The document summarizes research conducted by the Victimology Society of Serbia on existing victim support services in the country. It found that while several services exist, most support only specific types of victims or crimes. Additionally, many parts of Serbia lack any local victim support. The research aims to inform the development of a national victim support system in Serbia, as required by the EU. It concludes that coordination is needed between state and NGO services to ensure all victims' needs are met. The floor is then opened for discussion on potential models for a national system.

1. Dr Sanja Ćopić
Jasmina Nikolić
Victimology Society of Serbia

2. The aim
 To present some of the main findings of the research
on the existing victim support services in Serbia.
 To open the floor for discussion about possible
models of a national system of victim support
services appropriate for countries like Serbia.

3. The content
 About Victimology Society of Serbia
 Short overview of development of victim support in
Serbia and steps taken today
 The research methodology and main survey results
 Conclusions and recommendations
 Discussion

5. Victimology Society of Serbia-VDS
 VDS is an independent, not-for-profit, and non-governmental
organization founded in 1997
 The aim: to work on development of victimology, improvement of the
position of victims of crime, war and human rights violations, and
protection of victims’ rights regardless of their gender, religion,
ethnicity and other features.
 VDS’s work is organized within two organizational units:
 VDS info and support to victims
 VDS research and education
 VDS info and victim support - established in 2003
 Information
 Emotional support
 Referrals
 Support during court procedures
 Support during and after mediation
 Support in contacts with state institutions

6. Introduction: development of victim
support in Serbia
 Not linear and systematic (Lindgren, Nikolic-Ristanovic, 2012)
 First SOS hotlines, shelters and counseling services for women and children
established in the 1990s by women’s groups’ activists
 Establishment of other specialist services, e.g. for torture and war victims,
victims of human trafficking…
 After 2000, the first victim services were established within state
institutions (social welfare system) – mostly focusing on women and
children victims of violence
 In 2003 first general victim support service – VDS info and victim support
established
 After 2010 – new trend: suspension of some NGO victim services (SOS
hotlines and shelters); partly taken over by social welfare system
 Result: increased social visibility of certain categories of victims,
while other victims are largely invisible and unrecognized

7. Introduction: new steps
 Serbia is on the road to the EU: harmonizing its legislation with the
EU aquis
 Chapter 23 on Judiciary and fundamental rights: foresees setting
up a national system of victim support services and ensuring
adequate services to all victims
 Serbia has prioritised the implementation of the Victims’ Rights
Directive
 One of the cornerstone requirements of the Directive is ...
 ... to ensure that victims “have access to confidential victim
support services, free of charge, acting in the interests of the
victims before, during and for an appropriate time after criminal
proceedings”

8. Overview of existing victim support
services in Serbia
 The project Strengthening Victim Support Services in Serbia –
implemented by VSE and supported by the World Bank and the Multi
Donor Trust Fund for Justice Sector Support
 To assist Serbian Government in meeting the requirements for the
accession to the EU relevant for establishing national system of
victim support
 VDS in cooperation with VSE implemented a research of existing VSS in
Serbia (February and March 2017)
 To identify and describe what services, provided by both state and
non-state actors, already existed and determine if there are any
significant gaps in services.
 To create a full and comprehensive database of available services.

9. Methodology
 Two main methodological tools were used:
 Survey by means of an on-line questionnaire
 Stakeholder consultations, by means of a workshop with a
sample of respondents, who were asked to verify and
supplement the findings and suggest improvements and ways
forward
 Recipients of the questionnaire were identified through desk
research
 Out of the total number of 141 services that were asked to fill in
the questionnaire, 78 (55.3%) responded to the survey

10. Survey results
 73 (93.6%) provide assistance and support to victims
 Statutory arrangement:
 40 non-profit non-governmental organisations (NGOs)
 32 state actors
 1 Legal Clinic at one private law faculty
 The highest number of victim support services are from
Belgrade (25)
 Some parts of the country lack any type of victim support
services

