The Protector of Citizens asked higher education institutions in Serbia to adopt an act on prevention and protection against sexual harassment of students and employees as soon as possible, which will define the concept of discrimination and sexual harassment and prescribe preventive measures and procedures for protection against such forms of behaviour. The Protector of Citizens also requested that the mediation procedure be deleted in the manner specified in the rulebook that some faculties have already adopted, because it foresees the confrontation of the complainant with the perpetrator, which leads to the re-traumatization of a potential victim.
The Protector of Citizens, Zoran Pašalić, said that, after launching the investigation into the legality and regularity of work of the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Belgrade, regarding allegations of suspected sexual harassment of female students by professors of that faculty, he requested and received insight into whether and in what manner other universities in Serbia regulated the issue of protection from sexual harassment. After having determined that there were omissions in the activities undertaken at the faculties, the Institution of the Protector of Citizens sent an opinion to all higher education institutions with instructions on how to regulate this issue with the highest degree of respect for the rights of students and employees, said Pašalić and called on the victims to continue reporting abusers at faculties.