What changed

B90106/2024

B90132/2024

European Parliament resolution on the situation in Serbia following the elections

– having regard to its previous resolutions on Serbia,

– having regard to the statement ofjoint preliminarystatement findingsby andHigh conclusionsRepresentative of the OrganizationUnion for SecurityForeign Affairs and Co-operationSecurity inPolicy EuropeJosep (OSCE)/OfficeBorrell forand DemocraticCommissioner Institutionsfor andNeighbourhood Humanand RightsEnlargement (ODIHR)Olivér internationalVárhelyi electionof observation19 missionDecember (I-EOM)2023 on the early parliamentary elections of 17 December 2023 in Serbia,

– having regard to the statement onof 19preliminary Decemberfindings 2023and byconclusions Europeanof Parliamentthe standingInternational rapporteurElection forObservation SerbiaMission Vladimíron Bilčíkthe aboutearly theparliamentary findingselections of Parliament’s17 observerDecember delegation,2023 in Serbia,

– having regard to Serbia’s application for membership of the EU of 19 December 2009,

– having regard to the final report of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR) election observation mission of 19 August 2022 on the presidential and early parliamentary election of 3 April 2022 in Serbia,

– having regard to the EU’s previous statements on Serbia, in particular the joint statementopinion byof Highthe RepresentativeOSCE/ODIHR ofand the UnionVenice forCommission Foreignof Affairs19 andDecember Security2022 Policyon Josepthe Borrellconstitutional and Commissionerlegal forframework Neighbourhoodgoverning andthe Enlargementfunctioning Olivérof Várhelyidemocratic oninstitutions thein parliamentarySerbia elections– ofelectoral 19law Decemberand 2023,electoral administration,

– having regard to Rule 132(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas on 1 November 2023, the presidentPresident of Serbia dissolved the Serbian parliamentParliament and scheduled early parliamentary elections for 17 December 2023, citing demands from the opposition for early elections;

B. whereas, according to the preliminary conclusions of the I-EOM, the elections were technically well-administered and offered a choice of political alternatives;

B. whereas these were the third parliamentary elections in less than four years, and they unfolded amid heightened social polarisation and intense competition among contrasting political agendas;

C. whereas the campaign was dominated by the decisive involvement of the president, which, together with the ruling party’s systemic advantages, created unfair conditions;

C. whereas an international election observation mission (IEOM) was conducted by the OSCE/ODIHR, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and the European Parliament in order to determine whether the elections complied with OSCE commitments and other international obligations and standards for democratic elections and with national legislation;

D. whereas fundamental freedoms were generally respected in the campaign but were marred by harsh rhetoric, strong bias in the media, pressure on public sector employees and misuse of public resources;

D. whereas voter turnout was 58.58 %, which was higher than for the previous elections, held in 2022;

E. whereas the elections were, overall, conducted smoothly, but the day was marked by numerous procedural deficiencies, including inconsistent application of safeguards during voting and counting, frequent instances of overcrowding, breaches of voting secrecy, and numerous instances of group voting;

E. whereas the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) won 46.75 % of the votes, while the largest opposition coalition, ‘Serbia against Violence’, won 23.66 %;

F. whereas voter lists were updated through the unified voter register and the final number of voters stood at 6 500 666; whereas it was alleged that numerous deceased electors remained on the register;

F. whereas the opposition is calling for the election results to be annulled due to allegations of widespread fraud; whereas protests against the election results have taken place in Serbia;

G. whereas Serbia’s legal framework provides an adequate basis for the conducting of democratic elections and whereas recent amendments had addressed a number of previous OSCE/ODIHR and Venice Commission recommendations; whereas measures are still needed to solve several key issues, including to prevent the misuse of public office and to safeguard voters from intimidation and pressure;

1. Notes that the IEOM stated that the election was conducted smoothly, but that the day was marked by numerous procedural deficiencies, including the inconsistent application of safeguards during voting and counting, frequent instances of overcrowding, breaches of voting secrecy, and numerous instances of group voting;

H. whereas despite the fact that 43 % of the 2 827 parliamentary candidates were women and that efforts to promote women’s participation have been made, women remain generally under-represented in elected and appointed offices;

2. Welcomes recent amendments that have addressed a number of previous ODIHR and Venice Commission recommendations, particularly those referring to the legal framework for election campaign finance, but notes that several key matters have been left unaddressed, such as issues relating to ensuring a level playing field, measures to prevent the misuse of public office and state resources, separation between official duties and campaign activities, and effective mechanisms to prevent intimidation and pressure on voters, including vote buying;

