Today, Minister of Justice Nikola Selaković met with the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Nils Muižnieks with whom he discussed the steps Serbia had made towards the promotion of human rights.
During the meeting, the Minister and the Commissioner spoke about the conditions in Serbian prisons and the strengthening of the alternative sanctions system. Selaković stated that this system was beginning to show results: there had been a reduction in prison population which further created better conditions for the re-socialisation of the convicted persons and Serbia was the regional leader in the placement of the alternative sanctions system. On the other hand, the Minister noted that the Ministry of Justice had been paying special attention to the promotion of the prison infrastructure which he explained further improved accommodation capacity and prison conditions for the convicts.
The Minister and the Commissioner also discussed the European Court of Human Rights judgements and agreed that their enforcement was very important for the promotion of human rights and the judicial system. Selaković told the Commissioner that after many years, Serbia had managed to reduce the number of applications to the European Court made by its citizens, comparing the number of 11,000 applications made in 2012 to the 2,400 applications counted that day.
At the end of their meeting, the Minister and the Commissioner agreed that the kind of meeting they had just had was important for the exchange of experience and the strengthening of cooperation in the promotion of human rights in the Republic of Serbia.