Opinions and Statements

The Protector of Citizens, Zoran Pašalić, once again pointed out today the harmfulness of child marriages because they cancel many of the children’s rights, above all, the right to a carefree childhood, education and health, and emphasized that such marriages often pose a danger of children becoming victims of human trafficking, and they sometimes even have a tragic outcome.

Pašalić reminded of the case of a girl from Belgrade who died as a result of several months of severe physical violence that she experienced from the parents of her underage extramarital partner upon arriving at their house in Smederevska Palanka, and in connection with which the institution of the Protector of Citizens launched an own-initiative control investigation into the legality and regularity of work of the competent authorities.

"The most worrying thing is that the parents of both children did not object to the conclusion of this extramarital union of the two minors. That is why it is necessary to constantly educate both children and families, especially in informal settlements in Serbia, about the harmful effects of child marriages on the life, health and future of the child. I emphasize again that children must be protected against any abuse, and child marriage and child cohabitation must not be anyone's tradition", said Pašalić.

In the control investigation, the Protector of Citizens determined that the minor was not on the records of the CSW Smederevska Palanka, nor was she reported to the local police until 30th December 2021, when she died, and her father-in-law and mother-in-law were arrested for physical violence and abuse that resulted in death.

The Protector of Citizens established that the girl is from Belgrade and that she started an extramarital union with a minor from Smederevska Palanka, whose parents, after arriving at their house in this city, severely physically abused her for eight months, which ultimately led to her death.

The family of her minor extramarital partner is on the records of the CSW Smederevska Palanka and has seven children, four of whom were placed in foster families after the arrest of their parents and appointed temporary guardians, and three were placed with their grandfather, where they are still.

The Deputy Protector of Citizens for Children's Rights, Jelena Stojanović, reminded that according to the new law, the Protector of Citizens became a special body that takes care of the protection and promotion of children's rights and which performs the duties of an independent rapporteur in the field of human trafficking, whose scope of work includes the issue of child marriages that are very often linked to trafficking in human beings.

The Protector of Citizens, on his own initiative, based on information from the media that social welfare inspectors were not allowed to enter the illegal Home for the Elderly in Krnjača and control its work, launched a control investigation into the legality and regularity of work of the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs.

The Protector of Citizens learned from the media that at the beginning of August, social welfare inspectors were prevented from entering the illegal "Royal" Home for the Elderly in Krnjača in order to conduct an inspection of the work of the home on the reports of former employees and beneficiaries of that home, and to determine the conditions under which its beneficiaries reside.

The media also reported that the inspectors went to conduct the inspection on three grounds: the home did not have a license to work, the caregivers and cooks were not registered and the beneficiaries of the home were, according to the claims of their relatives, constantly mistreated.

Due to all of the above, the Protector of Citizens requested the competent ministry to inform him within 15 days about all the circumstances of the case, about whether they previously received reports regarding the work of this home, whether its operation was ever suspended and whether measures were taken against the owner – responsible person in the home due to illegal operation of the home, negligent and unauthorized operation and unauthorized performance of a certain activity.

The Protector of Citizens also asked the competent ministry to report how many people are employed in the Department for Inspection Supervision of the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs.

The Protector of Citizens, on his own initiative, and based on information from the media that a man in the village of Stračevo near Petrovac na Mlavi killed his wife with a firearm in front of the family home and then committed suicide, launched an investigation to control the legality and regularity of work of the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Serbia and the Centre for Social Work in that city.

The Protector of Citizens asked the MoI of Serbia – PD Požarevac – PS Petrovac na Mlavi to inform him within 15 days whether there were previous reports of violence in that family, what measures were taken to protect the victim of domestic violence and sanction the perpetrator, whether the perpetrator legally possessed a weapon and what the police did after learning about this case.

The Protector of Citizens asked the Centre for Social Work Petrovac na Mlavi to inform him within the same period whether the family was on the records of that centre, whether there were previous reports of domestic violence, what measures they undertook to provide support to the victim of violence, as well as what measures were taken after learning about this case.

