Full Coverage: Serbia and Montenegro

23.12.2005 The Humanitarian Law Centre (HLC) warns of the increasing pressure on the Council of the Special Department of the Belgrade District Court that hears the Djindjic assassination trial. Most pressure is put on presiding Judge Marko Kljajevic, which coincides with the announced completion of the presentation of evidence.

22.12.2005 One of the key obstacles to the implementation of the Decade of Roma Inclusion in the area of healthcare in Serbia is the inexistence of information on the number of Roma living in the country, concluded the conference on this topic in Belgrade.

21.12.2005 Over a half of the population in Serbia (55 percent) uses computers, while approximately 300,000 citizens uses the internet daily, shows the survey conducted by the Serbian Telecom and Centre for Free Elections and Democracy CESID.

20.12.2005 The MaliVeliki NGO organized, on the occasion of the coming New Year’s holidays, the Third “Santa’s Sleighs 2005” Caravan. During the action, 2,411 children with impaired development from the homes for children without parental care in Serbia will receive New Year’s packages adapted to their needs. The action will cover children with special needs 8 years old or younger.

16.12.2005 The Citizens Pact for the SEE presented Best Visa Queue Stories collection of 20 stories of young people from the region, irrated by the fact that they canÂ’t travel to the EU without a visa.

14.12.2005 Goran Svilanovic, the Chair of the First Table of the Stability Pact for SEE, said that the so-called “Schengen Wall” is the biggest barrier in Europe since the fall of the Berlin Wall.

13.12.2005 Sonja Biserko, President of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia, estimates that the sentences for the war crimes committed in Ovcara, near Vukovar, were adequate, having in mind that the maximum sentence at that period of time was 20 year in prison.

12.12.2005 The War Crimes Council of the District Court in Belgrade pronounced the sentences for 14 of the 16 accused for war crimes at Ovcara, near Vukovar. Two persons were released from the charges of execution of prisoners of war in November 1991.

11.12.2005 Sonja Biserko, President of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia, said that the arrest of Croatian general Ante Gotovina makes “Serbia alone in the region” and that the position of the Government regarding the cooperation with the ICTY has “changed significantly”.

08.12.2005 Carla Del Ponte, the Chief Prosecutor of the Hague Tribunal (ICTY), said today in Belgrade that her report to the UN Security Council on the cooperation of Serbia and Montenegro with the ICTY will be negative.

06.12.2005 The Exit Festival launched the “Study Better” campaign which will offer the students in Belgrade, Nis, Novi Sad and Subotica a variety of cultural and educational programmes over the period of the next five months.

05.12.2005 The Ray of Hope association of parents of children with impaired developement from Pljevlje, started the implementation of the “Live with us, not beside us” project, on the occasion of December 3, the International Day of Disabled Persons. The project is supported by Share SEE.

02.12.2005 December 1, the World AIDS Day, was marked in Serbia with the opening of the National Office for HIV/AIDS in Belgrade, and numerous other events and manifestations in Serbia and Montenegro.

01.12.2005 On the occasion of December 1, World AIDS Day, the CAZAS started a campaign on November 17, under the motto “STOP AIDS – Keep the Promise”. The campaign will end on December 15.