Serbian actors have joined the anti-government protests in the country. They joined professors, teachers and students in another demonstration against the government of Aleksandar Vucic in Belgrade, NOVA reported.
The discontented drew attention to the crisis in the Serbian education system and the fatal incident on November 15 in Novi Sad, which claimed the lives of 15 people. Among the appeals written on the protesters' posters were texts like "Jail for Vucic" and "We are creating a new Serbian society".
The EU accession process is now reversible, said EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos in a speech to MEPs in the European Parliament in Strasbourg in a debate dedicated to the events in Serbia, NOVA reported, citing BTA.
"This process needs to be a national project. For the European Commission, supporting Serbia on its path to the EU remains a priority, but this time it envisages reforms that enshrine European values - not only in law, but in practice", Kos added. "We want to see reforms to combat corruption, independent justice, accountability of institutions, freedom of the media, improvement of the conditions for holding elections. Serbia's leadership has repeatedly committed to the necessary reforms that can transform the country. We expect the promises to be fulfilled," she said.
Citizen participation, transparency and accountability are part of the development of civil society. The European project is built on fundamental values. The EU expects all countries aiming for accession to respect them, the European Commissioner said, and expressed his expectation that the Serbian police will continue to take care of the security of the protests, reports BTA correspondent Nikolay Zhelyazkov.
"Language promoting hatred and disrespect is alarming. We expressed concern about the treatment of peaceful civil society activists who were detained and later forced to leave the country. The spread of disinformation, including against the EU and some MEPs, against the EU delegation, has no place on the path of European integration, the European Commissioner said. It is important to have conditions for a broad public dialogue to reach an agreement on the necessary reforms for Serbia's European future," Kos summed up.
Serbia is committed to promoting European values, including respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, and respect for human rights, noted Polish Minister for European Affairs Adam Szlapka on behalf of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU. Everyone should have the right to peaceful assembly and association, he added. According to him, the incidents involving protesting Serbian students should be investigated quickly and decisively.