Belgrade (Serbia), Jan 17 (AP) Serbian voters have approved in a weekend referendum the constitutional changes that the government said were part of a reform process, near-complete official results released on Monday showed.

Nearly 60% of people who cast ballots on Sunday voted in favour of the amendments that focus on the election of judges and prosecutors in the Balkan country. Nearly 40% were against, the state election authorities said.

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The turnout was just over 30% of Serbia's 6.5 million eligible voters, election officials said.

Authorities have said that the changes will boost the independence of the judiciary which is needed for Serbia to advance in its proclaimed bid to join the European Union.

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Critics have said the changes are insufficient and irrelevant because of a generally non-democratic atmosphere in Serbia whose populist government has faced accusations of curbing democratic freedoms.

Officials have dismissed the criticism and hailed the referendum results. Voters in Serbia's three biggest cities have voted against the constitutional amendments, in a sign of opposition to the government ahead of planned elections in April. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)