NEW LAW IN SERBIA: Watch what you are saying about Srebrenica, because you can end up in jail! LITERALLY (PHOTO)

Negating the genocide will be punishable in Serbia with 6 months up to five years in prison. This is brought by the proposition on the law about changing and additions to the Criminal law which is in the parliamentary procedure.

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The same punishment goes for those who publicly justify the genocide and significantly reduce its weight, by the final judgment of the court in Serbia or the International Criminal Court.

- Who publicly approves, negates the existence or significantly diminishes the weight of he genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes done against the group of people or the member of the group which is decided based on the race, skin color, state, national or ethnic origin, in a way in cat lead to violence or causing hatred towards any group of people or the member of the group, if those criminal acts have been determined bu the final judgment of the court in Serbia or the International Criminal Court, he/she will be punished from 6 months to 5 years in prison - says a new paragraph five of Article 387 of the draft Act.

Foto: Profimedia/AFP

This, in fact, means that under this proposal someone can get a prison sentence for saying that Srebrenica is not a genocide even thought the Hague tribunal, as the international court, declared that it was genocide, explains for Telegraf the Chairman of the Information and Documentation Centre "Veritas" Savo Strbac. 

He expresses the hope that this attitude will change:

- I think that this article will be fine "tuned". Those are, as far as i am concerned, concessions made for our way or the price of our road to enter the European Union as it exists in other civilized countries. When it comes to Srebrenica and we have the judgment of the court in The Hague, and that is enough for me if someone was trialed because it is against the beliefs of Hague tribunal or some court in Serbia. 

Logoraši u Jasenovcu. Foto: Wikimedia Commons

He points out that its not to be understood like that.

- If there is reason and wits, no one should vote for that form. In a way, you are reducing the rights, you are disabling in general, at any level, the discussions, even in Parliament to critically look upon the judgment if we have the final verdict of the Hague Tribunal, even though we all know that this is more a political organization.

The Government of Serbia has adopted the proposal of this law at the last meeting which was held on 9 November, and then the text of the document forwarded to the Serbian parliament to decide about it.

It is planned that all the changes of this law become applicable from 1 January 2017, except for four articles that will start to apply on 1 March next year, and one which will come into force eight days after its publication in the Official Gazette.

(Telegraf.co.uk / Lj. R.)