No casualties from mines, explosive remnants of war (ERW), or cluster munitions remnants were confirmed in Serbia in 2011.[1] In 2012, the media reported 11 casualties in two separate incidents. In June, two army cadets were killed and seven were injured when an item of ERW exploded. The incident occurred on a military training ground.[2] On 1 August, a cluster submunition exploded during military clearance operations on Mt. Kopaonik, killing two military deminers. This incident also occurred on military property, while the adjacent land, a ski resort which had previously had some clearance, was also found to be contaminated by submunitions.[3]

In 2010, two boys were injured in an explosion in Nis, an area known to be affected by cluster munitions remnants. The device type causing the explosion was unknown and so the incident was not included in the total of mine or ERW casualties.[4] Prior to the 2012 casualties, three ERW casualties reported in 2008 had been the last confirmed casualties in Serbia.[5] The last confirmed mine casualties were reported in 2005. Annual casualty figures have declined following a peak in 1999 and 2000.[6]

The total number of mine/ERW casualties in Serbia is not known. In 2004, 1,360 casualties (24 killed; 1336 injured) were reported between 1992 and 2000 by Serbia and Montenegro.[7]

At least 78 casualties occurred during NATO cluster munitions strikes in Serbia. A further 16 casualties were caused by unexploded submunitions between 1999 and 2006. Cluster munitions are estimated to have caused more than 100 unreported casualties in Serbia during strikes on Nis. In addition, unexploded submunitions are known to have caused casualties in several regions, which were not reported to the authorities.[8] A survey by Norwegian Peoples Aid (NPA) identified 191 cluster munitions casualties (31 killed; 160 injured) for the period between 1999 and 2008, but details were not provided and the report did not differentiate between casualties during strikes and those caused by unexploded submunitions.[9] In August 2012, two cluster munition casualties were identified through media reports.[10]

Victim Assistance

The total number of survivors in Serbia is not known[11] but has been estimated to be between 1,300 and 8,000.[12]

Victim assistance since 1999

Since Monitor reporting began in 1999, progress on victim assistance in Serbia has been extremely limited. First planned in 2004 and cited as a priority for several years thereafter, a comprehensive government database of mine/ERW casualties and the needs of survivors had not been developed as of early 2012.[13] In 2012, Assistance Advocacy Access–Serbia (AAAS), a national survivors’ association founded in 2010, completed a national survivor needs assessment. Although a state victim assistance committee was formed on paper, through June 2012 Serbia lacked effective coordination among governmental bodies responsible for the provision of victim assistance and the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities as well as a national victim assistance plan. Survivors reported that the greatest progress overall was seen in the development of laws meant to protect their rights and provide access to services, though implementation was absent.

From 1999, the quality of medical and physical rehabilitation services deteriorated while government social and economic reintegration programs for survivors ended. Survivors groups reported that bureaucratic procedures over this period made it increasingly difficult to access rehabilitation services. At the same time, pensions for disabled veterans were significantly reduced. Despite equal opportunity laws, unemployment among survivors and other persons with disabilities remained high in early 2012.[14]

For several years, the local association of survivors Dobra Volja (Goodwill) provided psychosocial support and other services until its closure in 2009 due to a lack of both funds and state support. Numerous local survivor associations exist to provide peer support and advocate for members rights, though they have limited financial resources or none at all. Since 2010, AAAS worked with local survivor associations to carry out national advocacy.

Victim Assistance in 2011

For the first time, Serbia announced plans in late 2011 to begin developing a national victim assistance plan. A minimal increase in access to some services, such as emergency medical care and inclusion in education, was noted by survivor groups, mainly due to an increase in awareness of survivors’ rights following the strengthening of legal frameworks that relate to persons with disabilities.[15] However, at least one organization found that access to services in rural areas had declined in 2011.[16]

Assessing victim assistance needs

Limited efforts were made by the Serbian government in 2011 to identify survivors or assess their needs. As of the end of the year, a centralized database of veterans with disabilities, established in 2009, was being tested.[17] The data was supposed to be collected to support the work of the victim assistance focal point.[18] However, a study published in November 2011 concluded that the Serbian government lacked basic information about survivors and that estimates of casualties during the wars of the 1990s, including those caused by mines/ERW, were imprecise.[19]

