Socialists to abstain in Information Law vote

The ruling Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) has not changed its stance on not voting on the draft for changes to the Public Information Law on August 31. “SPS wants to turn a new page in its history, and there can be no new page if there is no new book," party leader and Interior Minister Ivica Dacic told reports at the Belgrade city assembly on Tuesday. Socialists to abstain in Information Law vote "This means that our party will never again, as long as I’m the president, be tied to pressure being put on the media, ideas to cancel television broadcasts of parliamentary meetings." The party, founded and led until his death by Slobodan Milosevic, ruled in Serbia throughout the 1990s, and was frequently accused of stifling media freedoms. Now Dacic says will not allow the Socialists "to be tied with assaults on citizens and protesters, murders of political connotation, war crimes and similar things". “That is the past for SPS. That is why we announced at the beginning that we will not participate and we will not vote on the changes proposed to the Public Information Law,” he said. Dacic added, however, that if there were a consensus among the majority of journalist organizations, media and international organizations that deal with the subject, then his party "would be prepared to talk about voting in favor". But, he reiterated, there cannot be talk about something that would "shame it once again for the same reasons it was attacked for in the 1990s". “We have experience from that period about what not to do,” Dacic said, adding that SPS is not abstaining "simply because the law was proposed by another party". The voting on the draft was postponed at the end of July as the ruling coalition had trouble garnering a majority to confirm the bill in parliament. The draft was criticized, among other issues, for proposing high fines and shutting down of media outlets found in violation of its provisions. Dacic at the Belgrade city assembly today (Beta) LDP MP to vote against Opposition Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) official Vesna Pesic said that on August 31, she would not vote for the adoption of changes to the Public Information Law. She told Belgrade daily Blic that she made this decision because she accepted the clearly stated stance of the public that the law endangers the freedom of information and the rights of citizens, and that it goes against European conventions. “That is why I believe that I cannot vote for the law,” Pesic said, refusing to say whether or not the rest of the LDP MPs would be voting for the law to pass. “I believe that after all the public writings, statements and expert stances on the law, which we have been listening to for a month and a half, this law should not pass in parliament,” she said. Asked whether the announced support for the law by her party means that it could also be "participating in a possible cabinet reshuffle", which, according to the daily, "is being mentioned ever more openly now", Pesic said that she "knows nothing about that" and that there has been "nothing but speculation thus far regarding the matter".

Socialists to abstain in Information Law vote

"This means that our party will never again, as long as I’m the president, be tied to pressure being put on the media, ideas to cancel television broadcasts of parliamentary meetings."

The party, founded and led until his death by Slobodan Milošević, ruled in Serbia throughout the 1990s, and was frequently accused of stifling media freedoms.

Now Dačić says will not allow the Socialists "to be tied with assaults on citizens and protesters, murders of political connotation, war crimes and similar things".

“That is the past for SPS. That is why we announced at the beginning that we will not participate and we will not vote on the changes proposed to the Public Information Law,” he said.

Dačić added, however, that if there were a consensus among the majority of journalist organizations, media and international organizations that deal with the subject, then his party "would be prepared to talk about voting in favor".

But, he reiterated, there cannot be talk about something that would "shame it once again for the same reasons it was attacked for in the 1990s".

“We have experience from that period about what not to do,” Dačić said, adding that SPS is not abstaining "simply because the law was proposed by another party".

The voting on the draft was postponed at the end of July as the ruling coalition had trouble garnering a majority to confirm the bill in parliament. The draft was criticized, among other issues, for proposing high fines and shutting down of media outlets found in violation of its provisions.

LDP MP to vote against

Opposition Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) official Vesna Pešić said that on August 31, she would not vote for the adoption of changes to the Public Information Law.

She told Belgrade daily Blic that she made this decision because she accepted the clearly stated stance of the public that the law endangers the freedom of information and the rights of citizens, and that it goes against European conventions.

“That is why I believe that I cannot vote for the law,” Pešić said, refusing to say whether or not the rest of the LDP MPs would be voting for the law to pass.

“I believe that after all the public writings, statements and expert stances on the law, which we have been listening to for a month and a half, this law should not pass in parliament,” she said.

Asked whether the announced support for the law by her party means that it could also be "participating in a possible cabinet reshuffle", which, according to the daily, "is being mentioned ever more openly now", Pešić said that she "knows nothing about that" and that there has been "nothing but speculation thus far regarding the matter".