News
Organisations from across Europe insist on a transparent appointment of the Commissioner in Serbia
Today, on 4 December, eight digital rights organisations from across Europe sent a letter to the National Assembly of Serbia, asking for a transparent process of the selection of the country’s new Data Protection Commissioner. The mandate of the current Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection of Serbia is to expire soon, and given the fact that the newly adopted Law on Personal Data Protection starts being applied in August 2019 and that Law on Free Access to Information of Public Importance is being reformed, it is of high importance that the new Commissioner is appointed as soon as possible, through a transparent process in accordance with the law, and that the best candidate is given the position.
The letter invites the Culture and Information Committee of the National Assembly of Serbia to:
- Start the procedure for the election of a new Commissioner, as soon as possible;
- To make the procedure for selecting the best candidate for the position transparent;
- To determine the legal conditions for selection, where, in addition to general expertise and experience in the protection and promotion of human rights, priority should be given to candidates with specific expertise and experience in freedom of information and personal data protection;
- To conduct interviews with the best candidates at a session that will be open to the public, in order to deliver a reasoned decision on the proposal to the National Assembly;
- To justify the proposal for a decision on the best candidate’s choice according to each of the set conditions.
The organisations called upon the National Assembly, which appoints the Commissioner, to ensure the highest standards in the selection and appointment of the new Commissioner in order to respect the foundations of a free, innovative and open digital society that delivers the best data protection standards in Serbia, in line with the European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Convention 108 of the Council of Europe.
Signatories:
European Digital Rights (EDRi) – Europe
Association for Technology and Internet (APTI) – Romania
Electronic Frontier Norway – Norway
Related content
Open Letter: Serbian authorities must prosecute illegal hacking of journalists and activists
Today, 19 December, European Digital Rights (EDRi) and 50 organisations urge the European Union’s institutions to take action to stop the Serbian authorities’ illegal use of spyware to target journalists, activists, and members of civil society. On 16 December, Amnesty International released a report exposing widespread abuses by the Serbian police and Security Information Agency (BIA) through the use […]
19. December, 2024.
From Imports to In-House: The Evolving Arsenal of Surveillance in Serbia
How NoviSpy marked a shift from foreign spyware to domestic tools – and what that means for citizens under watch By: Ivana Jovanović Mercenary spyware, specialized malicious software developed by private firms and marketed to governments as tools for fighting crime and terrorism, finds most of its customer base in law enforcement and intelligence agencies. […]
29. May, 2025.
The right to privacy in the time of coronavirus: freedom’s last line of defence?
Dr Mihajlo Popesku, Head of Research, Auspex InternationalCatalina Bodrug, Research Scientist, Auspex International Earlier this month, Auspex conducted two large-scale online surveys1 in the UK and Italy, focusing on residents’ behavioural and emotional responses to the Covid-19 pandemic and resulting lockdown, with samples of 2,001 respondents in each country – representative by age, gender, region and socioeconomic class. […]
30. April, 2020.