The Speaker of the Assembly, Ivica Dačić, called for a referendum to amend the Constitution, as the proposal was supported by 193 MPs. That powerful parliamentary force was there only when voting took place, while during the day they were not very interested.

The debate itself was quite unswayed, perhaps because the rhythm to it was given by the Minister of Justice Maja Popović.

“The proposed changes to the Constitution are envisaged as an activity in the Action Plan for negotiating Chapter 23. Amending the Constitution in the field of justice is a condition for further reform of the legal system and the most significant reform in the field of rule of law, which is a fundamental value of any democratic society and one of the priorities of EU policy.“

More or less all the plenaries repeated that the Constitution is changing because of the European path. A critical tone was also heard stating that there was no real debate in the process of creating constitutional amendments, and that the entire Constitution should be changed. When criticism comes from members of a national minority, then at least three of the ruling majority MPs think that they need to show who is stronger.

“When we talk about Article 1 of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia, this article defines the state of Serbia as the state of the Serbian people. This article is problematic from the aspect of national minorities. The Republic of Serbia is a heterogeneous state in terms of national structure, where over 20% of the population are members of national minorities and communities, and its definition as a state of one majority nation strengthens the belief that members of other communities of different origins are in fact second-class citizens.“

“As far as national minorities are concerned, members of national minorities in Serbia have never been discriminated against, especially not by the government formed or led by SNS. We demonstrate it here in the National Assembly when we pass laws. We have the Law on Prohibition of Discrimination, the Law on National Councils of National Minorities, etc. “

“Of course, there is full equality of national minorities in Serbia, and as my colleague Žarić Kovačević said – when it comes to this, Serbia is the leader in Europe. [Saying] this is the way to achieve one thing, and we know what it is. It is secession and it is the division of Serbia.“

“I just have to say that Ms. Kučević stated falsehoods in her address, namely that the professional public was excluded from the decision-making process. Here in the gallery, there are presidents of the largest associations, the Association of Judges and the Association of Prosecutors, and were also members of the Working Group.“

At the special session on the Constitution, the activities of the opposition were not forgotten either. When you hear one sentence, it is like a song on repeat.

“They like violence on the streets, blood on the streets, Đilas’s and Šolak’s tycoon reign, robbery of millions of euros from the citizens of Serbia; they like that people like Crni are released from prison, they want to keep beating up those who stand in their way.“

Nobody even expects the Speaker’s reaction to such a language anymore.

For the Open Parliament, Mirjana Nikolić.