Logo Assembly Logo Hemicycle

The functioning of democratic institutions in Serbia

Doc. 16424: compendium of written amendments | Doc. 16424 | 22/06/2026 | Provisional version

Caption: AdoptedRejectedWithdrawnNo electronic votes

ADraft Resolution

1Serbia joined the Council of Europe on 3 April 2003. In addition to its membership obligations, it agreed to honour a number of specific accession commitments, as listed in Opinion 239 (2002) of the Parliamentary Assembly, “Federal Republic of Yugoslavia’s application for membership of the Council of Europe”.
2Since joining the Council of Europe, Serbia has been under the Assembly’s monitoring procedure. In its Resolution 1858 (2012) “The honouring of obligations and commitments by Serbia”, the Assembly welcomed the significant progress achieved by Serbia in implementing its obligations and commitments. It praised Serbia for its political stability, its efforts towards integration into the European Union and its co-operation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. At the same time, the Assembly noted a number of important issues to be addressed and therefore resolved to pursue its monitoring of the honouring of obligations and commitments by Serbia.
3Since 2012, the Assembly has not examined Serbia’s honouring of its obligations and commitments, as several attempts to submit a new report by its Committee on the Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring Committee) have been delayed due to a wide range of reasons, including frequent changes of co-rapporteurs, the Covid-19 pandemic, and the fact that early general elections were called four times (in 2014, 2016, 2022, and 2023). The Assembly notes that since 2012 the situation in Serbia has considerably changed and, despite some progress, there are now serious concerns about the country's adherence to the principles of democracy, rule of law, and the observance of public freedoms.
4It is a matter of concern that, since the 2000 general elections, all but two parliamentary elections in Serbia have been early elections. While legally possible, the frequent organisation of elections at short intervals disrupts the functioning of democracy and State institutions, no matter which political forces are in power. The next presidential election is due in spring 2027 and parliamentary elections at the end of 2027. On numerous occasions President Aleksandar Vučić has mentioned the possibility of holding early parliamentary elections later in 2026.
5The Assembly is concerned about the systematic organisation of early elections at short intervals since 2000 and urges the Serbian authorities to refrain from using early elections as a mechanism for political advantage and to allow democratically elected members of parliament to fulfil their constitutional term of office and carry out their tasks according to the constitutional schedule.

In the draft resolution, paragraph 5, replace the words after "since 2000" with the following words:

“, in particular where such elections have been used as a mechanism for political advantage, and urges the Serbian authorities to ensure that early elections, where called, are conducted in accordance with the Constitution and under conditions that allow democratically elected members of parliament to carry out their tasks according to democratic standards.”

Explanatory note

Replace paragraph 5 by the following

6The Assembly notes with concern that the Serbian political environment is characterised by significant polarisation and by the ongoing tensions between President Aleksandar Vučić's government and the ruling majority led by the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) on the one hand, and the political opposition, the student movement and civil society on the other.
7The Assembly notes that the November 2024 collapse of the Novi Sad railway station canopy, which resulted in the deaths of 16 people, led to mass protests starting at the end of 2024 and persisting until the end of 2025. The protests involved a wide range of social groups and led to the emergence of a student movement that seeks new elections, accountability, transparency, and justice, though it has yet to establish itself as a new political force. Although the protests have now decreased in intensity and shifted to organised symbolic events, blockades, commemorations, and regional demonstrations, they continue to have ongoing repercussions on political life and society in Serbia.
8While the right to freedom of assembly was generally respected during the protests, incidents of abuse of force by law enforcement authorities, arbitrary arrests, and ill-treatment in custody were reported. Moreover, in some instances, law enforcement officers failed to protect protesters from physical attacks by violent individuals. Journalists were also hampered in their work during the protests.

In the draft resolution, paragraph 8, after the second sentence, insert the following sentence:

"The highest State officials, politicians of the governing majority, and the property of ruling political parties, law enforcement officers, and the premises of State institutions were also subjected to attacks by violent protesters".

