Glas javnosti - Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia

Conclusions and Recommendations
Accords in order to ensure the functioning of Bosnia as a state. It is also
important that EULEX assumes substantive control over the entire territory
of Kosovo and begins to implement the agreement which was recently
signed with the Serbian Interior Ministry.
The proposal of Serbian President Boris Tadić concerning the adoption
of the Resolution on Srebrenica stirred up emotions and a debate,
which did not make any more signifi cant progress. As the symbol of genocide
and crime in Bosnia, Srebrenica will remain the subject of denial
and relativization for a long time. Regardless of the fact that the Serbian
Assembly adopted the Declaration on Srebrenica, the Serbian elite is still
not prepared to discuss the recent past in a responsible way.
NATO membership remains a dilemma and most likely the point
where conservatism and commitment to reforms will clash. NATO membership
is supported by professionals as well as that part of the public
which understands the rational reasons for this option. Reactions to the
initiative for holding a referendum on NATO point out clearly that the
public opinion is changing and that is it necessary to provide additional
information about the character of the North Atlantic Alliance and the fact
that it is important for Serbia to become an integral part of the collective
security system.
As for religion-motivated incidents during the observed period, it can
be noted that their total number is declining, but the communities which
have especially been endangered so far, like Jehovah’s Witnesses and the
Christian Adventist Church, are still exposed to various forms of discrimination.
Both the police and the prosecutor’s offi ce are not very keen on
bringing charges against perpetrators in accordance with Article 317 of the
Criminal Code (instigating national, racial and religious hatred and intolerance),
which certainly does not contribute to the decline and prevention
of religion-inspired incidents. The indiff erence of state bodies towards the
increasingly frequent internationalization of the problem concerning the
protection of religious rights of national minorities in Serbia is disturbing
and irresponsible.
Fierce reciprocal accusations by political and religious leaders in
Sandzak and deliberate disregard for the current authorities in the region
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