Rule of law
In this study, we have reduced rule of law to one dimension: the accountability of the government for breaking the law. In order to establish an accountable government, we need fair and free elections and a political system that leads to political accountability; an independent judicial system and independent (control) bodies that lead to the legal accountability of government officials, but also an active civil society that monitors and oversees the work of politicians, holding them accountable for their actions. In each of these dimensions, we note negative trends.
RULE OF LAW
Reduced ability of the political system to generate political accountability
Grade
Negative
In the last decade, there has been a worsening of election conditions. The multi-party system collapsed, and the political system is distorted. This trend peaked after the 2020 parliamentary elections, which were boycotted by a large part of the opposition. The result is a parliament with virtually no opposition. In this manner, the political system lost the ability to hold the government politically accountable for its actions. This further strengthened the trend of concentration of power in the hands of the President of the Republic.
RULE OF LAW
Reduced ability of the judiciary to make the executive legally accountable
Grade
Negative
The work of the judiciary and independent bodies has been marked by conflicts with the executive power and a declining ability to control it. Over the past decade, the executive power has repeatedly tried to further limit the independence of the judiciary through constitutional reforms. Due to strong resistance from the professional community, citizens' associations, the opposition and the media, it temporarily gave up. However, it did not give up on invalidating the judiciary. In recent years, the analyses show that the government has actively undermined the authority of the judiciary in public. The relations between the executive power and the independent bodies had a similar trajectory (especially the Protector of Citizens and the Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection). The government started by ignoring them and undermining their work, only to end up appointing officials who would lead these institutions in a more cooperative way.
RULE OF LAW
Civil society and the media fail to hold the government accountable
Grade
Negative
Civil society in Serbia has been an avid critic of the government for years. Citizens' associations and independent media monitor the work of the government and reveal their abuses of power. However, there are conflicting trends in this area. On the one hand, there is depoliticized technocratic activism of traditional NGOs. On the other hand, new associations and movements are emerging that manage to mobilize citizens in defense of human rights and laws through street activism and demonstrations. However, in the absence of political and legal mechanisms of government control, these activities at best lead to isolated, but not systemic, successes.
Elections in Serbia 2008-2020
The elections held from 2008 to 2020 are analyzed taking into account three sets of indicators: the consequences of the electoral system, participation in elections and social representation, as well as the quality of electoral conditions. The election rules were generally stable, until 2020. In the second phase, which begins in 2014, there was a noticeable decline in the quality of the election process - lower turnout, and reduced competitive character of the elections. At the same time, there is a better descriptive representation of different social groups in the parliament, which is the only positive trend in this period.
ELECTIONS IN SERBIA 2008-2020
General stabilization of election rules
Grade
Neutral
The formal rules governing the conduct of elections have not changed much, and when this has been the case, they have been changed in the direction of harmonization with international standards. The electoral system has a satisfactory level of proportionality, while deviations are largely the product of votes for lists that did not surpass the electoral threshold. Negative development is noticeable only in 2020, when the election rules change before the very beginning of the elections.
ELECTIONS IN SERBIA 2008-2020
Decrease in the quality of the election process
Grade
Negative
After 2014, in the second phase, there is a noticeable decline in the quality of the election process. However, the weaknesses of the process were present even earlier. The key factor that enabled the disintegration of the election process is the passivation of the election administration, as well as the regulatory and control bodies. The absence of the controlling role of independent institutions, along with a politically biased election administration, in a media environment that has already favored the government, has created conditions for the unhindered domination of the ruling parties. Their advantage is also realized through the abuse of public resources, negative media campaigns against political opponents and the development of clientelistic relations with voters.
ELECTIONS IN SERBIA 2008-2020
Reduced participation of parties and voters in elections
Grade
Negative
Two negative trends in voter turnout are obvious: de-partying of electoral lists and decrease of voter turnout. Restrictive conditions for the registration of political parties, together with a rigid electoral system and a pronounced dominance of the ruling parties, led to an increase in the number of coalitions and groups of citizens, to the detriment of independent lists of political parties. There is also a noticeable trend of declining voter turnout, from extremely high at the beginning of the period (almost 70%), to a turnout of less than half in later stages.
ELECTIONS IN SERBIA 2008-2020
Decline in the competitive nature of the election
Grade
Negative
While the elections were very competitive at the beginning of the period, the ruling parties are gaining an increasing advantage. In the final phase the elections lose their competitive character and no longer enable the presentation of opposing political options in society, nor challenge the government through elections. The dominance of the ruling party has become more pronounced since 2014, when no opposition list won more than 10% of the seats, and the trend of disappearing pluralism from the main representative body culminates in 2020, when the opposition is almost non-existent in parliament.
