The streets of Belgrade. File photoBELGRADE, Jan 16Polling stations opened in a referendum on changes to the Serbian constitution in the field of justice to bring the country's legislation closer to EU standards, the Republican Electoral Commission (REC) said. More than 6.5 million people have the right to vote, according to the REC. The will takes place on Sunday from 7.00 (9.00 Moscow time) to 20.00 (22.00 Moscow time) at 8029 polling stations throughout Serbia, with the exception of Kosovo and Metohija. Citizens of Serbia can also take part in the referendum in 10 representative offices abroad, including the country's embassy in Moscow. Russian senators as part of the observer mission from the CIS Inter-Parliamentary Assembly take part in monitoring the referendum on amendments to the Serbian constitution. The delegation included, in particular, members of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation Elena Afanasyeva and Sergey Berezkin. We are talking about the procedure for selecting judges in all bodies of the legal system — from the main courts to the constitutional one. The country's parliament previously abolished the 50% turnout threshold for a referendum to take place, now a simple majority of votes is sufficient. Members of the Serbian leadership, headed by President Aleksandar Vučić, have repeatedly urged citizens to give a positive answer to the plebiscite question. Amendments to the constitution suggest that Serbian judges will now choose six of their colleagues, the parliament — four lawyers with at least 10 years of experience, and the chairman of the Supreme court, and together they will form the High Council of Judges (HJC). The HJC will then itself approve judges in all bodies of the system. The High Council of Prosecutors with similar powers will be formed in a similar way. Previously, judges and prosecutors with a probationary period for the first three years were elected by the parliament, that is, the ruling majority in the Assembly. The embassies of the United States, Great Britain, Germany, France, Italy and the EU delegation on Friday called on the citizens of Serbia to go to a referendum in a joint open statement. Western diplomats are «confident that these reforms are the way forward for Serbia's alignment with EU standards, which will help the process of Serbia's integration into the EU.» expressed hope for the continuation of a constructive dialogue with Serbia
