The Party of European Socialists calls for an immediate and full investigation into the allegations of irregularities during Serbian elections. The reports from both the observer missions of the European Parliament and from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) hinted that the Serbian authorities, President Aleksandar Vučić and Prime Minister Ana Brnabić fostered the creation of unjust conditions for the rest of the political parties taking part in the election.
PES Secretary General Giacomo Filibeck said:
“It is deeply worrying, that the main international observers at the last Serbian elections are unanimous in finding irregularities during the voting process. This concerns both early national and local elections, held on 17 December this year. As strong supporter of the European future of Serbia and the Western Balkans, the PES expected higher democratic standards from Serbia – a country with a full candidate status and in a negotiating process for an EU membership.”
The preliminary findings of the international observers state that the vote “was marred by harsh rhetoric, bias in the media, pressure on public sector employees and misuse of public resources”. European Socialists and Democrats closely monitor the developments after the elections and would like to see a full investigation of all officially filed claims.
The PES already expressed its support to Andreas Schieder, MEP, who was attacked by Serbian authorities because of his findings on the irregularities during the Serbian election.
Witnessing the violence during the opposition protests after election day in Serbia, especially in Belgrade, the PES calls the authorities to do their best to find a peaceful and democratic solution to the crisis. Media reports of football fans, mobilized by the authorities to provoke violence at the planned for the upcoming days peaceful protests of the united opposition are raising serious concerns.
The PES stands in solidarity with its observer member party in Serbia – Party of Freedom and Justice (SSP), its Vice President Marinika Tepić, MP on hunger strike, and all opposition members of Parliament who are protesting the election violations.