ELECTIONS IN SERBIA 2008-2020
Better representation of some social groups
Grade
Positive
In terms of voter representation, the trends are mostly positive, which primarily refers to those aspects that are directly affected by the electoral system, such as the representation of women and representatives of national minorities. In addition, there is a surprisingly stable geographical proportionality of elected representatives, and better representation of the younger generations, especially in the 2020 elections.
Parliament of Serbia
The Parliament is analyzed from the aspect of formal power assigned to it by the legislative framework, as well as from the aspect of its implementation, i.e. realization of the role and responsibilities entrusted to the Assembly in practice. During the entire analyzed period, we record mostly negative trends that contribute to the further collapse of the Parliament as an institution in Serbia.
PARLIAMENT OF SERBIA
Degradation of the role of parliament with the growing deparliamentarization of society
Grade
Negative
The parliament has never fully realized its potential influence in the political system. The growing trends of presidentialization and centralization of power in the hands of the executive, especially in the post 2014 period, have greatly contributed to further disruption of the separation and balance of power. That resulted in the degradation of parliament, with continuous, indirect pressure on the parliament to act as dictated by the ruling party. The simulation of parliamentary mechanisms and processes has led to the distortion of the role of parliament.
PARLIAMENT OF SERBIA
Reduced use of the emergency procedure in passing laws
Grade
Positive
We note a trend of reduced use of the urgent procedure for the adoption of laws. This is emphasized especially when viewing all laws adopted in parliament together, including ratifications of international agreements, which are most often adopted by regular procedure. However, the urgent procedure is still used to a very large extent for the adoption of new laws and amendments to existing ones. Frequent and unjustified use of the urgent procedure in passing laws contributes to the adoption of deficient legal solutions. This reduces the quality of the legislative process and thus the quality of life of citizens. The quality of the legislative process is also diminished by scheduling committee and plenary sessions in short time-frames, as well as omitting laws and other acts proposed by opposition and minority MPs from the parliamentary agenda.
PARLIAMENT OF SERBIA
Weakening of effective parliamentary control
Grade
Negative
The trend of collapsing parliamentary control and monitoring of the executive power has been noticeable since 2014. The control mechanisms are used less and less, and there is a formalistic approach to their use, which makes the process more difficult. There is also a noticeable lack of transparency regarding the work and achievements of control mechanisms, especially survey committees and commissions. Parliamentary control mechanisms have been reduced to superficially filling out forms. Their essential purpose became maintaining the semblance of functional parliamentary supervision, promoting the ruling regime, and defying the opposition and non-parliamentary actors in society.
PARLIAMENT OF SERBIA
Violation of parliamentary rules and procedures, narrowing the space for pluralism and parliamentary dialogue
Grade
Negative
There is noticeably less space for pluralism of opinion and dialogue, as well as for the effective involvement of civil society and citizens in the work of the parliament. Bypassing and violating the rules, procedures and mechanisms, as well as preventing the participation of the opposition in the work of the plenum, all done by the parliamentary majority, culminated in a boycott of the parliament by the opposition in 2019.
A slight change in the direction of greater formal compliance with internal procedures and provisions of the Rules of Procedure of the National Assembly was noted in 2020. This was due to pressure from the domestic and international public. However, substantial progress is still lacking in the proactive use of procedures and mechanisms that would contribute to the effective work of parliament in practice. The pronounced dominance of unanimity in the parliamentary plenum was visibly accentuated after the elections held in 2020, with the formation of a new de facto one-party parliamentary convocation. Only 7 of the current 250 MPs do not belong to the ruling majority.
PARLIAMENT OF SERBIA
Increasingly unacceptable rhetoric and abuse of the parliamentary rostrum
Grade
Negative
The trend of worsening of the atmosphere in the plenum due to the inappropriate behavior of MPs especially contributed to the degradation of the reputation of the parliament. The absence of sanctions for the abuse of the parliamentary rostrum and the unacceptable behavior of the MPs is obvious. Their rhetoric is often marked by elements of hate speech and attacks on representatives of the opposition, the media, the judiciary, civil society and others. Even though the Code of Ethics was adopted in late 2020, no improvement is visible.
Political parties in Serbia
In this study, political parties and the party system are viewed in two ways - as an element of a democratic order that has certain functions (representativeness, creating pluralism, exercising power, etc.), but also as actors who influence the creation of conditions for other systems (such as the political system, the media or civil society) by exercising power or controlling the legislative process.
