THE FOLLOWING IS THE SPEECH OF THE SPEAKER OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA IN ITS ENTIRETY:

“Dear Mr. Flessenkemper,

Dear Ms. Comic,

Fellow MPs,

Dear participants of today's conference,

First of all, let me congratulate the Office of the Council of Europe in Serbia on a beautiful jubilee, two decades of operation and at the same time two decades of constant and mutually beneficial cooperation in the realisation of the goals of our pan-European organisation. The Mission of the Council of Europe in Serbia is a thing without which the huge democratic progress of our country and reforms in key areas would be unthinkable. To you and all your predecessors who worked together with us over the past 20 years as representatives of the Council of Europe, I express my gratitude for the efforts and commitment you invested in the continued progress of democratic institutions in our country.

20 years ago, Serbia was not yet a member of the Council of Europe, it became one two years later, as a member of the then State Union with Montenegro. Since then, our common mission has not changed its goal or intensity, which is to build a democratic society based on equality for all and their full involvement in all social spheres and affairs.

Serbia today is much better than Serbia 20 years ago. As we were duty-bound as members of the Council of Europe, we have accepted and applied all the fundamental documents which the organisation is based on, starting with the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, European Social Charter and many other documents which form the foundation of today's democratic Europe.

Throughout its mission in Serbia, the Council of Europe has provided great support to our efforts to strengthen the protection of human rights, rights of national minorities and cultivate diversity in the broadest sense. The numerous projects the Council of Europe had conducted together with our state institutions, primarily the National Assembly and the judiciary, independent control and regulatory bodies as well as with civil society and the media, have also contributed to this. This was especially thanks to the of the Council of Europe’s permanent advisory role, which we have often used in the past and still use today, as an inevitable reference point in decision-making.

The Republic of Serbia has many a reason to be satisfied with the degree of diversity and equality achieved by our society. It is not just a matter of the laws passed here, in the National Assembly, although these laws are at the very top of Europe in terms of the quality of solutions that protect the rights of minorities and promote their protection and equality. What is much more important is the situation in the field, in everyday life - a climate of tolerance and respect for others and for the different, regardless of whether this difference stems from religion, nationality, social status, sexual orientation.

Of course, we still have a lot of work ahead of us, because we have not completely eradicated cases of discrimination on any grounds, hate speech, intolerance both in public speech and in everyday behaviour. Serbia, like any other European country, is not immune to extremism and intolerance towards minorities of any kind. What I am sure of is that these cases do not reflect our general opinion, nor are they part of our tradition of respecting others, no matter how different they may be.

In this regard, I would like to emphasise the unreserved support of the Republic of Serbia and all of its institutions for the further promotion and protection of equality in diversity, whatever it may be. To achieve this goal, we continue to count on the constant support and partnership of the Council of Europe, its mission in Serbia and all the bodies of our joint organisation. Let that be the goal not only for the next 20 years, but for every new day in which we will make at least a small difference.

I wish you successful work at today's conference, and to the Mission of the Council of Europe, once again, many quality programs and good work with us in Serbia on the promotion and realisation of the goals of our joint organisation.

Thank you!”