9The Assembly urges the Serbian authorities to shed light on the circumstances surrounding the Novi Sad tragedy and hold those responsible to account as soon as possible.
10With respect to the mass protests, the Assembly calls on the authorities to:
10.1avoid the use of unnecessary or disproportionate force against protesters and/or members of the student movement;
10.2investigate promptly, independently, and effectively cases of violence against protesters and cases of ill-treatment in custody, and hold accountable all those responsible for violent acts, whether law enforcement officers or private individuals;
10.3drop all unfounded and arbitrary criminal charges against protesters and release all those detained solely for exercising their right to freedom of peaceful assembly;
10.4stop reprisals, surveillance, retaliatory measures, and smear campaigns against all actors in recent social processes;
10.5respect university autonomy and prevent law enforcement authorities from entering university campuses unlawfully.
11The Assembly is concerned about credible allegations of the alleged use of a sonic weapon to disperse crowds during the mass demonstration in Belgrade on 15 March 2025, which caused mental and physical distress to numerous protesters. It calls on the authorities to conduct an investigation into the circumstances surrounding this incident and to provide necessary legal and medical support to all those negatively affected by it.

In the draft resolution, replace paragraph 11 with the following paragraph:

"The Assembly calls on the authorities to conduct an investigation into the events surrounding the alleged use of a sonic weapon during the mass demonstration in Belgrade on 15 March 2025".

12The Assembly notes that, on 29 March 2026, local elections were held in ten municipalities/cities (Aranđelovac, Bajina Bašta, Bor, Kula, Knjaževac, Kladovo, Majdanpek, Lučani, Smederevska Palanka, and Sevojno) and were observed by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe. It expresses concern about the fact that these elections were marred by violence and irregularities, including accusations of vote buying, parallel voter lists, and photographing ballots. The Assembly calls on the authorities to investigate these incidents rapidly and to hold those responsible to account. It also notes that, compared to 2022, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities saw a deterioration in the campaigning environment and an even less level playing field.

In the draft resolution, paragraph 12, second sentence, replace the words "irregularities, including accusations of vote buying, parallel voter lists, and photographing ballots" with the following word:

"tensions".

13The Assembly notes that, although a new electoral framework was adopted in February 2022 and the parliament adopted a law on a unified voter register, several long-standing recommendations of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE/ODIHR) and the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission) remain unaddressed. Serious shortcomings were also identified by the international election observation mission that observed the early parliamentary elections of 17 December 2023, in which the Assembly participated.

In the draft resolution, paragraph 13, first sentence, replace the word "unaddressed" with the following words:

"in the process of alignment and implementation".

In the draft resolution, paragraph 13, delete the second sentence.

14The Assembly notes that, in February 2026, some controversial amendments to the Law on the Election of the President of the Republic, the Law on the Constitutional Court, the Law on Election of Members of Parliament, and the Law on Local Elections were proposed in parliament and are now being analysed by OSCE/ODIHR. The Assembly calls on the authorities to ensure that the reform of electoral legislation is in line with international electoral standards and not to adopt legislative amendments that would violate these standards.

In the draft resolution, replace paragraph 14 with the following paragraph:

“The Assembly notes that, on 20 May 2026, some controversial amendments to the Law on the Election of the President of the Republic, the Law on the Constitutional Court, the Law on Election of Members of Parliament, and the Law on Local Elections were adopted in parliament. The Assembly calls on the authorities to ensure that the reform of electoral legislation is in line with international electoral standards and to repeal any legislative provisions that would violate these standards.”

