PACE’s Rapporteurs for the monitoring of Serbia, Axel Schäfer (Germany, SOC) and Victoria Tiblom (Sweden, ECPA), have today made the following statement concerning the massive protest in Belgrade of 15 March 2025:
“We are very concerned about the escalation of tensions in the country, which led to a protest of at least 100,000 people in Belgrade on Saturday 15 March. This was one of the largest ever held in Serbia.
While the protest was largely peaceful, an unusually disturbing noise followed by a gust of air broke a 15-minute silence observed by the demonstrators and caused a minor stampede in the centre of Belgrade. There are reports of dozens of people being treated at the health centre for ailments that could have been caused by so-called ‘sound cannons’ or LRADs (Long Range Acoustic Devices) that may have been used to disperse the rally.
We are deeply concerned by these allegations and call on the authorities to shed light on them and to provide immediate medical and psychological assistance to all victims.
In the light with our previous statement of 20 February 2025, we call again on all parties to engage in a constructive and inclusive dialogue and urge the Serbian authorities to take all necessary measures to address the legitimate demands of demonstrators and to avoid the use of violence. We remain ready to travel to the country and discuss all these issues with the authorities in the framework of the Assembly’s monitoring procedure.”
Source: COE