New conflicts in the Middle East, protests by Generation Z across the world, the war in Ukraine, and artificial intelligence in nearly every office – these are just some of the issues that marked 2025 in the field of human rights.
It was also a turbulent year in Serbia, where protests against corruption lasted throughout the year following the tragedy in Novi Sad, when the collapse of a railway station canopy killed 16 people and seriously injured a young woman.
During 2025, more than 160 cases of attacks and intimidation were recorded in Serbia, warns Amnesty International, a human rights organisation, in its latest annual report. In Serbia, as in other Balkan countries, the rights of women and the LGBT community continue to be violated.
Unlike last year, the current Amnesty report does not include two former Yugoslav republics: Montenegro and North Macedonia.
“We are facing the most challenging moment of our time. Humanity is under attack from international movements opposed to human rights and predatory governments determined to maintain dominance through unlawful wars and brazen economic coercion,” said Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International, on the occasion of the new global human rights report.
For years, this organisation has condemned human rights violations worldwide, warning of the consequences of blatant abuses by governments and major corporate actors, as well as double standards in the application of international law.
Serbia
Amnesty warns that throughout 2025 in Serbia, journalists, protesters, and civil society organisations faced intimidation and harassment. Authorities allegedly attempted to curb widespread public dissatisfaction through surveillance.
“The protests triggered a harsh response from the police and the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS),” the report adds. Police detained hundreds of demonstrators, and by mid-year more than 160 cases of intimidation and attacks had been recorded. Authorities continued the unlawful use of spyware and other digital forensic tools against activists and journalists, Amnesty claims.
By the end of the year, the High Prosecutorial Council had failed to appoint a Chief War Crimes Prosecutor, while the government blocked effective judicial cooperation with other Balkan countries.
In the first half of 2025, Serbia exported ammunition worth more than €55 million to Israel, violating obligations under the Arms Trade Treaty and international humanitarian law, Amnesty stated.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Political instability persists in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), the report notes.
The glorification of convicted war criminals and genocide denial continue, alongside discrimination against Roma and “non-constituent peoples” (those who do not identify as Serbs, Croats, or Bosniaks). Civil society and independent journalists face verbal threats, online abuse, and defamation, particularly in the Republic of Srpska, one of the country’s two entities.
The other entity, the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, adopted laws recognising femicide and increasing penalties for perpetrators of domestic violence.
However, legal protection for victims remains inconsistent across the country.
Croatia
In Croatia, the European Union’s newest member, poverty rates increased due to rising living costs. Access to abortion remains restricted for women, and victims of domestic violence lack adequate access to support services.
Authorities continue to push back refugees and migrants at the borders, where they face violence. Minorities, including Serbs and Roma, as well as members of the LGBT community, continue to face discrimination, Amnesty reports.
Defamation remains a criminal offence and is used to initiate criminal complaints and lawsuits against journalists, restricting freedom of expression. Journalists reporting on corruption, environmental issues, and government affairs have faced physical attacks, harassment, and online threats.
A hostile environment, inadequate protection, and financial and political pressure on the media have significantly undermined press freedom and the right to information, the organisation warns.
Slovenia
Amnesty warns that due to a shortage of general practitioners, 140,000 people were left without access to primary healthcare. Members of the Roma community, particularly in education and housing, face systemic discrimination. Around 25,000 residents of this former Yugoslav republic still remain outside the permanent residence register.
On 26 February 1992, Slovenia removed from this register all those whose citizenship applications were rejected or who failed to apply, rendering them “administratively erased” and stripping them of all economic and social rights.
Transgender people and members of the LGBT community lack access to reproductive technologies, the report adds.
Kosovo
Kosovo experienced a political crisis during 2025, as parties failed to reach consensus on forming a parliament and, consequently, a government. The Constitutional Court annulled a law granting additional powers to the Independent Media Commission – a move condemned by civil society representatives.
Due to the uncertain political situation, the adoption of legislation aimed at improving LGBT rights was postponed.
Roma families continue to live in fear of forced evictions, as they are unable to obtain official documents due to costs and bureaucratic obstacles.
The government agreed to accept compensation claims from victims of former members of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA).
In July 2025, the Basic Court in Pristina sentenced two men to 15 years’ imprisonment for the rape of Albanian women during 1998 and 1999.
(BBC Serbia, 22.04.2026)