15As regards the reform of the judiciary and prosecution services, the Assembly welcomes the progress that Serbia has achieved in this field since joining the Council of Europe. It notes with satisfaction the adoption, following a referendum, of amendments to the Constitution on 9 February 2022, which were followed by the adoption of laws on the organisation of courts, on judges, on the Public Prosecutor’s Office, on the High Judicial Council, and on the High Prosecutorial Council, which entered into force on 10 May 2023. These laws were positively assessed by the Venice Commission in October and December 2022 (opinions CDL-AD(2022)030 and CDL-AD(2022)042) and aim to make the judiciary and prosecution service more independent and efficient, reducing political pressure on the appointment of judges and prosecutors. The authorities have also adopted 36 bylaws to implement the reform of the judiciary and prosecution service.
16Nevertheless, despite these reforms, the Assembly is concerned about recent legislative amendments to the Law on the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Law on the High Prosecutorial Council, the Law on the Organisation and Jurisdiction of State Authorities in the Fight against High-Tech Crime, the Law on Judges, and the Law on the Seats and Territorial Jurisdictions of Courts and Public Prosecutor's Offices (“Mrdić laws”), adopted by parliament on 28 January 2026 at the initiative of SNS MP Uglješa Mrdić. These laws negatively affect the functioning of the judiciary and prosecution service and might impact ongoing corruption investigations, including the Novi Sad case. According to these laws, prosecutors’ temporary assignments to other prosecution offices will now be decided by the High Prosecutorial Council, rather than the Supreme Public Prosecutor. The competence to decide on objections to hierarchical decisions is now attributed to the Chief Public Prosecutor of the immediately superior public prosecutor’s office, instead of a specialised commission of the High Prosecutorial Council. The new laws also permit court presidents to be re-elected, rather than serving a single five-year term, and create a new Fourth Basic Court in Belgrade for the municipalities of Zemun and Surčin. In its urgent opinion of 24 April 2026 (CDL-PI(2026)007), the Venice Commission criticised the majority of provisions in the “Mrdić laws”, except for the provision that prosecutors’ temporary assignments will now be decided by the HPC. The Assembly welcomes the establishment of the Ministry of Justice’s Working Group tasked with preparing amendments to these laws, with the aim of aligning them with the recommendations of the Venice Commission’s experts.

In the draft resolution, paragraph 16, replace the last sentence with the following sentence:

“It was also concerned that the laws were adopted without public consultation”.

Explanatory note

In paragraph 16, replace the last sentence by the following

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 16, insert the following paragraph:

“The Assembly welcomes the amendments to the “Mrdić laws” recently proposed by the Minister of Justice, which largely reverse the contested provisions adopted on 28 January 2026. In its “Follow-up opinion to the urgent opinion of 28 January 2026 amendments to laws governing the judiciary and the prosecution,” adopted at its 147th plenary session (12-13 June 2026) (CDL-AD(2026)017), the Venice Commission concluded that seven out of its nine recommendations included in the urgent opinion of 24 April 2026 were fulfilled."

Explanatory note

After paragraph 16, add a new paragraph

17The Assembly also notes with concern that the “Mrdić laws” were adopted without public consultations, which was also criticised by the Venice Commission. Therefore, it calls on the Serbian authorities to amend the “Mrdić laws” as soon as possible, in line with the recommendations included in the Venice Commission’s urgent opinion of 24 April 2026, and to pursue further reform of the judiciary and prosecution services in line with Council of Europe standards. The Assembly welcomes the announcement by the authorities that the recommendations of the Venice Commission will be implemented. It also invites the authorities to adopt the Law on Judicial Academy in line with the Venice Commission's recommendations included in its opinion of 9 December 2024 (CDL(2024)036), to fill all vacant positions for judges and prosecutors, and to improve and modernise the court case management system.

In the draft resolution, paragraph 17, replace the first three sentences with the following sentence:

“The Assembly calls on Serbian authorities to amend the “Mrdić laws” as soon as possible, in line with the recommendations of the Venice Commission and to pursue further reform of the judiciary and prosecution services in line with Council of Europe standards”.

