There has been press coverage this week of new proposals which are supposed to be introduced by the Serbian authorities, particularly in Belgrade City.

The article link and a Google translation of the article are provided below.

Basically, after all the bad publicity with what happened to ‘Mila’ 

https://serbiananimalsvoice.wordpress.com/2010/04/23/serbia-after-mima-in-bulgaria-now-we-have-mila-another-dog-which-has-had-all-its-legs-chopped-off/

https://serbiananimalsvoice.wordpress.com/2010/04/23/serbia-president-tadic-to-adopt-mila-but-where-is-implementation-of-the-real-serbian-animal-welfare-legislation-from-04112005-mr-president/

and all the protests levelled at the Serbian authorities, including demonstrations on the streets (see newspaper article for pictures), one Dr Vladimir Terzin, wants to establish an ‘Animal Police’ unit staffed entirely with animal lovers, who will also receive specific / specialist training for the job.
 

This police unit will be responsible for making sure that Serbian animal welfare regulations are applied and that perpetrators are punished accordingly.

At the moment, this specialist unit is for the City of Belgrade only, but we (SAV) sincerely hope that positive lessons will be learned from the establishment of this unit which can then be transposed into other cities and towns around Serbia.

We are informed that the city of Belgrade has, in collaboration with the local university (vet ?), been actively engaged in castrating animals around the city for several months now, and that this is being paid for with funds out of the city budget.  This can do nothing but help to reduce the numbers of stray animals currently being born into a life of abuse and misery and eventual death on the streets of the capital city.

It must be remembered that it has been common for thousands of stray dogs and cats to be rounded up and killed by shinter teams in the city of Belgrade every year.

Link – SAV presentation to Mr. Alain Hutchinson MEP (Belgium):       To Hutchinson 

Despite the police unit only initially being established in Belgrade city, we consider that at last there are hopefully some positive changes ahead with regard stray and pet animals within the whole of Serbia.  As an NGO which has been campaigning for several years and pushing for much better welfare advances for both strays and roaming (owned) animals within Serbia, we can do nothing but regard this move by the Belgrade authorities as a very positive one.

But this does not mean that we simply sit back now and accept everything we read or are being told.  Experience of the Serbian government and local / city authorities and their shinter teams, combined with very negative / non actions from the Public Prosecutors department(s) over the last five or six years has taught us that we take nothing given as a verbal statement as the truth, regardless of who makes it and their political position.  We have been fed too many promises in the past, only to never even see them start to materialise or at best, or their implementation simply fade away in a very short time, taking the suffering back to how it was – terrible !

With our animal welfare friends and colleagues in Serbia, Germany and other nations, we will be closely monitoring what actually happens now in Belgrade city by the newly formed special ‘Animal Police’.  If we find that there are no improvements, no legislation implementation or no prosecutions of the animal abusive perpetrators during the coming months, as we are informed there will be, then we will scream, shout and take our case directly back to the EU.  For our non EU supporters of SAV, we must point out that Serbia is currently NOT a member state of the European Union (EU).  In order to achieve EU membership (accession); a state such as Serbia must show that it IS implementing its own national ‘rules of law’ / legislation in order to gain membership of the EU ‘club’. 

Possibly, this establishment of the animal police test unit and the promised prosecutions of those who commit serious crimes and abuse against innocent animals is the first step towards enforcement of this ‘rule of law’ by the Serbian authorities.  It is far too late, but better late than never !

Whatever happens, we are watching and we will not hesitate in informing you all of the (hopefully) great advances or (sadly) the continuing failures for animals which will happen in the coming months and years.  Our aim has been and will continue to be a voice for Serbian animals; that will never change, regardless of the political situation, the time and the place.

Now it is down to the Belgarde authorities and their new animal police to ensure that verbal quotations are followed up with real actions.

We are watching !

SAV.

Lets hope that these scenes become history due to the work of the new Animal Police.

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Newspaper Article Link (Serbian): 

http://www.blic.rs/Vesti/Beograd/186779/U-Beogradu-uskoro-Policija-za-zivotinje

English Translation – via Google Translate:

In Belgrade soon, “police animal”

Tanjug | 26.

Gradska uprava u narednom periodu planira da, u saradnji sa MUP-om, oformi “Policiju za životinje”, rekao je danas zamenik sekretara za komunalne i stambene poslove Vladimir Terzin.The city administration in the future plans, in cooperation with the MUP, form a “police animal,” said the now deputy secretary of Municipal Affairs and Housing Vladimir Terzin.

Keruša Mila: Nasilje nad životinjama kulminiralo je njenim slučajemDog Mila: Violence against animals has culminated in her case

On je u izjavi Tanjugu objasnio da bi ta jedinica radila po ugledu na slične službe u svetu, sa obavezom da vodi računa o svim životinjama na teritoriji Beograda.He told Tanjug news agency explained that the unit worked on the model of similar services in the world, with the obligation to take care of all animals in the territory of Belgrade.
Ta služba, naveo je Terzin, ne bi trebalo da ima više od pet do osam ljudi, koji bi brinuli o životnjama na ulici, ali i onim udomljenim koje, kao je istakao, njihove gazde ne čuvaju na adekvatan način.The service said Terzin, you should have no more than five to eight people, who would care for životnjama on the street, but also those udomljenim which, as noted, their bosses are not maintained adequately.

