"WHEN THERE IS NO AFGHAN PEOPLE LEFT IN SERBIA, THE POLICE WILL USE VIOLENCE AGAINST LOCALS”

In the last few weeks, refugees in Serbia have started reporting experiencing violence at the hands of Serbian police in the north of the country, specifically in Subotica and surrounding areas. The violent incidents mostly occur during regular police raids (when the police forcibly transfer refugees from squats to camps), but also in the Subotica itself, mostly when refugees go groceries’ shopping in the city center.

Speaking to a group of men from Afghanistan, one of them told us how the police treat refugees very differently in the south and in the north of Serbia. “The Serbian policemen at the Bulgarian border were kind to us. They gave us some water and told us where to walk to the nearest city. But the Serbian policemen at the Hungarian border treat us very badly. They take away our stuff and they beat us badly. Why would they do that, why the treatment is so different?”, asked one of the man from the group. Another one added: “People in Serbia should also be worried about the way the Serbian police treats us. Because once there are no people from Afghanistan left in Serbia, the police will beat locals. The policemen have built a habit to beat people and it is a habit one does not easily get rid of. We have seen it happen in other countries.”