POLITICAL PARTIES IN SERBIA
Creating a party system with a predominant party
Grade
Negative
Since the 2014 elections, the coalition centered around the SNS has won about 50% of the vote. This party is in power at all levels, with the exception of a few smaller municipalities in Serbia. This concentration of power adversely affects democracy because there are no effective control and monitoring mechanisms. These mechanisms would allow the ruling party to remain within the legal framework, but also to be accountable to its voters. The dominance of the SNS is reflected not only in the favor of the voters, but also in the resources and finances that are available to them. This is a direct consequence of the amendments to the law on the financing of political parties, which further strengthens the unequal position of the parties, and makes their election struggle less equal.
POLITICAL PARTIES IN SERBIA
Atomization of the opposition and the party system
Grade
Negative
The atomization and fragmentation of opposition parties has been going on since the 2012 elections. The fragmentation of opposition parties and division along different lines (ideological and tactical), but also the personal intolerance of leaders makes it impossible for the opposition to perform its functions of control and supervision of the government. There are no alternative policies proposed either, and that would at least formally create an alternative to the current government. Without these functions performed by the opposition, there is no democratic society, especially when it becomes a long-term feature of the party system. Atomization can also be seen in numerous small parties that gather around the SNS. Another example is the constant decrease in support for the SPS coalition, which brings it closer to other opposition parties in terms of strength.
POLITICAL PARTIES IN SERBIA
Blurring the ideological positions of the parties
Grade
Negative
Political parties in Serbia have never been fully ideologically profiled; however, during the first and second decades of party pluralism, the lines of political division, as well as the most important topics, were more noticeable. With the rise of the SNS and their taking the position of an all-encompassing party, the ideological differentiation of the parties has significantly decreased. Almost all parties have a reduced clarity of views on specific issues. Moreover, it is common for the members of the SNS party to hold completely contradictory views, especially when comparing their messages for the domestic and international public. At the same time, opposition parties’ main agenda is simply challenging the regime. They do not pay attention to ideological consistency of their views. This situation makes it difficult for voters to comprehend the political field and make politicians accountable for their promises.
POLITICAL PARTIES IN SERBIA
Presidentialization and personalization of politics
Grade
Negative
An additional consequence of ideological inconsistency is the increasing importance of party presidents for the functioning of said parties. This is most apparent in the case of SNS. The president of this party is also the President of the state. This is not the only example of presidentialization of the party, but after the SPS under Milosevic, the SNS is the only party that depends to that extent on the popularity of the president. Presidentialization is not limited to the relationship with voters (although such would have a significant negative impact on political representation), but also on the dynamics of the government and parliament - it is obvious that all important decisions are made by President Vučić, and that ministers and MPs consult and rely on the President.
Human Rights and Democracy
During the analyzed period, the protection of a significant number of human rights has weakened. On the other hand, some groups of citizens and some human rights received greater legal, institutional and factual protection. At the heart of this diversity lies the instrumental approach to human rights that characterizes the government in Serbia because there is a great interest in protecting some rights, while the situation in other domains has drastically declined.
HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY
Decline in freedom of expression
Grade
Negative
Viewed individually, the most dramatic setback was noted in the area of freedom of expression. Despite the developed institutional and legal framework that guarantees rights in this area, a decade behind us has seen a decline in the quality of public dialogue on all important and less important social issues. This decline is reflected in the growing intolerance towards dissidents, the established practice of delegitimizing and slandering interlocutors with whom the authorities do not agree, and the "pollution" of public space that leads to political passivation of citizens.
HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY
Limited progress on freedom of assembly
Grade
Neutral
Progress has been made on freedom of peaceful assembly, especially regarding the LGBT population. From a period of violence and bans on organizing gatherings, Serbia, thanks to the actions of the authorities, has reached a phase of tolerance and relative public disinterest. Similarly, the government showed tolerance for political protests, even when they were not held in accordance with the law (that is, when they were not reported) and when they lasted for months. On the other hand, the government's strategy to provoke violence during the 2020 pandemic protests shows possible steps in the direction of restricting freedom of assembly. This could also be a strategy for hijacking social institutions and processes seen in other spheres, and thus making them devoid of purpose.
HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY
Complex problems related to access to public services
Grade
Neutral
The situation in the area of access to public services is complex and uneven. It is characterized by unequal access of the lower social class to health and education services and a quiet bifurcation and privatization of the system (especially in health care). This could potentially lead to an "outflow" of the middle class towards private providers. If this trend continues, the public service system could be in jeopardy.
HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY
The right to a fair trial
Grade
Positive
Limited progress has been made on the right to a fair trial. The Law on the Protection of the Right to Trial and the Law on Free Legal Aid were adopted, but their implementation has brought limited progress. The average trial length has been reduced, which lead to trial costs being reduced. The changes have therefore limited effects, but are still positive.
Gender Equality
The state of gender equality in Serbia is marked by certain elements of the preserved heritage from the socialist period, deepened gender inequalities that come as a result of the difficult transition and the social disintegration during the 1990s, as well as the change of the system and structures during the intensive transformation after 2000.
GENDER EQUALITY
Increasing women's participation in politics, with limited real impact.
Grade
Negative
Positive
The last decade has been marked by an increase in women's participation in politics in general, government institutions in particular - primarily legislative, and after the last elections in 2020, the executive. Unfortunately, the real influence of women on policies and processes of social development is still inadequate. Women in positions of power generally reach these positions following the usual clientelistic patterns of political loyalty, promoting political agendas established by their party's political leaders, and failing to impose fundamental changes in patterns of power and political cultures.
GENDER EQUALITY
Absence of substantial change of gender relations and roles
Grade
Negative
Gender equality policies were not effectively implemented. The focus was only on certain areas, such as combating violence against women. Although some positive developments were noted in a slight increase in the value of the gender equality index, what is lacking is the transformational power of policies that would contribute to fundamental gender change power and consequently gender roles and inequalities in the positions of women and men.
GENDER EQUALITY
Maintaining structural inequalities in society
Grade
Negative
Weaker participation of women in government and weaker influence on policies are partly a consequence of fundamental structural inequalities. They are a product of long-lasting historical processes and manifested through a lower rate of property ownership by women, lower economic participation, less economic power in the form of starting a business or running a business. They also have a limited access to technology and are more represented in those areas of the labor market that are characterized by lower employment opportunities and lower wages, primarily in the social services, personal services and trade sectors. This includes investing own resources in taking care of the household and the family. In the past 10 years, there has been no significant change in the situation, nor any introduction of policies that could change the situation in the future.
Media and Democracy
Trends in the media sphere point to four basic components: relations between the state, institutions and media organizations that characterize the media system, journalists as key actors of the media sphere, informative content offered by the media sphere and media technologies.
MEDIA AND DEMOCRACY
Holding the media captive
Grade
Negative
The process of using media institutions as political instruments, the abuse of public money intended for the media, as well as the media organizations themselves, intensified after 2014. The Regulatory Body for Electronic Media (REM), through a series of controversial elections of members of the Council, put itself at the service of politicians. This resulted in it becoming an ineffective actor who does not fulfill its competencies. Consequently, two public media services, whose boards are elected by REM, have lost their independence and editorial autonomy. Measures aimed at encouraging media pluralism, state advertising and non-transparent allocation of public money are increasingly rewarding the media that report uncritically on the authorities. Contrary to media laws, the state remained the owner of one part of the media, and became an active participant in the market of cable distribution.
MEDIA AND DEMOCRACY
Increased number of pressures and attacks on journalists
Grade
Negative
Rating: NEGATIVE
Since 2014, journalists' associations have been recording increasing pressure on journalists and media workers. These pressures mainly come from the political sphere. In addition to the most dangerous type of pressure (physical attacks), organized campaigns of discrediting journalists on social networks and tabloid media are also used. Administrative harassment (tax inspections, etc.), denying access to events and information of public importance are another part of that long list. Journalist protection mechanisms are underdeveloped and inefficient, despite the establishment of a Permanent Working Group on the Safety of Journalists in 2016. These pressures and obstacles, together with a relatively underdeveloped professional culture, have led to increased self-censorship among journalists.
MEDIA AND DEMOCRACY
Reduction of internal pluralism in the media
Grade
Negative
With the increasingly intense and comprehensive captivity of the media, internal media pluralism is being lost. Citizens can find different points of view in the abundance of offers, but individual news media do not provide them with access to a variety of voices, positions and perspectives. This is especially true for political information. The space for exchanging opinions and confronting views is all but gone, which leads the media to uniform and one-sided reporting. Especially worrying is the fact that there is a lack of pluralism on the two public media services, as well as on televisions that have been granted a license to broadcast programs country-wide.