12. Target group
 Only 17 (23.3%) provide services to all victims, regardless of their gender,
age, type of victimisation or other circumstance
 Not all of these services provide all the needed assistance and support to
victims (prosecutor offices’ and courts’ services)!
 48 (65.8%) provide assistance and support to all persons regardless of
their gender, while 25 (34.2%) support women exclusively
 50 (68.5%) provide assistance and support to victims regardless of their
age, while 23 (31.5%) only to victims that belong to certain age categories,
mostly adults
 46 (63.1%) offer assistance and support to victims regardless of their
personal characteristics; 27 (36.9%) only to some categories of victims
according to their specific personal characteristics (largely focused on
marginalised groups)

13. Target group
 20 (27.4%) offer assistance and support to all victims regardless of
the form of victimisation
 53 (72.6%) provide assistance and support only to victims of certain
forms of victimisation
 18 specialised for victims of only one for of crime

14. Getting information

15. Types of services offered to victims

16. Communication channels
 69 (94.5%) services can be directly approached by victims
 Victims can approach all services for assistance through more than one
channel: through telephone contact (68, or 3.1%), by coming directly
to their premises (57, or 78.1%), by e-mail (57, or 78.1%)
69 (94,5%)
57 (78,1%)
43 (58,9%)
22 (30,1%)
20 (27,4%)
11 (14,9%)
Direct contact and
communication
Telephone E-mail Social networks Letter Online form or online
chat

17. Service fees and human resources
 Most support providers offer their services free of charge
 61 (83.6%) employ professional staff - the number of
professional staff each employer hires ranges from one to 68
 45 (61.6%), most of them NGOs (35 or 77.8%) engage
volunteers in their work – between one and 79 each
 Employees in 59 (80.8%) and volunteers in 50 (68.5%)
respondents received at least some training to work with
victims

18. Financial resources
27 (36,9%)
26 (35,6%)
30 (41,1%)
18 (24,7%)
5 (6,8%)
7 (9,6%)
9 (12,3%)
State budget
Local government
Donations from abroad
Donations from the country
Membership fees
Not have any source of funding/work is
completely performed on a voluntary
basis
Other forms of financing

19. Database
 The data collected served as a basis for creating a
comprehensive database of victim support services available
in Serbia
 The database encompasses a total of 109 victim support
services
 To be a useful tool for victims, those who come into
contact with them, as well as victim supporter
professionals and general public
 It will be transformed into an interactive map as a free
resource to victim support providers, as well as any other
interested institution or organisation

20. Conclusions and recommendations
 The majority of participants in the survey were civil society
organisations
 Civil society organisations provide a wider range of services which
are often very specialised and targeted to very specific vulnerable
groups
 State providers provide very specific and focused services:
 Support to victims in their capacity as injured parties and/or
witnesses during criminal proceedings
 Support to women and children victims of violence
 Civil society organisations are important players in the provision
of victim support services in Serbia (expertise, experience, need of
cooperation, non-duplication)

21. Conclusions and recommendations
 There are very few general victim support services in Serbia
 There is a number of specialised services
 There is still very few providers of services for children victims, while
other vulnerable groups are provided with services in a non-structured
and incidental manner
 Significant parts of Serbia seem to suffer from a complete
absence of locally based services that provide support and
assistance to victims of crime
 Media remain an important outreach tool, through which
victims learn about the existing support

22. Conclusions and recommendations
 Most service providers work with victims through offering them
information, emotional support and referring them to other
relevant services
 Most victims are referred to victim support services by social
work centres and NGOs, with much fewer numbers referred to
by justice authorities
 The majority of providers engage in contacting victims in a
direct/personal, face-to-face, contact, or over the phone -
communication with victims needs to take account of the modern
changes in ways how the world communicates

23. Conclusions and recommendations
 Differences in the number of paid staff between state
institutions and NGOs have been noticed, with NGOs having
more volunteers
 Whilst around 80% of organisations indicate that some training is
provided to staff, it is of great concern that 20% do not and
that this increases to 30% with respect to volunteers
 All civil society organisations, as well as some state providers of
victim support services are heavily dependent on projects and
foreign funding sources - a significant impact on the ability of
support organisations to offer consistent services and to improve
and expand those services

24. Discussion
 Possible models of a national system of victim support
services appropriate for countries like Serbia?
 Ideas, suggestions, proposals...

25. Dr Sanja Ćopić
Jasmina Nikolić
Victimology Society of Serbia
E-mail: vdsrbija@gmail.com
www.vds.org.rs