Waitz MEP: Serbians standing up for their rights

Tomas Vajc
N1

Thomas Waitz MEP told N1 on Thursday that his impression after a visit to Serbia is that an increasing number of people are fighting for their rights.

“The impression that I take away with me is that many more people are standing up to fight for their rights, transparency of process and funcitonal institutions. It is encouraging to see how many people are prepared to raise their voices,” he said on the N1 Studio Live show.

The Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance MEP said that he thinks that pollution is a huge problem in Serbia, adding that he saw waste waters spilling into rivers. “I think that is something that is lagging behind European standards by 30, 40 years. I saw illegal landfills and that is something that has to be resolved urgently with the support of the European Parliament,” he added.

Waitz said that Serbia has laws which are not being implemented and added that rule of law and functional institutions are a condition to resolve ecological problems. He said that a number of people complained to him about the Rio Tinto Jadar project, saying that there is no transparency. “We have to make sure that the project meets European standards and that everything is explained to the public and regulated,” he said.

Waitz warned that Serbia, in his opinion, is heading backwards in terms of rule of law and protecting the environment.