MEDIA AND DEMOCRACY
Increasing the use of the Internet as a means of information
Grade
Negative
Positive
In the last decade, there has been a significant increase in the use of the Internet among citizens. The openness of digital communication enables many social actors to communicate their messages, and citizens to get acquainted with more diverse information. The Internet has provided a platform for investigative and fact-checking newsrooms, as well as for local media. However, the digital public sphere follows the framework of political and media polarization, not offering spaces for dialogue. Also, the internet has brought new opportunities for pressure, intimidation, spreading hate speech and fake news. Especially in the field of political information, it enabled covert influences on public opinion through organized false accounts that support the government and attack those who question it and try to hold it politically responsible.
Civil Society
The study considers civil society from the point of view of the democratic institutional conditions and the environment in which civil society actors operate. In this framework, special attention is given to resources and democratic capacities of civil society itself and opportunities to influence decision-making and oversee the work of public institutions. Apart from the positive trend of adopting legal incentives for the activities of civil society organizations at the very beginning of the analyzed period, the negative trends dominate and become more pronounced after 2014.
CIVIL SOCIETY
Improving the legal framework for the establishment and operation of citizens' associations
Grade
Positive
In the period from 2009 to 2012, key laws were passed for the functioning of citizens' associations, which facilitated their registration, project financing and enabled the free establishment of endowments, foundations and funds. Volunteering is being introduced into the Serbian legal system for the first time. After the adoption of key status laws in this area, there is an expansion of the civil sector - as many as two thirds of civil society organizations in Serbia were established after 2010, i.e. after the adoption of the Law on Associations.
CIVIL SOCIETY
Reduction of freedoms and opportunities for independent action of civil society
Grade
Negative
Civil society in Serbia operates in an increasingly unfavorable environment, especially after 2014. The state policy of controlling, conditioning and imposing the interests of the ruling party shapes the space for civil society to act. Direct attacks by the authorities on civil society activists involved in information, democratization, advocacy, human rights and transitional justice became more intense and direct during this period. Financial controls, arrests, defamations and accusations against activists in the state media are some of the increasingly frequent mechanisms for dealing with critical and state-independent voices.
CIVIL SOCIETY
Less and less space for the influence of civil society on decision making
Grade
Negative
After the election in 2014, the already limited possibilities of the influence of civil society on decision-making are further reduced. Ministries or parliamentary committees rarely organize public debates and hearings, and even when they do, invitations are sent to selected organizations or too late for adequate preparation and constructive participation, and comments and recommendations are ignored. Cooperation between the civil sector and the state is most often reduced to budget financing of CSO activities, which further contributes to a more cooperative approach of these organizations to the state.
CIVIL SOCIETY
Increasing the number and role of pro-governmental NGOs
Grade
Negative
As most citizens' associations are financed from public sources, the activities of civil society are significantly directed towards and dependent on the state. In recent years, it has become noticeable that only those associations that publicly support the government or at least do not threaten / criticize it in any way can count on budget funds intended for civil society. The government and the ruling parties are increasingly establishing loyal citizens' associations (GONGO and PONGO). These organizations serve to create the illusion of democracy, support the authorities and invalidate critical voices.
Class inequalities and Democracy
Differences between social classes in Serbia can be observed across three aspects relevant for the period of post-socialist democratic transition. Changes in the trend of class mobility are the first, changes in the orientation towards democratic values are the second, and changes in the action potential of citizens and social classes are the third aspect.
CLASS INEQUALITIES AND DEMOCRACY
Difficult class mobility
Grade
Negative
In the observed period, there is a significant marginal upward mobility, i.e. to a general increase in the number of jobs, within which the number of jobs for professionals, entrepreneurs and skilled workers has been particularly increased. However, this did not bring about a reduction in inequality. On the contrary, an increase it brought upon an increase of inequality compared to previous years, because these new jobs were not created with an equal (or at least proportional) chance to members of different social classes. The possibilities of moving up the social ladder are increasingly unequal. Those who are descendants of the members of the upper class have disproportionately better chances of climbing the ladder, than those belonging to the lower class. This leads to further growth of class inequalities and makes the transformation of Serbian society unfair.
CLASS INEQUALITIES AND DEMOCRACY
The growth of class differences in support of the values of democracy
Grade
Negative
Since the beginning of the democratic transition, support for the values of democracy has been gradually declining. The difference between the social classes in that support has been increasing. Members of the ruling class, experts and (less and less) small entrepreneurs, all of whom are “winners” of the post-socialist transition, give greater declarative support to democratic values than other social groups, noting that the values of small entrepreneurs are getting closer to the "losing" coalition.