AAAS followed up its 2010 survey of regional associations of civilian war victims and disabled military veterans with a national needs assessment of mine/ERW survivors through local survivor groups. The needs assessment, which began in March 2011,[20] was officially completed in April 2012. Findings of the needs assessment were planned for release in late 2012 and are expected to provide information on the services available to survivors, their needs and the challenges they face in gaining recognition of their status or receiving their entitlements. The data collected will be available to organizations that participated in the assessment and the general public.[21]

A national census conducted in October 2011 contained 10 questions on severity of disability, use of assistive devices, and employment history. Reportedly, the information collected was to be used to further develop disability policies and institutional support for social inclusion of persons with disabilities,[22] with the findings of the census to be published in 2013.[23]

Victim assistance coordination

In 2011, no meetings between the victim assistance focal point and other relevant stakeholders within the government were reported and no victim assistance plan had been developed. Throughout 2011, the position of the victim assistance focal point, appointed in 2010, had not yet been officially mandated nor its duties and responsibilities defined.[24] In December 2011, initial steps toward drafting a victim assistance plan were approved by the Ministry of Health.[25] By May 2012, the Ministry of Health agreed to request data held by the Sector for Protection of Veterans with Disability, which identifies veterans receiving disability benefits, to support the development of the plan.[26] One reason cited for minimal progress in victim assistance coordination and planning was a “lack of pressure from the neighboring countries and victim assistance experts from abroad.”[27]

No information was available from the Ministries of Health, Foreign Affairs or Labor and Social Policy regarding their coordination with the victim assistance focal point.[28] The needs of mine/ERW survivors, including civilians, were not considered to be part of the mandate of the Sector for Protection of Persons with Disabilities.[29]

The Sector for Protection of Persons with Disability, within the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy, is the focal point for the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). As of May 2012, the national working group to monitor the implementation of the CRPD had not yet been formed, although its formation had been announced in December 2010.[30]

Survivor inclusion and participation

In 2011, the government reported that cooperation had increased with the NGO sector and survivor organizations, including efforts to raise awareness about available services among survivors.[31] The development of a national plan for victim assistance was to include the participation of representatives of mine survivor associations.[32] Survivors assessed the needs of other survivors and provided legal aid, peer support, and other assistance to other survivors through local survivor and disability groups.[33]

The Office of the Ombudsman found that “in spite of the synchronization of the national legislation with the international standards for protection of persons with disabilities,” concrete actions to promote inter-sectoral cooperation and an inclusive multi-stakeholder approach to address disability issues were absent.[34] Neither persons with disabilities nor the organizations, which represent them, were involved in the process of developing accessibility regulations for new construction.[35]

Service accessibility and effectiveness

Victim assistance activities[36]

Regulations for orthopedic care for disabled veterans were passed to simplify access to these services;[37] however, a veteran group reported that accessing physical rehabilitation services had instead become more complicated and time-consuming in recent years.[38]

Unemployment remains a serious problem for persons with disabilities, despite the new Law on the Professional Rehabilitation and Employment of Persons with Disabilities, which introduced an employment quota for persons with disabilities in 2010.[39] As of March 2012, 79% of those persons with disabilities registered with the National Employment Agency since the law came into force remained unemployed.[40] It was reported that the government was not fulfilling employment quotas for persons with disabilities, though these were being better enforced in the private sector.[41] Survivors’ and disabled persons’ organizations also noted that there was limited progress in economic inclusion.[42]

There was a small increase in the availability of psychological and peer support as two local groups, Awakening and Action and Aid, began new programs in this area.[43] However, the Civilian War Victims Association faced reduced funding in 2012 that threatened their ability to continue providing these services.[44]

In March 2012, technical regulations on accessibility were passed to provide all information necessary to ensure physical accessibility of all buildings and public areas.[45] However, it was found that these standards were less stringent than those in other countries of the region and that they failed to provide standards for the modification of existing structures nor were they being used as a prerequisite for approval of new construction projects. Furthermore, the development of the new regulations lacked input from persons with disabilities or the organizations that represent them.[46] Overall, little progress was seen in the removal of physical barriers preventing the inclusion of persons with disabilities.[47]

In general, information regarding the rights of persons with disability was not widely available, relevant institutions were found to be inaccessible to the population they were mandated to serve, and legislation intended to protect them lacked a means of enforcement.[48] Other new laws were seen as positive on paper but were not yet being implemented throughout the country.[49]

Serbia ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on 31 July 2009.