Explanatory note

In paragraph 17, deleted the first three sentences and replace them by the following

18The Assembly also urges the authorities to show a genuine commitment to investigating and adjudicating cases of war crimes, in particular by appointing the Chief Public Prosecutor for War Crimes, a position that has been vacant since 2024.

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 18, insert the following paragraphs:

"The Assembly deplores the continued absence of any accountability for the armed attack at Banjska, Kosovo, on 24 September 2023, in which Kosovan Police Sergeant Afrim Bunjaku was killed. It notes with grave concern that Milan Radoičić, former Vice-President of Srpska Lista, who publicly admitted orchestrating and leading the attack, remains at liberty in Serbia. Despite President Vučić’s refusal to extradite him to Kosovo and his assurance that Serbian judicial authorities would themselves investigate and prosecute, no indictment has been brought against Mr Radoičić in the more than two years since the Serbian investigation was opened. The Assembly considers that this prolonged inaction, set against the conviction of other perpetrators by the Kosovo courts, amounts to a failure of justice and raises serious concerns of de facto State protection of a self-confessed organiser of a deadly attack. The Assembly further recalls that the Banjska attack was a grave assault on regional stability and the rule of law. It calls on Serbia to co-operate fully and without further delay with all relevant judicial proceedings, to ensure that all those responsible, including Mr Radoičić, are brought to justice whether through extradition or domestic prosecution, and to demonstrate through measurable results its commitment to the Council of Europe standards on accountability and the fight against impunity."

Explanatory note

This amendment addresses a significant and continuing failure of accountability that falls squarely within the Assembly’s mandate on the rule of law, justice and the fight against impunity. Accountability for such acts is a core obligation of every member State of the Council of Europe.

22 June 2026

Tabled by Ms Albana VOKSHI, Ms Olta XHAÇKA, Ms Iris LUARASI, Mr Bekim KJOKU, Ms Zdravka BUŠIĆ, Mr Knut ABRAHAM

Falls if amendment 11 is adopted.

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 18, insert the following paragraph:

"As stipulated also in the Resolution of the European Parliament on the recent developments in the Serbia-Kosovo dialogue, including the situation in the northern municipalities in Kosovo of 19 October 2023, the Assembly also urges the authorities to ensure full co-operation with all relevant investigations and judicial proceedings related to the terrorist attack in Banjska of 24 September 2023 and take all necessary measures to ensure accountability for those responsible."

19The Assembly notes with interest that some limited progress has been achieved in combating corruption, in particular with the adoption of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy for 2024-2028 and its accompanying action plan for 2024-2025.

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 19, insert the following paragraph:

"The Assembly regrets Serbia's continued efforts to oppose Kosovo's accession to the Council of Europe despite Opinion 302 (2024), by which the Assembly recommended Kosovo's membership. The Assembly reiterates its view that Kosovo's accession would strengthen the protection of human rights, democracy and the rule of law and would contribute to stability and co-operation in the region."

20It welcomes the progress made in implementing the recommendations of the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) regarding the Fourth Evaluation Round (on the prevention of corruption in respect of members of parliament, judges and prosecutors) and the Fifth Evaluation Round, which tackles preventing corruption and promoting integrity in central government (top executive functions) and law enforcement agencies. However, the Assembly expects the authorities to address swiftly the remaining recommendations, especially those from the Fifth Evaluation Round, concerning the integrity of members of government, training on integrity standards, the definition of lobbying, disclosure of conflicts of interest and corruption prevention in the police.
21The Assembly expresses concern about the state of freedom of association and expression in Serbia. It is dismayed by numerous reports of reprisals, intimidation measures (including physical attacks and death threats), and smear campaigns against civil society activists, human rights defenders, journalists, and independent media outlets. In 2025, Serbia recorded one of the highest numbers of alerts on the Council of Europe Platform for the Safety of Journalists and is also among Europe's leading countries for Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) against media outlets, journalists, and civic activists. Concerns also remain with respect to editorial autonomy and pluralism of public service media, which are accused of biased reporting in favour of the government.