I. whereas Parliament’s standing rapporteur for Serbia stated that Parliament’s observer delegation had ‘noticed that the elections were well conducted, well managed. There are some irregularities when it comes to the reports we received from the places we visited about bringing in additional voters, but it is not about a large number of voters’, and that ‘there were no tensions regarding voters from Kosovo and Metohija who came to central Serbia to vote’;

3. Underlines that in the past 10 years, all Serbian parliaments but one were dissolved early and that any further unnecessary snap elections would not be conducive to political stability;

J. whereas the opposition coalition Serbia Against Violence has submitted an application for judicial review of the elections, challenging the validity of the election procedure for the councillors of the City Assembly of Belgrade; whereas it accused the government of bringing 40 000 people from Republika Srpska to vote in Belgrade without them actually being resident there;

4. Stresses that constant early elections, permanent campaign mode and long delays in forming governments do not contribute to the efficient democratic governance of the country, but instead weaken its parliament and result in a lack of parliamentary legislative oversight and legitimacy;

K. whereas each enlargement country is judged on its own merits and whereas it is the fulfilment of the enlargement criteria and the implementation of the necessary reforms, in particular in the areas of ‘fundamentals’ and legislative alignment, that determine the timetable and progress of accession;

5. Undertakes to closely monitor post-electoral developments in Serbia while awaiting the IEOM’s final report on the 2023 elections, and commits to supporting reforms that strengthen democracy and help Serbia to advance on the path towards EU accession;

1. Expresses again its strong solidarity with the Serbian people after the two mass shooting incidents of May 2023;

6. Stresses the importance of thoroughly investigating all election-related complaints, including the recent request to annul the Belgrade City Assembly elections of 17 December 2023, which was filed with the Constitutional Court by an official of the ‘Serbia against Violence’ coalition; underlines that a clear distinction must be made between the parliamentary elections and the local elections, which the IEOM did not observe;

2. Takes note of the results of the parliamentary elections of 17 December 2023 in Serbia; deplores the fact that numerous significant deficiencies made a negative contribution to the electoral process; deplores the incumbents’ abuse of institutions and the media to gain an unfair advantage;

7. Calls on the competent authorities to fully investigate allegations, including allegations of attacks on students, and to follow up on the IEOM’s recommendations; underlines that previous recommendations addressed access to the media for all parties, the low level of political debate, pressure on voters, the emphasis on personally discrediting opponents, and the harsh rhetoric used;

3. Expresses its regret at the aggressive pre-election rhetoric, bias in the media, pressure on public sector employees and misuse of public resources, as well as the intimidation and harassment of civil activists, LGBTI and other human rights defenders, and journalists;

8. Calls on the Serbian authorities to provide institutional solutions to overcome the current problems; calls for the prompt formation of a properly functioning parliament and government, free from the constant cycle of campaigns and frequent snap elections, to enable Serbia to deliver on the reforms required by the EU;

4. Expresses its regret at the insufficient political will of the national authorities to address key problematic aspects of the electoral process; calls on these authorities to follow up in a transparent manner on any credible reports of widespread irregularities, including allegations related to the local elections in Belgrade and other municipalities;

9. Underlines the importance of freedom of speech and acknowledges that everyone has the right to express their views and participate in peaceful protests;

5. Looks forward to the final OSCE/ODIHR report and recommendations for future elections, which should be implemented as soon as possible and well in advance of any future elections;

10. Expresses its concern about cases of attacks and abusive language combined with harassment against journalists and civil society organisations;

6. Calls on Serbia to fulfil the outstanding OSCE/ODIHR and Venice Commission recommendations concerning the conducting of elections;

11. Stresses that it has always endeavoured to support political pluralism and the reinforcement of an inclusive election environment in Serbia through all its activities, in particular through the inter-party dialogue and the parliamentary dialogue process; underlines the importance of continuing the inter-party dialogue and the parliamentary dialogue process;

7. Encourages the Serbian authorities to ensure that the country’s independent and supervisory institutions, especially the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media and the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption, play a proactive role in creating the conditions for fair elections;

12. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the President of the European Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the governments and parliaments of the Member States and the -President, Government, and Parliament of Serbia.

8. Underlines the need to step up efforts to increase women’s representation in elected and appointed offices;

9. Underscores that progress in the EU accession process is result- and reform-oriented and is based on further alignment on the rule of law, good governance, fundamental rights and respect for European rights and values;

10. Calls on all political forces in Serbia to engage in a constructive political dialogue to ensure the proper functioning of the country’s institutions, to protect free expression and to make the necessary improvements to the electoral process;

11. Calls, in this light, for the respect and implementation of the Agreement on the path to normalization between Kosovo and Serbia (Ohrid Agreement);

12. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the President of the European Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the governments and parliaments of the Member States and the President, Government and National Assembly of Serbia.