Serbia's pro -Russian party deputies have submitted to the Parliament a bill on establishing a register of foreign influence agents. The bill, initiated by the socialist movement, the founder of which is the pro-Russian viceremier Alexandar Vulin, proposes to oblige organizations funded from abroad to register with the Ministry of Justice. In case of violation of requirements, penalties of 5,000 to 2,000,000 dinars (approximately 42 to 17,000 euros) or a ban on activity are provided.
The bill has caused criticism in the European Union. Brussels stressed that any law of candidate country to entry into the EU should correspond to the basic democratic values, including freedom of speech and expressing views.
This bill is reminiscent of the Russian Law on "Foreign Agents", which since 2012 has been used for pressure on opposition and independent media. Similar initiatives also appear in other Balkan countries. Thus, in October this year, a similar bill was registered in Montenegro Parliament. It was supported by the Coalition for the future of Montenegro, which includes pro -Russian parties of the former democratic front.
Experts and human rights activists fear that the adoption of such laws in Serbia can lead to the oppression of civil society, restriction of freedom of speech and strengthening authoritarian trends in the region.