The Protector of Citizens, on his own initiative, based on information from the media that a man was arrested who forced his child to beg and punished him by stripping him naked and leaving him in a fountain in New Belgrade, launched an investigation to control the legality and regularity of work of the City Centre for Social Work Belgrade.

The Protector of Citizens learned from the media that a child (9) was found naked and in a very poor state of health in a fountain in New Belgrade, as well as that his father often abducted him from the Home for Children Without Parental Care, forced him to beg and beat him when would not bring him enough money.

The Protector of Citizens requested from the City Centre for Social Work Belgrade to submit a detailed report within 15 days on the actions of the competent department of the Centre for Social Work in the specific case, along with relevant documentation.

In the context of the proceedings, and in the spirit of good cooperation, bearing in mind the common interest and obligation of all state authorities of the Republic of Serbia to undertake activities and exchange information with the aim of protecting human rights, especially children's rights, the Protector of Citizens asked the Centre for the Protection of Victims of Trafficking in Human Beings to submit information on its possible actions in this case within 15 days.

Also, in the spirit of good cooperation, the Protector of Citizens asked the Second Basic Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade to inform him as soon as possible about all the circumstances of the child's father's deprivation of liberty, about whether criminal proceedings had been conducted against him before and for which crime, as well as what the eventual outcome of those proceedings was.

Although in 2021 there was a shift in the position of LGBTI+ persons with the adoption of the Law on Amendments to the Law on Prohibition of Discrimination and the Law on Gender Equality, the cases that came before the Protector of Citizens show that LGBTI+ persons are still often exposed to discrimination, violence, prejudices and stereotypes, that they are faced with attacks, threats and hate speech and that they rarely decide to report them.

We have a lot of common challenges ahead of us – to develop tolerance towards differences from the earliest age of life, to encourage LGBTI+ members to exercise their rights, to get rid of fear and to support them in this.

Therefore, no one will simply give us an environment in which members of the LGBTI+ population would live without fear and exercise their rights, but we must build it ourselves. One of the forms of support for creating such an environment is institutional support, the Deputy Protector of Citizens, Jelena Stojanović, pointed out today during the promotion of the report of the association “Da se zna!” (Let it Be Known) on incidents motivated by hatred towards LGBT+ persons in

Serbia in 2021. On that occasion, she invited members of the LGBTI+ population to contact the institution of the Protector of Citizens without fear, whose doors are always wide open for them.

The promotion of the report "Data, not bells and whistles 5" was organized by the non-governmental organization “Da se zna!” in Belgrade.

The Protector of Citizens launched an investigation into the legality and regularity of work of the Social Welfare Centre in Gornji Milanovac, as well as the Ministry of Interior, after learning from the media that a man was arrested in Gornji Milanovac on suspicion of having sexually assaulted a 13-year-old girl for two years.

The Institution of the Protector of Citizens requested information from the Social Welfare Centre on whether the girl's family was already on the records of the SWC Gornji Milanovac, as well as what activities the centre undertook in the previous period in order to protect the rights and best interests of children from that family. A report on the activities undertaken by the competent police department in the aforementioned case was requested from the Ministry of Interior.

The Protector of Citizens also addressed the Centre for the Protection of Victims of Trafficking in Human Beings and requested information on actions in this case as well as in any other similar cases that are related to the same arrested man. The authorities should provide the requested information within 15 days.

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.

The Protector Citizens Zoran Pašalić said today on the occasion of International Pride Day that LGBTI persons are still exposed to abuse, verbal and physical violence and said that Serbia must provide conditions in which members of this population would feel as equal members of society.

Legal regulation of same-sex unions and the consequences of adjusting gender and gender identity, education about the position and rights of LGBTI persons, activities aimed at breaking prejudices and stereotypes and developing support services are a prerequisite for the systemic improvement of the position of the LGBTI population in Serbia, Pašalić pointed out.

"I expect that the adopted Law on Amendments to the Law on Prohibition of Discrimination and the Law on Gender Equality will enable a greater degree of protection for LGBTI persons, and future amendments to the Criminal Code should treat criminal acts committed on the basis of sexual orientation as acts of racism and intolerance", Zoran Pašalić said.