SDS: Society unsafe, 1990s are back

BELGRADE - Serbian society is unsafe today, the 1990s are returning and it is clear to everybody that freedom of the media is under threat in our country, and censorship and self-censorship are increasingly common, Konstantin Samofalov, spokesman for the Social Democratic Party (SDS), said Wednesday.

Speaking at a press conference in Belgrade, Samofalov pointed to recent attacks on the Dean of the Belgrade University Faculty of Political Sciences Ilija Vujacic and writer and journalist Rasa Popov and said that hate speech was prevalent in Serbian society, the atmosphere of fear was growing and prominent personalities were getting beaten up.

How many free media outlets and political shows to speak critically of the ruling coalition can be seen left there today, asked Samofalov.

"In some way, the 1990s are coming back , and we as the Social Democratic Party are very concerned about it," said Samofalov.

Head of the SDS MP group in the Serbian parliament Marko Djurisic said that discussions in the parliament often led to insults instead of argumentation and criticism coming from opposition parties was being met with hate speech by the ruling coalition.

"We do not want to lead a dialogue that is not based on argumentation," said Djurisic.

Djurisic urged the Serbian government to find ways to tackle the atmosphere of insecurity and fear that had been created in Serbia.

Photo Tanjug - Oksana Toskic