CLASS INEQUALITIES AND DEMOCRACY
Strengthening civic activism
Grade
Positive
A significant part of the expert social group also expressed its pro-democratic political position through civil revolt, street protests and increased activism in the civil sector. Nonetheless, in order to achieve any significant political goal, they need an alliance with other social groups. The analysis of civic activism of different social classes in Serbia shows trends that do not create much space for creating a joint social action of members of the presented classes. Just the same, there is a visible spark of a class alliance that has a potential for spreading. It consists of a combination of the orientation towards democratic values and civic activism (carried mostly by the social group consisting of experts), a part of the social group of clerks and technicians and a smaller part of the working class.
International influence on Democracy in Serbia
Isolated trends indicate the way in which domestic political actors and institutions during the observed period "translated" influences from the international environment into the domestic political process. The quality of democracy in Serbia in relation to international influence is viewed from the angle of its consolidation, reactivity to key pro-democratic and resilience to key anti-democratic influences from the international environment, regardless of their country of origin.
INTERNATIONAL INFLUENCE ON DEMOCRACY IN SERBIA
Continued international incentives for democratization with ambivalent effects
Grade
Negative
Positive
Despite the continued encouragement of a wide and dense network of international democratization promoters in Serbia, domestic political elites seem to have learned over time to skillfully exploit the structural weaknesses of development aid for their own political interests. The instrumental and ambivalent attitude of the authorities towards the reforms demanded from abroad resulted in the partial adoption of democratic norms in society. The progress of reforms (especially the unpopular ones) was often perceived by citizens as mere fulfillment of external conditions for material gain. Although without international assistance, domestic "supply and demand" for democracy would undoubtedly be weaker than it is today, the extent to which the quality of the democratic process in Serbia has remained dependent on whether and how external actors intervene suggests that the way international incentives were realized encouraged and undermined the foundations of democratic consolidation at the same time.
INTERNATIONAL INFLUENCE ON DEMOCRACY IN SERBIA
Shifting the focus of Europeanization from democratization to stabilization
Grade
Negative
There are inherent tensions between the EU demands for the speedy resolution of open post-conflict issues, on the one hand, and the continuation of democratic reforms, on the other. These enable the ruling elites to remove (with tacit (dis)consent of European institutions) important actors of the democratic process from the political dialogue. Furthermore, the technocratic nature and focus of the negotiation process on the executive allows non-democratic practices to survive in all aspects of political life. All this, in a system with a predominant party, inevitably facilitates the seizure of institutions, media and civil society in party/clientelistic webs of relations.
INTERNATIONAL INFLUENCE ON DEMOCRACY IN SERBIA
Increasing circumvention of democratic procedures in international economic transactions
Grade
Negative
Bypassing and violating democratic procedures by the authorities in Serbia for the sake of the realization of international political and economic transactions is an increasingly common practice. Agreed at the level of political leaders and hidden from the public eye, many economic agreements concluded by Serbia undermined the principles of legal certainty, transparency and democratic governance. Although the so-called "corrosive capital" is proverbially linked to non-democratic countries and is considered a key channel for their "malignant" influence in Serbia, non-transparent business has also marked economic agreements Serbia made with actors from Western democracies and international financial institutions.
INTERNATIONAL INFLUENCE ON DEMOCRACY IN SERBIA
The growing popularity of the challengers of the global liberal order
Grade
Negative
The current growth, as claimed by the soft powers of global actors with non-liberal regimes, is also reflected in the dynamics of political processes in the entire Western Balkans. Not only do domestic political elites find support and legitimacy in non-liberal regimes for their own actions, but citizens also recognize in them alternatives to the current liberal order to which they are bound by betrayed expectations. Although democracy in Serbia at least declaratively remains "the only game in the city", the growing sympathy that political representatives and citizens have for non-liberal actors and practices warns that the democratic model of governance in Serbia will remain burdened with numerous shortcomings in the future.
INTERNATIONAL INFLUENCE ON DEMOCRACY IN SERBIA
Use of regional issues as diversion tactics
Grade
Negative
The open issues that Serbia has with its neighbors represent an inexhaustible source of raising tensions. This often serves to divert attention from internal democratic deficits and civil discontent. Any sharpening of rhetoric towards the neighbors not only resulted in incendiary nationalist outbursts of political representatives, but was often used to deal with "internal enemies". Anyone who opposed the discourse of national vulnerability or criticized the government on any grounds would soon be labeled a traitor and collaborationist, either by officials or by media loyal to the regime.