In honour of the 28th of January, the Data Protection Day, the Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection held a conference which was attended by many ambassadors and other foreign diplomatic representatives, representatives of Serbian public authorities and institutions, academia, NGOs and the media.

The participants in the conference highlighted the results achieved and the major issues identified in the field of personal data protection in Serbia. The Commissioner noted that a fundamental shift was needed in the way the state treated the situation in this area, which he described as very worrying.

The Commissioner warned it was impossible to avoid further harmful consequences of the years-long practice in which the state’s activities mainly, almost exclusively, come down to those undertaken by the Commissioner, while other competent authorities fail to act, with inexplicable omissions and delays.

The Commissioner confirmed his willingness to continue providing other competent authorities with all assistance he can reasonably be expected to offer. In this context, he also announced he would soon make available to the Government a new Model Law on Personal Data Protection, aligned with the European standards and the new EU Data Protection Directive.

Apart from Commissioner Rodoljub Sabic, speakers at the conference included H.E. Ambassador Andrea Orizio, Head of the OSCE Mission to Serbia, Mr. Sasa Jankovic, Ombudsman, and Djordje Krivokapic, PhD, Legal and Policy Director of the Share Foundation.

Publication “Personal Data Protection – Views and Opinions” was presented at the meeting.

The Commissioner presented a scroll of honour to Mr. Nikola Markovic, Chairperson of the Informatics Association of Serbia, and representatives of the Share Foundation for their contribution to affirmation of the right to personal data protection.