In the draft resolution, paragraph 21, second sentence, after the words "smear campaigns against”, insert the following words:

"highest State officials, political leaders,"

22Therefore, the Assembly urges the authorities to stop reprisals and other intimidation measures against civil society activists, human rights defenders, journalists, and independent media outlets, to ensure a conducive environment for their work and the exercise of the right to freedom of association and expression in general, and to refrain from taking any legislative measures that would restrict these freedoms. It also calls on the authorities to resume structured dialogue with civil society and to ensure media pluralism.

In the draft resolution, paragraph 22, replace the first sentence with the following sentence:

"Therefore, the Assembly urges the authorities to ensure a conducive environment for work of civil society activists, human rights defenders, journalists, and independent media outlets and the exercise of the right to freedom of association and expression in general, and not to take any legislative measure that would restrict these freedoms."

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 22, insert the following paragraph:

"The Assembly expresses deep concern over the unhindered operations of State-sponsored Russian media outlets, such as Russia Today and Sputnik, within Serbia. It notes that these platforms are systematically utilised by the Russian Federation as tools of hybrid warfare to spread disinformation, stoke ethnic tensions in the Western Balkans, and undermine democratic processes. The Assembly calls on the Serbian authorities to align with the European Union’s restrictive measures against Russian propaganda channels."

Explanatory note

Self-explanatory

23The Assembly also expresses concern about revelations of surveillance of Serbian journalists and activists. It urges the authorities to end this practice, conduct effective investigations into abuses, and hold accountable those responsible.
24While the Assembly notes with interest that Serbia has further aligned its media legislation with the European Union acquis and other European standards, it is seriously concerned about the current blockage of work of the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media (REM), whose composition has not been entirely renewed since November 2024. It calls on the relevant authorities to take all necessary steps to fill the vacant positions in REM.

In the draft resolution, at the end of paragraph 24, insert the following words:

"with fully independent persons capable of upholding media pluralism, including in the assessment of media ownership transfers."

Explanatory note

Clarifies that those fulfilling the REM council should be independent and able to ensure the independence of the organisation

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 24, insert the following paragraphs:

The Assembly is strongly concerned by the lack of media plurality in Serbia and by the threat to its few remaining editorially independent outlets. It stresses that genuine pluralism of media ownership requires both transparency of ultimate beneficial ownership and effective safeguards for editorial independence. The Assembly calls on the authorities in Luxembourg to ensure that any change of ownership or control of media outlets operating in Serbia is subject to full transparency of ultimate beneficial ownership and to meaningful scrutiny of its effect on media pluralism and editorial independence. The Assembly is concerned that the pending transfer of ownership of some of the last nationwide editorially independent broadcasters could accelerate the erosion of media pluralism in Serbia, and calls for full transparency as to the funding and ultimate beneficial ownership of any such transaction.

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 24, insert the following paragraph:

"The Assembly further urges Serbia to fully align its foreign and security policy with that of the European Union, including the implementation of all restrictive measures and sanctions adopted against the Russian Federation in response to its war of aggression against Ukraine, as a key indicator of its commitment to Council of Europe values".

Explanatory note

Self-explanatory

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 24, insert the following paragraph:

"The Assembly calls on the Serbian authorities to ensure the effective protection of the rights of persons belonging to national minorities, including the Albanian community in the Preševo Valley, notably through equal access to public services and institutions, meaningful participation in public life, and the transparent and non-discriminatory application of residence-status checks. It further calls on the authorities to address concerns regarding the ‘passivisation’ of residential addresses affecting members of the Albanian minority, to ensure effective remedies, and to restore rights where such measures were unlawfully or discriminatorily applied."

25The Assembly resolves to examine the remaining outstanding issues within the framework of a forthcoming report on the honouring of obligations and commitments by Serbia.