More than 90 people have been arrested across Serbia over the past two weeks on suspicion of various criminal offenses. Those detained include senior police officials, public servants, and businesspeople.
Goran Ilić, a professor at the University of Belgrade Faculty of Law, told Serbia’s public broadcaster RTS that the recent arrests suggest signs of depoliticization are beginning to emerge within state institutions. He said that, until recently, it would have been unthinkable for the chief prosecutor to speak publicly while the prosecution service independently carried out its duties.
Among those detained are Marko Kričak, head of the Criminal Police Directorate; Boško Sekulić, head of the Criminal Suppression Service; and Igor Žmirić, commander of the Special Anti-Terrorist Unit. Seventeen police officers have also been arrested.
The list also includes Davor Macura, owner of Alta Bank, and Predrag Vuletić, provincial secretary for social policy. Others detained include Jugoslav Nikolić, director of the Republic Hydrometeorological Institute; Rodoљub Rončević, warden of the Zabela prison; and Marko Gašić, mayor of Inđija.
Ilić noted that courts and prosecutors have always had the same legal powers, but the question was whether cases would actually be pursued or simply left forgotten in a drawer.
“Within the institutions themselves, structures that had previously been pushed into the background are now using the opportunity to come forward. What is fundamentally important is that something is moving. Things are moving in a positive direction. That does not mean anyone has been found guilty simply because they have been arrested. The presumption of innocence applies to them as well,” Ilić said.
He believes those detained are connected to the previous ruling establishment, which, in his assessment, had brought the judiciary under its control. As a result, he said, courts and prosecutors had been unable to perform their duties without interference for nearly 15 years, apart from certain exceptions.
“The prosecution service is obligated to prosecute those who commit criminal offenses, while the courts must rule on the cases brought before them. That was not happening. It should be remembered that over the past 15 years, 95 percent of judges were either appointed or promoted to the highest judicial positions, particularly the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court. The same applies to the Organized Crime Prosecutor’s Office,” the professor said.
Ilić believes that some members of the police and prosecution service are using the latest operations to position themselves favorably with the new government. However, he questioned why they had not acted in the same way before. As an example, he cited Judge Miodrag Majić, whom he described as the only person with the courage to speak publicly about the situation and who faced consequences for doing so.
Speaking about restoring public confidence in the police, prosecution service, and judiciary, Ilić expressed support for the Student List’s proposal to establish a separate prosecutorial police force. He noted that a similar initiative had been proposed in 2011 but failed to receive political backing.
He also recalled that following the defeat of the previous democratic government in the 2012 elections, legal proceedings were launched against several ministers. Those cases ended in acquittals or were discontinued because the statute of limitations had expired.
“Not a single minister in our country, except during the era of Slobodan Milošević, has been held accountable for what they did while holding the highest positions in government. I would like this to signal the beginning of a new era, but we still have to wait and see,” Professor Goran Ilić said.
