The Assembly in Diaspora (SuR), formed by the Serbian diaspora, has appealed to high-ranking representatives of the European People’s Party (EPP) with an urgent request to immediately expel the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) from its coalition, adopt an urgent Resolution condemning the Serbian regime’s behavior towards peaceful citizens and the breakdown of democracy in an EU candidate country, and demand urgent parliamentary elections under the supervision of EU-appointed monitors.
Members of the Serbian diaspora, many of whom are also citizens of EU countries, demand action regarding recent events in Serbia and the massive escalation of violence and repression against the Serbian people and students by the regime of Aleksandar Vučić and his SNS party.
“We are shocked that such repression and human rights violations, in clear divergence from your principles and your Manifesto, can be demonstrated by a member of your coalition without your condemnation,” states the letter to party president Manfred Weber and secretary-general Dolors Montserrat.
EPP Manifesto and Serbian Reality
SuR reminds the EPP that its 2024 Manifesto unequivocally advocates for a democratic Europe where people decide, a Europe that respects its fundamental values, both within and beyond its borders. A Europe that guarantees citizens are equal before the law and restores trust to those who feel unheard or neglected.
Furthermore, the Assembly in Diaspora recalls that the manifesto expresses faith in the European way of life. Freedom is key, but freedom without security is an empty word. “Our people expect a Europe where they feel safe in every aspect of their lives. Our people want secure jobs that ensure a good life and support growing families. Our people expect Europe to promote life with freedom, justice, and democracy.”
SuR emphasizes that none of this currently applies in Serbia, where paramilitary units assist the police in brutally beating citizens who are peacefully protesting against corruption, state crime, and the seizure of state institutions by Aleksandar Vučić and his party. Students are being beaten and run over, unidentified individuals in plain clothes are kidnapping people on the streets and taking them to unknown locations. Even the police cannot state where these individuals are being held.
Several police officers stormed in to arrest a young jazz piano student who was peacefully protesting, female protesters suffered painful beatings, social media videos show police bragging about the beatings they inflicted – as if it were some dark “violence competition” – while other videos reveal horrifying and disturbing police comments about the physical appearance of protesting women.
Call for Fair Elections
“How is it possible that the EPP remains silent and does not react to the obvious breakdown of democracy in Serbia? Many established European and world media report on this almost daily. No one can say they are unaware,” SuR stresses in its pressure on the European People’s Party.
The only way to peacefully resolve the current situation in Serbia is through fair elections. The alternative, given the nature of the Serbian regime, is very grim. The absence of your voice and action in this situation will be an irreparable stain on everything you claim to represent and care about.
The people of Serbia have shown immense courage in their fight for freedom. It is time for democratic leaders and institutions in Europe to join that struggle, states the appeal from the Assembly in Diaspora to prominent members of the European People’s Party.
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