Towards Strategy for the Prosecution of War Crimes in Serbia – Support to Victims and Witnesses Session

The first consultation session regarding the creation of the draft Strategy for the Prosecution of War Crimes over the next ten years was held on Thursday October 9th, 2014, at the premises of the Library of the Humanitarian Law Center (HLC). The meeting was dedicated to the theme of support for victims and witnesses in war crimes cases in Serbia.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the Republic of Serbia Office of the War Crimes Prosecutor, the Ministry of the Interior, the Republic of Croatia Ministry of Justice, the Delegation of the European Union to Serbia, the OSCE Mission to Serbia, the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Policy, the City Centre for Social Work in Belgrade, the Supreme Court of Cassation of Serbia, the Victims/Witnesses Assistance and Support Unit within the Higher Court in Belgrade, the IAN Centre for Rehabilitation of Torture Victims, the Victimology Society of Serbia, the HLC, the Belgrade Centre for Human Rights, and representatives of injured parties in cases of war crimes.

The participants discussed current practice and the possibility of improving the system of assistance and support to victims prior to, during and after testifying in cases of war crimes, as well as a model for permanent psychological support for victims.

The suggestions and opinions offered by the participants will form the foundation of the new Draft Strategy for the Prosecution of War Crimes in Serbia in the Period 2015-2025, which will be handed to the Republic of Serbia Ministry of Justice by the end of 2014.