The removal of the Old Sava Bridge, which causes great dissatisfaction among citizens, is being carried out without an environmental impact assessment (EIA). Permits for the demolition of the Old and the construction of the New Sava Bridge were issued in violation of current regulations, and there is a reasonable doubt that an official of the Ministry of Environmental Protection committed the criminal offences of falsifying an official document and of misconduct in public office, by providing incorrect information that enabled investors to obtain permits.
After several decades of neglect of the Old Sava Bridge, turning off the lights that removed it from the recognizable night view of the city and even labeling it as “Nazi” and “fascist”, the national and city authorities commenced to demolish it. The absence of official information was replaced by political speculation, while police cordons are placed in front of citizens who are seeking responses from competent institutions. Illegalities, non-transparency and exclusion of citizens from the decision-making process, along with increasingly frequent scenes of violence, have become the manner of implementing capital projects in Serbia.
A timeline of a demolition:
23 February 2021
The Ministry of Environmental Protection approves the EIA study for the project of construction of a new bridge on the site of the Old Sava Bridge. The consent is valid for two years, and the study does not include the demolition of the old bridge.
9 August 2022
The Ministry of Environmental Protection rejects the EIA screening request for the demolition of the Old Sava Bridge, incorrectly stating that its demolition is already included in the Study for the new bridge.
14 February 2023
The Ministry of Environmental Protection informs the investor that the approval of the study for the new bridge is valid until the end of 2023, even though the validity of the approval cannot be extended in this manner.
12 December 2023
Although the EIA approval for the new bridge has expired, the Ministry of Environmental Protection informs the investor that it is still valid and that until the end of 2024 it can be used to obtain construction permits.
19 September 2024
Despite the fact that the removal of the Old Sava Bridge clearly represents preparatory work for the construction of a new bridge, the Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure does not issue a building permit for preparatory work, but a special permit for the demolition of the old bridge. A demolition permit, unlike a construction permit, is not publicly available.
16 October 2024
For the purpose of constructing the new bridge on the site of the Old Sava Bridge, the Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure issued a construction permit. Demolition of the old bridge is not part of the planned works.
What is illegal about demolition of the bridge?
- At the time of issuing the permit for the demolition of the old bridge and the construction permit for the new bridge, the validity of the approval of the study for the new bridge expired, which is why the permits should not have been issued;
- The civil servant working in the Ministry of Environmental Protection on two occasions issued an incorrect notification that the deadline was being extended, which is why there is reasonable doubt that he committed two criminal offences;
- The Ministry of Environmental Protection rejected the environmental impact assessment screening request of the Old Sava Bridge demolition, incorrectly stating that the procedure had already been carried out;
- The Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure issued unlawfully, based on an invalid decision on the EIA approval, a permit for the construction of the new bridge.
“The legal validity period of the decision on the approval that expired cannot be extended by an informal notification from the Ministry, outside of the legal procedure. After the EIA expires, the investor is obliged to submit to the Ministry of Environmental Protection a formal request for the preparation of a new study or for an update of the existing impact assessment study.” explains Ljubica Vukčević, RERI’s attorney. “For this reason, we have submitted to the Government of the Republic of Serbia a request for the annulment of the illegal permit for the demolition of the old bridge with a proposal to order an interim measure, which would prohibit the investor from demolition until the decision on the request for the annulment is issued. Also, we notified the competent Prosecutor’s Office and the inspection authority of the Ministry of Environmental Protection requesting that the investor be prohibited from demolition work on the old bridge until obtaining approval of the impact assessment study, and at the same time we demanded from the competent Prosecutor’s Office to initiate proceedings against the civil servant from the Ministry of Environmental Protection who gave incorrect information to the investor that the EIA approval for the new bridge is still valid, thereby committing two criminal offences – falsifying an official document and misconduct in public office.”
The laws of the Republic of Serbia that are still in force, oblige the competent authorities which we have addressed, to remove without delay all illegalities related to the demolition of the Old Sava Bridge as well as to order the cessation of all illegal acts that cause justified citizens’ concern. RERI hereby expresses its deepest concern for the legal order and legal certainty in the Republic of Serbia upon witnessing the highest state authorities are carrying out illegal acts while being protected by police cordons.
Provided that the competent authorities which RERI addressed in this case act pursuant to the law and their duties, they can protect the legal order and prevent the collapse of the rule of law in the Republic of Serbia.
The documentation referred to in this text is available at THIS LINK.