A statement on the speech of the "first lady" of Serbia, Tamara Vučić, at the International Conference on Political and Economic Empowerment of Women in Belgrade

The current government has almost destroyed all efforts and achievements in the field of gender equality and the advancement of the position of women – from economic and political participation, through the fight against femicide, to health and media issues. By abolishing the Directorate for Gender Equality at the Ministry of Labor, which from 2007 to 2012 adopted the first Law on Gender Equality, the Strategy, the Action Plan, and launched projects such as the "Fight against Gender and Sexual Violence" in cooperation with UNDP, the government has devastated a key institutional mechanism. Protocols of cooperation between the police, doctors, and social work centers, as well as work to raise public awareness, were started at that time, but were neglected. Instead, the Coordination Body for Gender Equality was established under Zorana Mihajlović, which set this field back, leaving it again to the NGO sector with minimal support. The only remaining mechanism, the Commissioner for Equality, is not exclusively focused on gender equality, although it is often perceived as such in public. The consequences are obvious: attacks on gender-sensitive language and the failure to implement the Gender Equality Law. It is crucial to advocate for the return of a strong institutional mechanism, either within a ministry or as an independent body, in order to renew the fight for gender equality and create the conditions for real change.