Serbian Helsinki Committee Criticized the Draft-Law on Police

The Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia estimates that the latest Draft-Law on the Police proposed by the Government is, indeed, better than previous ones, but still contains a number of disputable provisions that don’t guarantee the democratic system of governance and fails to provide for public control and overview of the work of the Police. The Helsinki Committee has numerous objections to the proposed Draft-Law on the Police After 14 years of transition, Serbia will soon get a new Law on the Police. The Draft has entered the parliamentary procedures, and it is supported by all party clubs in the Skupstina, with the exception of the Serb Radical Party. The Draft-Law proposes that the Police is ran by a Director of Police, instead of a Minister, and the territorial organization should change, too. For the first time, the Police will get the right to organize in trade unions, including the right to go on strike. The other proposed changes include the precise definitions of police powers and authority, as well as the termination of the reserve Police force. Also, the new Law provides for the existence of the Sector of Internal Control. The Helsinki Committee criticized the provision which states that “...the Police shall provide objective information on its activities to the public, and shall not disclose confidential and classified information...”, and “...shall act in accordance with the Law and professional instructions provided by the Minister...” in its relations with the media. According to the Committee, this is a rather vague provision that doesn’t provide a definition of the “objective information”, or lists the degrees of confidentiality of information. The discretionary rights of the Minister to regulate the relations with the media with a special instruction shall provide, according to the Committee, for the possibility of abuse of the right of public to free and complete information. The Helsinki Committee estimates that the proposed Law also contains disputable provisions in terms of police authority and powers, especially in the area of use of force against passive resistance, use of fire-arms when engaged by a greater number of people or in escape attempts by apprehended perpetrators. The Committee concludes that, in spite of the fact that the said provisions don’t deviate from the accepted European standards, “...the process of drafting should have taken into account the political circumstances in Serbia, where the most important offices of the state are, as a general rule, subject to political meddling, having in mind that the officials for such offices are appointed by the Government".