Sarajevo, June 6, 2020 – The Steering Committee of the BH Journalists Association and the Free Media Help Line sent a public protest against the Cantonal Committee of A-SDA political party from Zenica due to the physical attack on Sinan Gluhić, a journalist from JP RTV Zenica.
According to the information available to BH Journalists (BHJA), on Friday morning, 05.06.2020. in the center of Zenica, a member of the A-SDA party Sulejman Spahić physically attacked journalist Sinan Gluhić, inflicting him bodily injuries. The attack to the colleague Gluhić was preceded during several days of verbal threats and insults by the liders of that politcal party via telephone and social networks, especially Facebook.
The BHJA Steering Committee strongly condemns the verbal violence and endangering the safety of Sinan Gluhić, and demands from the MUP of Zenica-Doboj Canton (ZDK) an urgent investigation of the attack, as well as taking legal actions to ensure the sanctioning of the attacker Sulejman Spahić and others behind this brutal act. It is inadmissible for political parties, in this case A-SDA ZDK, to deal with journalists by using force or online violence, abusing political power and violating the fundamental principles of media freedom and safety of journalists.
Of particular BHJA´s concern is the fact that journalists from JP RTV Zenica and other media have long faced political pressure and threats by the political party officials from the municipal and cantonal authorities, who do not choose the means to bring the media under political control and puts the journalists into confrontations of different political options. Therefore, the BHJA Steering Committee once again warns political leaders from Zenica that the restrictions on media freedoms and violations of journalists’ rights, which are protected by all international and domestic laws and regulations, including the BiH Constitution, are unacceptable in democratic society.
BH Journalists Association and the Free Media Help Line will inform the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), as well as other releavant international and domestic organisations for protection and safety of journalists about the threats and physical attack on Sinan Gluhić, a journalist from RTV Zenica.
The BHJA Steering Committee
Free Media Help Line