Pripadnik “policije za životinje” u SADMember of the “animal police” in the U.S.

“Za početak se planira odlazak dve osobe na obuku u inostranstvo, kao i nabavka specijalizovanog vozila u te svrhe”, najavio je Terzin.”For a start we are planning two people going abroad for training, as well as supply of specialized vehicles for these purposes,” said Terzin.
Prema njegovim rečima, grad je pokrenuo i akciju sa Veterinarskim fakultetom u Beogradu za sterilizaciju i kastraciju životinja.According to him, the city launched the campaign with the Veterinary Faculty in Belgrade for the sterilization and castration of animals.
On je podsetio da su gradonačelnik Dragan Đilas i gradski čelnici podržali nedeljni protest više udruženja za zaštitu životinja, pod nazivim “Stop nasilju nad životinjama”, zbog učestalih napada na pse u prestonici.He recalled that the Mayor Dragan Djilas and city leaders support the weekly protest over the association for the protection of animals, called “Stop violence against animals” because of frequent attacks on dogs in the city.
Razmišlja se io uvođenju 24 – časovne SOS linije putem koje bi se mogli prijaviti konkretni slučajevi zlostavljanja životinja, rekao je Terzin.Thinking about introducing a 24 – hour SOS lines through which could apply specific cases of animal abuse, said Terzin.

Đilas na protestu “Stop nasilju nad životinjama”Djilas to protest, “Stop violence against animals”

Protestni skup „Stop nasilju nad životinjama”, koji su organizovala udruženja za zaštitu životinja, održan je danas ispred Starog dvora.Protest rally, “Stop violence against animals, which were organized by the Association for the Protection of Animals, was held today in front of the Old Palace. Protestu su se pridružili gradonačelnik Beograda Dragan Ðilas, sekretar za komunalne i stambene poslove Predrag Petrović i pomoćnik sekretara za komunalne i stambene poslove Vladimir Terzin.

The protest was joined by Belgrade Mayor Dragan Ðilas, Secretary of Municipal Affairs and Housing Predrag Petrovic and Assistant Secretary for Municipal Affairs and Housing Vladimir Terzin. Skup su organizovali Društvo za zaštitu životinja, Udruženje „Evropska inicijativa 17” i Udruženje za zaštitu životinja i građanske svesti „Feniks”. The event was organized by the Society for the Protection of Animals, the Association “European Initiative 17” and the Association for the Protection of Animals and civic consciousness “Phoenix.”

Kako su naveli organizatori, protest je organizovan zbog terora nad životinjama i učestalog ubijanja uličnih životinja, ponekad čak i vlasničkih, što je kulminiralo u slučaju keruše Mile, kojoj su amputirane sve četiri šape.

As stated by the organizers, the protest was organized because of terror against the frequent killing of pets and street animals, sometimes even ownership, culminating in the case of Dog Mile, where all four legs amputated.

– Plan gradske vlasti jeste da u narednih godinu i po dana izgradi tri azila za napuštene životinje.

Plan of the city government is that in the next year and a half to build a three asylum abandoned animals. Azil u Rakovici je otvoren već nekoliko meseci, a ubuduće će ovakvih objekata biti u Mladenovcu i na Paliluli. Shelter in Rakovica is open for several months, and the future of these facilities will be in Mladenovac and Palilula. Takođe, grad je pokrenuo akciju sa Veterinarskim fakultetom za sterilizaciju i kastraciju životinja, au saradnji sa MUP-om biće obezbeđeno specijalno vozilo za dva člana „animal police” čiji će se obuka finansirati u inostranstvu – izjavio je Predrag Petrović. Also, the city has launched a campaign with the Veterinary Faculty of sterilization and castration of animals, in cooperation with the MUP special vehicle will be provided for two members of the “animal police” whose training is financed in the abroad – said Predrag Petrovic.

Na današnjem protestu snažno je podržana namera da se formira policija za životinje, a predloženo je i uvođenje SOS telefona za prijavljivanje zlostavljanja životinja koji bi bio u funkciji 24 sata.

At today’s protest strongly supported the intention to create a police animal, and proposed the introduction of SOS Hotline for reporting of animal abuse that would function 24 hours. Udruženja su pozdravila gradske vlasti zbog pozitivne reakcije na njihovo pismo povodom uvođenja taksi na ljubimce, u kojem su ukazali na problem evidencije životinja, zbog čega će se uvođenje taksi odložiti do potpunog sređivanja evidencije. The Associations welcomed the city government for the positive response to their letter regarding the introduction of fees for pets, which pointed to the problem of animal records, which is why the introduction of fees will be postponed until the full adjustment records.

Svrha takse za kućne ljubimce jeste, pre svega, da se pospeši udomljavanje pasa i neće je plaćati oni građani koji udome životinje iz nekog azila, a onima koji plate taksu sledeće godine ćemo izdavati vaučere na osnovu kojih će besplatno moći da sterilišu svoje ljubimce, rekao je Predrag Petrović.

The purpose of the fee for pets is primarily to further the udomljavanje dogs and will not pay for those citizens who Udom animals from an asylum, and those who pay taxes next year we will issue vouchers on which the free power that sterilizes their pets, said Predrag Petrovic.

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