allegations brought forward by
Human Rights Watch, referring to them as unfounded and false. The
Ministry did not provide information on whether any investigation
into police ill-treatment was underway.
The United States government should urge the
Serbian government to take the following steps:
Immediately investigate cases of police abuse
against asylum seekers and migrants and hold those responsible to
account;
Issue clear guidance to police officers that
they should treat asylum seekers and migrants with respect and in a
manner consistent with Serbia’s human rights obligations, and should
never summarily return them over the border;
Issue clear guidance to police officers to
provide unaccompanied children with special attention and care as
required by domestic and international law;
Ensure that anyone who expresses a wish to
apply for asylum should have a meaningful opportunity to register
their asylum claim and present their case.
Restrictions on Media Freedom
Ongoing Human Rights Watch research in Serbia
shows that media workers operate in a hostile environment.
Human Rights Watch interviewed 28 journalists in
Serbia between October 2014 and March 2015 who described physical
attacks and threats, including death threats, as a result of
reporting on sensitive issues including war crimes and government
corruption. State response to attacks and threats against
journalists appears to be weak. Serbia amended its Criminal Code in
2013 to include a specific reference in Article 138(3) to
endangerment of “persons discharging duties of public importance in
the area of public information related to his/her duties.” While
this statute has been interpreted as applicable to journalists, it
is rarely applied. The Public Prosecution Office told Human Rights
Watch that in 2014 only two investigations into crimes against
journalists led to indictments, with one resulting in a conviction,
under this statute.
Journalists also face political interference with
their work. One example is the case of a renowned TV talk show,
hosted by Olja Bećković, on channel B92 that was taken off the air
as a result of what Bećković described as political interference
involving Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić. Prime Minister Vučić in
January 2015 also publicly criticized the work of renowned
independent media outlet Balkan Investigate Reporting Network (BIRN)
following their investigation into possible corruption at the
state-owned energy company Elektroprivreda Srbije. He was quoted in
media as calling BIRN “liars” and that “they [BIRN] got the money
from Mr. Davenport [head of the EU delegation in Belgrade, Michael
Davenport] and the EU to speak against the Serbian government.”
Journalists have also experienced an increase in
cyber-attacks on websites reporting on an alleged plagiarism scandal
involving the police minister in Serbia as well as websites
reporting critically on how authorities dealt with the humanitarian
response to the 2014 Balkan floods. Journalists told Human Rights
Watch that websites were down for anywhere from several hours up to
several days, that materials had been deleted and that websites were
subjected to repeated attacks over several days and sometimes weeks.
Journalists told Human Rights Watch that they reported the attacks
to the special high tech crime unit in Serbia, but at this writing,
the attacks remain unresolved.
The United States government should urge the
Serbian government to take the following steps:
Conduct prompt, effective, impartial, and
thorough investigations into all attacks and threats against
journalists and media outlets, including cybercrimes, and bring
prosecutions as appropriate;
Publicly and unequivocally condemn all attacks
against journalists and media outlets carried out in retaliation for
their work and ensure swift and thorough investigations into all
such incidents;
Ensure that politicians and government
officials on all levels refrain from abusing civil defamation
lawsuits against journalists.
Treatment of Minorities
The Roma minority face widespread discrimination
in accessing social services including health care, housing, and
education.
According to the 2013 U.S. State Department Human
Rights Report on Serbia, lack of personal documents is a major
problem for Roma as without necessary identification documents Roma
face severe problems in accessing access health care and housing.
Roma often live in informal squalid settlements
lacking basic services such as schools, health care, water and
proper sewage. Roma in such informal settlements are also vulnerable
to forced evictions without offers for adequate alternative
accommodation. According to the European Roma Rights Center (ERRC),
forcible evictions are marred by due process concerns. Between 2009
and 2013, the ERRC registered 19 forced evictions in Serbia that
affected more than 673 Romani families including more than 2,828
individuals.
Segregated education remains a problem, with
Romani children often attending mainstream schools in separate
classes and overrepresented in schools for children with special
needs. In 2014, the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights expressed concerns about the placement of Romani children in
special education and recommended that the government guarantee the
enrolment of Romani children in mainstream school. ERRC research
data from the 2012-2013 school year collected in 31 schools
throughout Serbia show an overrepresentation of Roma pupils in
special schools at 21 percent.
The United States government should urge the
Serbian government to take the following steps:
Ensure procedural safeguards and adequate
alternative accommodation in cases of forced evictions of Roma;
Ensure that everyone in Serbia, regardless of
ethnicity, age, or employment status can access public services,
including health care and education;
End segregation of Romani children in
mainstream schools and ensure that all children are provided
education in an inclusive setting.
We hope that this letter can serve as a basis for
a constructive dialogue on these important matters. Should you
require more information on any of the abovementioned issues, please
do not hesitate to contact me.
Thank you for your attention.
Sincerely,
Hugh Williamson
Director
Europe and Central Asia Division
Human Rights Watch
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