Serbian NGOs demand explanation from Chief of OSCE Mission to Serbia

Eighteen Serbian NGOs today requested that Chief of the OSCE Mission to Serbia, Hans Ola Urstad, to explain "which of the reasons have instigated" him and the organization he represents to qualify the Draft Constitution as democratic.

The signatories have sited a press release previously issued by the Serbian Ministry of Justice, which says that Hans Old Usrtad had "unambiguously emphasize that OSCE does not support a call for any kind of referendum boycott, because democracy is based precisely on the principle of participation in democratic decision-making process, rather than on boycotting."

The Humanitarian Law Center, Lawyers' Committee for Human Rights, Youth Initiative for Human Rights, Helsinki Committee in Serbia and Women in Black, among other things, say:

"We firmly believe that one of the basic civic rights is for citizens to have insight into the operation of state institutions and for state institutions to be subjected to citizens' control (…) Underlining that the recent past and crimes committed in our name and on our behalf demand real discontinuity with the politics of evil (…) Protesting against the reduction of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina to the level of local self-governance and of human rights to a declaration (…) This referendum calls on the citizens to vote on the new Constitution by way of flagrant violation of human rights, especially those of Albanians, with Serbia 's territorial claims and the abolishment of human rights (…) The Constitution is a result of compromise with those who conducted Milosevic's politics of atrocities. As organizations and individuals devoted to the protection of human rights, we kindly ask for your explanation concerning the reasons which have instigated Your Excellency and the organization you represent to portray this referendum as democratic?".

The letter is signed by: Humanitarian Law Centre, Lawyers Committee for Human Rights, Youth Initiative for Human Rights, Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia, Women in Black, Initiatives (Prokuplje), Centre for Development of Civic Resources (Niš), Caribrod (Dimitrovgrad), Lambda (Niš), Urban – in (Novi Pazar), Centre for Human Rights (Niš), Helsinki Committee for Human Rights (Novi Sad), Sanjak Committee for Human Rights (Novi Pazar), Childrens’ Rainbow (Niš), Argus (Novi Sad), Panonija (Novi Sad), Independent Journalists’ Association of Vojvodina (Novi Sad) and Centre for Development of Civil Society (Zrenjanin).