Picula Presents Report on Serbia: Turning a Blind Eye Has Failed To Produce Results  

Tonino Picula (BETAPHOTO/MILOS MISKOV)

European Parliament Rapporteur for Serbia Tonino Picula on March 17 said that EU-related reforms in Serbia had slowed significantly or had shown backsliding in several key areas, particularly in the rule of law and democracy, stressing that turning a blind eye and prioritizing stability as an excuse by certain European actors had not rendered results in transforming the country, but had only pushed it further away from its membership. 

Presenting his annual report on Serbia before the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET) in Brussels, Picula said that “the media landscape is terrifying,” the electoral legislation had serious shortcomings and that without structural changes and full implementation of ODIHR recommendations, the next elections could not be fair. 

“Since the last report, the situation has further deteriorated, polarization and tensions have increased, and the overall pace of accession has stalled for years,” Picula said.

“It is a result of the limited progress in the dialogue with Kosovo, the continuous failure to alignn with the EU common foreign and security policy, the general lack of true political will to move forward, frequent rhetoric against EU officials, worsening conditions for free work of media and civil society, as well as ignoring recommendations for reforming the electoral process,” Picula said.

Picula noted that while Serbia was underlining EU membership as its strategic goal, the stated commitments were not often mirrored in practice, adding “the rhetoric of opposing and degrading the EU is unfortunately still dominant in Serbia, along with continuous and toxic disinformation.”|

He assessed that the recent changes to key judicial laws “represent an unacceptable step backwards on Serbia’s path towards EU accession, and a serious blow to judicial independence.” 

Picula denounced repression, excessive use of force and police violence against protesters, arbitrary detentions and arrests, and other forms of disturbing the opposition, activists, civil society representatives, and journalists, and also criticized constant attacks on academic freedoms and autonomy.