The Free Citizens Movement (PSG) has joined the escalating political backlash in Serbia, demanding the immediate dismissal of Minister Snežana Paunović over blatant hate speech, chauvinism, and the open promotion of ethnic persecution directed at the Albanian population.
The progressive opposition group stated that her subsequent attempts to clarify her televised statements on Kurir TV only confirmed that her remarks were a deliberate endorsement of forced displacement, rather than an accidental slip of the tongue.
PSG: Paunović Portrays Albanians as “Lesser Beings”
In an official press release, the PSG emphasized that Paunović’s rhetoric directly violates both the Serbian Constitution and the domestic Criminal Code, which strictly prohibits the incitement of national, racial, or religious hatred.
“Her subsequent explanation that she meant expelling people to a supposed ‘motherland’ only confirms that this wasn’t a clumsy phrasing, but a conscious advocacy for ethnic persecution. Additionally concerning are her statements in which she portrays Albanians in a racist manner as lesser beings.” — Official Statement by the Free Citizens Movement (PSG)
The movement stressed the dangerous irony of her position, noting that an individual who justifies expelling citizens based solely on their ethnicity cannot lead the Ministry of State Administration and Local Self-Government—an institution legally tasked with guaranteeing equality for all citizens before state bodies.
The Full TV Transcript: “Grief, Anger, and Disappointment”
Paunović, who is originally from Peja (Peć) in Kosovo, gave further context to her stance during her appearance on Kurir TV. She claimed that her perspective was born out of personal bitterness over how history unfolded, while simultaneously admitting that international perceptions of Slobodan Milošević would have been identical regardless of his actions.
“Out of me today, in my mature years, speaks grief, anger, disappointment, and whatever you want. And I can say this easily, at the end of the day. It is much easier for me to say it now than for someone to actually do it in ’98. However, the fate of Slobodan Milošević would not have fundamentally changed even if he had done such a thing. They had already declared him a butcher anyway.” — Snežana Paunović, Minister of State Administration
The Escalating Calls for Resignation
The political fallout from Paunović’s interview has rapidly unified different factions of the Serbian opposition, creating a coordinated push to force Prime Minister Đuro Macut into taking disciplinary action.
[ Paunović's Televised Remarks ]
|
+---------------------+---------------------+
| |
v v
[ SRCE Party ] [ PSG Movement ]
Demands PM Macut Demands Immediate
clarify if this is Sacking over Racist
official Gov policy. "Hate Speech."
With two major opposition parties now formally declaring her unfit for office, pressure is mounting on the ruling Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS)—where Paunović has served as Vice President since 2024—to address whether her defense of ethnic cleansing aligns with the coalition’s public stance on regional reconciliation.
