BELGRADE, December 15. /TASS/. The Serbian Prosecutor's Office for Organized Crime has filed charges against Culture Minister Nikola Selakovic and three other officials in connection with illegal actions related to depriving the buildings of the General Staff of the status of an object of cultural heritage, it said in a statement
The defendants in the case also include the Culture Ministry Secretary, the acting Director of the Republican Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments and the acting Director of the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of Belgrade. "The suspects are charged with committing two criminal offenses: abuse of office under article 359, part 1, and forgery of an official document under article 357, part 2," the prosecutor's office said, adding that the investigation is ongoing.
Earlier, protests were held in Belgrade against the reconstruction of the former General Staff building, which was destroyed during NATO bombing in 1999. The participants said that changing the status of the facility and its subsequent reconstruction would lead to the loss of historical memory and contradict constitutional and legal norms. The activists insisted on repealing the special law adopted for the implementation of the project, invalidating the government's decision on reconstruction and restoring the protected status of the building as an object of cultural heritage. The protesters consider the issue as fundamental and do not intend to abandon their demands.
Earlier, the Prosecutor's Office for Organized Crime (JTOK) questioned the Culture Minister as a suspect. He first appeared at the prosecutor's office on December 2, at the end of the working day, and officially testified on December 4 in the presence of a lawyer. Later the minister told reporters that some JTOK officials are associated with the student protest movement and opposition circles.
An expensive project
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic previously said that an investment project involving American capital is to be implemented on the site of the General Staff building. According to him, the investment is estimated at 650 million euros, while the land in the center of Belgrade will not be sold, but leased to the investor for 99 years. According to Vucic, the state should receive 22.5% of the profit from the future facility, and the site itself, with an area of about 2.9 hectares, will bring Serbia about 220 million euros already at the first stage.
To implement the project, on November 7, Serbian Parliament adopted a special law on the reconstruction of the former General Staff complex supported by deputies of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party. The document was presented as a measure meeting public interest and aimed at the economic development.
However, the initiative was sharply criticized by the scientific and expert community: the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, universities and professional associations from several countries of the region and the EU, as well as thousands of experts signed a declaration against the demolition of the building and in support of its restoration. JTOK claimed attempts to put pressure on justice, pointing to the president's public statements on the issue, which, according to the prosecutor's office, could be perceived as interference in the investigation.