Ministry denies differences in 'Mrdić's laws' texts for Venice Commission and Assembly

Serbia's Ministry of Justice has vehemently denied allegations that discrepancies exist between the legal texts submitted to the Venice Commission and those presented to the National Assembly. The ministry issued a strong condemnation of these "false and inaccurate claims," asserting that they aim to discredit state institutions and misinform both domestic and international audiences.

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The Ministry of Justice most strongly condemns the false and inaccurate claims that have been spread in public – that the texts of the laws sent to the Venice Commission are not the same as those before the deputies in the National Assembly.

Minister of Justice Nenad Vujić clarified that the sole distinction between the versions is the language: the text in the Assembly is in Serbian, while the versions on the Venice Commission's website are in English and French, the commission's official languages. He emphasized that Serbia is a serious country diligently working on its legal framework, dismissing the comments about differing texts as "malicious" and reflective of those making the accusations rather than any error by Serbia.

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The only difference between the texts before the members of parliament and what was before the Venice Commission is that the text in the Assembly is in Serbian.

These denials come in response to statements by Nemanja Đurić, president of the Judicial Authorities Union. Đurić had previously expressed concern that the proposed amendments to the so-called "Mrdić's laws" only partially address existing problems. He also highlighted the problematic difference between the text sent to the Venice Commission and the one introduced in the National Assembly, suggesting it was a cause for concern.

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malicious and something that speaks more about those who made such a statement than about Serbia making some mistake.

The Serbian National Assembly is currently in session to discuss amendments to these judicial laws. These changes have reportedly been aligned with the Venice Commission, receiving its positive opinion after numerous critiques from legal experts.

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Republic of Serbia is a serious country that is seriously working on its legal framework.