The proposing organizations submit this public and formal request to the National Assembly and its Committee on Culture and Information due to a serious violation of the Law on Electronic Media during the procedure for electing members of the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media (REM) Council, which occurred on 21 October 2025 through actions and decisions of the National Assembly’s Professional Service. Although the Committee’s report of 14 October 2025 clearly established the list of authorized proposers and candidates, the Professional Service allowed the presence and voting of representatives of nine national councils that do not have the status of authorized proposers, thereby directly breaching Article 13 of the Law on Electronic Media. The text of the request follows below:
To be delivered to:
Speaker of the National Assembly, Ana Brnabić
Committee on Culture and Information of the National Assembly
Subject: Request to publish the correct voting result based on the votes of the three legitimate authorized proposers in the category of National Councils of National Minorities
Date: 22 October 2025
Dear Ms. Brnabić,
The proposing organizations express serious concern over a gross violation of the Law on Electronic Media in the process of electing members of the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media (REM) Council, which occurred on 21 October 2025 through the decisions and actions of the National Assembly’s Professional Service.
Despite the Committee on Culture and Information report published on 14 October 2025, which established the list of authorized proposers and candidates, the Professional Service enabled the presence and voting of representatives of nine national councils that do not have the status of authorized proposers. This constitutes a direct violation of Article 13 of the Law on Electronic Media, which stipulates that only authorized proposers who participated in nominating candidates have the right to vote.
According to the harmonization invitation sent by the Committee on Culture and Information to national councils, it was explicitly stated that one representative each from the Bosniak National Council, the Albanian National Council, and the National Council of the Hungarian National Minority should attend the harmonization meeting as the three authorized proposers. Nevertheless, nine additional representatives of national councils appeared and a total of twelve persons voted, directly undermining the integrity and lawfulness of the procedure.
Based on the applicable legal procedures and the Committee’s report, legitimate votes belong exclusively to the three national councils that nominated their candidates, as stated in the Committee on Culture and Information’s report.
We therefore request that:
- The National Assembly determine which ballot papers are valid, on the basis of the signatures required on the ballot papers at the time of voting;
- It order the annulment of all other, invalid ballots in the category of National Councils of National Minorities;
- The minutes of the vote publish the results based solely on the votes of the three legitimate authorized proposers—the Bosniak National Council, the Albanian National Council, and the National Council of the Hungarian National Minority.
We call on the Committee on Culture and Information and the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia to remedy without delay this serious breach in the process of electing the REM Council. We note that the decision to reintegrate both candidates and proposers into the process was taken on the basis of the Report on the established list of organizations that jointly constitute a single authorized proposer, and the list of candidates for members of the REM Council dated 14 October 2025, in the expectation that the National Assembly’s Professional Service has a legal obligation to implement the conclusions of that report in the subsequent procedure.
Respectfully,
Proposing organizations in various categories of authorized proposers:
- ANEM – Association of Independent Electronic Media
- Association of Film Directors of Serbia
- ASTRA – Anti-Trafficking Action
- Autonomous Women’s Center
- Bečej Youth Association
- Belgrade Open School
- Belgrade Centre for Human Rights
- Center of Modern Skills
- Center for Youth Integration
- Center for Investigative Journalism Kruševac – CINK
- Center for Creative Development – Knjaževac
- Center for Education Policy
- Center for Sustainable and Creative Development – Misturafina
- Center for Children’s Rights
- Center for the Production of Knowledge and Skills
- Center for Work with Children, Youth and Families “Vrdničak”
- Center for Social Preventive Activities – GRiG
- CRTA
- Children’s Center Zaječar
- Civic Initiatives
- Group for Children and Youth “Indigo”
- Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia
- MDRI-S – Mental Disability Rights Initiative of Serbia
- Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights – YUCOM
- MODS – Network of Organizations for Children of Serbia
- NARNS – National Association of Parents and Teachers of Serbia
- Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia (NUNS)
- Novi Sad School of Journalism
- OKULAR
- Partners Serbia
- Polekol
- Friends of Children
- Friends of Children of Belgrade
- Friends of Children of the City of Niš
- Friends of Children of the Municipality of Inđija
- Friends of Children of the Municipality of Požarevac
- Friends of Children of the Municipality of Surčin
- Friends of Children of Serbia
- Friends of Children of Zvezdara
- Sombor Educational Center
- Serbian Association of Cinematographers – SAS
- Svetionik
- Šumadija Center for Civic Activism “Res Publika”
- Association “I Have an Idea”
- Da se zna!
- Association of Documentary Filmmakers of Serbia
- Association of Dramatic Artists of Serbia – UDUS
- Association of Film Artists of Serbia – UFUS
- Citizens’ Association “Atina” – Anti-Trafficking and Gender-Based Violence
- Zlatiborski krug Association
- Creative Pedagogy Association
- Journalists’ Association of Serbia (UNS)
- Association “RUŽICA”
- Association of Screenwriters of Serbia
- Association for Support to Children and Persons with Disabilities and Their Families “Realno”
- CSO “Kokoro” – Bor
- CSO “Libero”
- Užice Children’s Rights Centre
