BELGRADE -- Several hundred Serbian LGBT activists and their supporters protested in central Belgrade against alleged police brutality on March 6 following reports of abuse against two LGBT persons and what demonstrators say was official inaction in the incident.
Participants in the protest -- dubbed We Will Not Be Silent! -- called for the criminal prosecution of police officers for what they say was abuse, torture, and sexual harassment in the February 26 incident, as well as quicker sanctioning of police officers who commit violence.
Organizers from the Da se zna! (To Be Clear!) rights group also called on authorities in Serbia to condemn violence against the LGBT community.
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Serbian LGBT Activists Protest Over Reported Police Abuse
Several leaders from Serbian opposition parties joined the protest.
Activists charge that police officers abused two LGBT persons during a search of an apartment in Belgrade that was suspected of having drugs in it.
They said it was the most severe case they have seen so far, adding that the two people affected suffered physical injuries and psychological trauma.
Following the incident, police officials said they were investigating a complaint regarding the police officers' work and were "determining the truthfulness of the allegation."
They said the police officers "will be sanctioned in accordance with the law, if it is determined that they had exceeded their powers."
However, Da se zna! said they had been informed that police authorities had rejected the complaint against the officers.
The independent Ombudsman’s Office announced that it, too, has initiated an investigation over suspicions that police officers had exceeded their powers.
The Serbian Interior Ministry did not respond to RFE/RL's inquiry about allegations that the complaint against the officers had been rejected.
The international human rights organization Human Rights Watch warned, in its report published at the beginning of the year, that LGBT people in Serbia face intolerance, threats, and violence.
The Da se zna! group, which provides legal and psychological support to LGBT people in Serbia, documented more than 80 cases of violence and discrimination against members of that community during 2023.
It said that most cases are not reported to police because of distrust of official institutions.