European Integration Expert: EC to Respond Quickly to Mrdic Laws

Vladimir Medjak (BetaPhoto/Amir Hamzagic)

An expert in European integration processes, Vladimir Medjak, said on Feb. 2 that the European Commission (EC) should urgently take a stance on the adoption of a set of judicial laws that undermined the independence of the judiciary and the autonomy of the prosecution service in Serbia.

In a comment for BETA, Medjak said a clear message had already come from the European Commission regarding the adoption of the judicial laws proposed by the Serbian Progressive Party’s MP Ugljesa Mrdic and signed on Jan. 30 by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.

"The Union’s enlargement commissioner Marta Kos sent a clear message that the adoption of the Mrdic laws was a step backward on Serbia’s European path. Serbia’s negotiations with the European Union will not continue until further notice, because it is obvious that the authorities in Serbia are not interested in the European path. Members of the European Parliament have demanded that the European Commission take a stance on undermining the rule of law in Serbia, and we will just wait and see what the Commission’s response will be," Medjak said.

The expert expects the European Commission’s reaction to the situation in Serbia well before the European Parliament’s annual report on the state of democracy in Serbia, to be adopted in October, adding that "if the EU wants Serbia as a member, then the current authorities should be addressed differently."

"There are countless options for the European Union to compel the authorities in Serbia to fulfill the obligations they have accepted on the path to membership, ranging from suspending negotiations to withholding financial assistance from European funds until the adopted judicial laws are revised," Medjak said.