Serbia’s Rightists Call For Ban of NGOs

NGOs voice alarm after extremist SNP Nasi groups unveils black list of 17 NGOs that it says should be banned.A Serbian far-right movement SNP Nasi has called on the authorities in Belgrade to outlaw 17 NGOs, which it says have violated Serbia’s constitution.

“We made the list of non-governmental organisations in Serbia based on the unconstitutionality of their acts, varying from promoting religious hatred by supporting gays to support of Kosovo’s independence,” Igor Marinkovic of SNP Nasi told Balkan Insight.

According to the 2006 constitution, Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008, is a province of Serbia.

The list of NGOs include: the Humanitarian Law fund, the Helsinki Committee, Amnesty International, the Center for Cultural Decontamination, Pescanik, the Exit music festival, the Youth Initiative for Human Rights, Queeria Center, Civic Initiatives and the Gay-Straight Alliance.

All were under attack during the regime of Slobodan Milosevic in the 1990s, and still are frequent target of nationalist attacks.

SNP Nasi is known in Serbia for promoting ideas of Greater Serbia and inciting violence ahead of Gay Pride parades.

Prior to the cancellation of the Belgrade Pride Parade in October, SNP Nasi demanded that such events should be banned for 100 years.

Borka Pavicevic, head of the Center for Cultural Decontamination, told local media that she was not scared by the call, but dubbed the move unacceptable in a democratic state.

“The state should finally say what its standpoint is about these and similar issues,” Pavicevic said.