(25 Feb 2025)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Belgrade, Serbia – 25 February 2025
1. Various of Human Rights House sign, showing “Civic Initiatives” (civil society organization raided by police)
2. SOUNDBITE (Serbian) Dragoslava Barzut, Civic Initiatives:
”The police entered the premises of the “Civic Initiatives” at 0920CET (0820 GMT) requesting from us financial documentation for inspection without presenting a warrant.”
3. Close of sign reading (English) "Law”
4. SOUNDBITE (Serbian) Dragoslava Barzut, Civic Initiatives:
”This wouldn’t be a problem if it were a legal procedure but it is obviously not and is a from of oppression and political abuse of our institutions to showdown with those who have been reporting for years how our state, i.e. government, implements certain decisions. This is simply a repressive showdown that has been radicalized against all of us who think differently. We have seen this trend of radicalization in the last few months.”
5. Close of Civic Initiatives sign
6. SOUNDBITE (Serbian) Dragoslava Barzut, Civic Initiatives:
”There are reports in the media that this is because of USAID funds, that this is the reason for today’s inspection. However, some organizations that have nothing to do with USAID are also subject to this oppression. This suggests that in fact this is a reason for a showdown with those who think differently. So this is a pressure on civil liberties, on democratic values and principles because we have always, in fact, all these years from 1996 until today, fought exclusively for the interests of citizens and greater participation of citizens in decision-making.”
7. Logo reading (Serbian) "Civic Initiatives"
STORYLINE:
Serbia’s police raided the offices of at least four civil society organizations on Tuesday as part of a probe into allegations of abuse of U.S. Agency for International Development funds in the Balkan country.
This comes after the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump froze foreign funding for 90 days in January and has since taken steps to dismantle the aid agency, firing over a thousand workers.
State prosecutor Nenad Stefanovic said Serbia has asked the U.S. Department of Justice for information about potential abuse of funds and money laundering concerning USAID funds in Serbia, citing statements by Trump, State Secretary Marco Rubio, tech billionaire Elon Musk and other U.S. officials about the USAID fund freeze.
A special anti-corruption department has asked the police to “collect necessary intel to check the information and collect evidence regarding suspicions of non-targeted spending of USAID funds, abuse of funds and possible money laundering,” Stefanovic said.
Police have been tasked with gathering all documentation regarding USAID donations from four non-government organizations, he said.
Belgrade-based Center for Research, Transparency and Accountability, or CRTA, and the Civic Initiatives group confirmed the police came to their offices on Tuesday.
CRTA, which provides independent monitoring of elections in the Balkan country, said on X that it is "fully cooperating with the state authorities.”
”This wouldn’t be a problem if it were a legal procedure but it is obviously not and is a from of oppression and political abuse of our institutions," said Dragoslava Barzut of Civic Initiatives.
"This is simply a repressive showdown that has been radicalized against all of us who think differently. We have seen this trend of radicalization in the last few months,” she said.
AP Video by Ivana Bzganovic
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