Arassment and intimidation of journalists continue unabated

Peaceful Assembly

During the reporting period, anti-government protests were staged following an announcement of the re-introduction of a curfew due to the worsening of the epidemiological situation related to COVID-19. A full update on what unfolded during these protests can be found here.

Expression

Several verbal threats against journalists were documented during the reporting period:

• The cameraman of KTV Zrenjanin was attacked for reporting from a polling station during the voting in Tomaševac. The incident took place when the team of KTV Zrenjanin noticed numerous irregularities, including a group of people who carried lists, which raised suspicion that they are keeping a parallel record of voters – a gross violation of the rules of the election process. Officials of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party were spotted among the people running the parallel lists. This behavior is yet again proof of a compromised election process. In addition, this attack is seen as an attempt at violent censorship against the media, who are trying to inform the public objectively and truthfully.
• The Minister of Culture and Information, Vladan Vukosavljević, sent an open and insulting letter to the journalist Nedim Sejdimović, regarding his articles for the daily “Danas”. Sejdimović and several other journalists were commenting on Vukosavljević’s public appearance in which he expressed “condolences over the death of communism” to the first editor-in-chief of Danas, Grujica Spasović. In the open letter, the Minister Vukosavljević said that Sejdimović would “benefit from returning to his natural habitat, where such members of the fauna normally live”. Such rhetoric not only represents impermissible pressure on freelance journalists but is also damaging to the reputation of the institution of the Minister of Culture and Information. The Independent Association of Journalists (NUNS) of Vojvodina called for the immediate dismissal of Minister Vukosavljevic, emphasising that the absence of any sanction would be very dangerous for the further functioning of the media in Serbia. NUNS also called on state officials to harmonise their public appearances with the public functions they perform and to show basic integrity.
• NUNS condemned the behavior of the President Aleksandar Vučić towards Olivera Jovićević, a journalist at Radio Television of Serbia, during his guest appearance on the show “Questionnaire”. NUNS stated that the president’s behavior was outside the framework of decent behavior and unworthy of the function he performs. They called on Aleksandar Vučić to send a public apology to journalist Jovićević. This is not the first case of indecent behavior towards journalists by President Vučić which has become a frequent occurrence.

“Journalists and other media actors make an important contribution to public debate and opinion-forming processes in a democratic society by acting as public and social guardians and creating a common space for the exchange of information and ideas, as well as for discussion. Their role as guardians includes, inter alia, informing the public about matters of public interest, commenting on these matters, holding public authorities and other powerful forces in society accountable, and exposing corruption and abuse of power.”- NUNS

• A correspondent for N1 television was prohibited from recording footage of a site after the collapse of a portion of an old building of the Kragujevac market, which occurred after construction workers undermined part of the foundations of that building. The manager of the contractors verbally threatened the N1 journalist. After that, the head of the Secretariat for communal affairs of the city of Kragujevac, Radosav Vulović, asked the N1 reporter to identify himself and questioned whether he had a recording permit. The Association of Citizens of the Šumadija Region requested that the names of the people who threatened the journalists be made public. This case is just one in a series in which journalists are prevented from doing their job. Journalists of N1 television in particular have been the target of a cruel tabloid campaign and attacks by government officials for months, and even years.
• The municipal board of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) in Vranje issued a statement in which journalist and editor of the InfoVranjska portal, Sasa Stojković, was insulted and belittled in a very primitive way. Stojković was targeted for a text in which he addressed the issue of forming the government in Bujanovac without the participation of the SNS and the current conflict between the authorities in Surdulica and the ruling party. The statement from the political party accuses Stojković of “loving Shiptars (Albanians) and their institutions”. NUNS condemned this attack, as not only did the text target the journalist and his family, but human dignity. It stated that this rhetoric is proof of the drastic deterioration of dialogue within public space, and it is especially problematic that this type of communication comes from people who exercise power and should act as representatives of all citizens.
• Nikola Stevanovic, journalist of the bujanovacke.co.rs portal, was verbally attacked while photographing the gardens of Bujanovac cafes to report on events in the city under the COVID-19 emergency measures. An unknown man insulted him and also threatened to “beat him”. In the following days, the public revealed that the man who threatened the journalist was employed as a traffic policeman who was off duty at the time of the incident. He was sitting in the presence of two uniformed police officers who did not react to his threats but instead laughed. The Police Administration in Vranje announced that criminal charges would be filed against the attacker as there are grounds for suspicion that he committed a criminal offence of endangering security.
• A group of 89 civil society organisations and the media filed a complaint with the Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection, due to the incomplete response of the Institute of Public Health of Serbia “Batut” regarding data on the health of Serbian citizens during the COVID-19 epidemic. On 9th July 2020, a request was sent to the “Batut” institute requesting information on the number of tested citizens, on the number of patients who had tested positive for COVID-19 and the number of hospitalised patients. Instead of a response, organisations were referred to the Office for Information Technology and Electronic Administration of the Government of Serbia and the Ministry of Health, as data processors presented to the public. The denial of this information to the public has caused an increase in distrust in the work of the Crisis Staff and the competent authorities, which creates fertile ground for the dissemination of unverified information that can negatively affect public health.

• Journalist and editor of “N1” television Branislav Šovljanski’s car had a flat tyre while parked near his apartment. An unknown perpetrator punctured the tyre on his car five times with a sharp object, confirming the suspicion that it was not a coincidence or a combination of circumstances. Journalists of “N1” television are the most frequent targets of cruel tabloid campaigns, open threats through social networks and, lately, more often than before, they have been threatened in person. It is worrying that in most cases there is no reaction from competent authorities, where none of the attackers will be prosecuted, which indicates, at the very least, the negligent attitude of state authorities. This only encourages the attackers’ actions. In addition, there is a noticeable trend of an increasing number of threats towards journalists. In just one week during August 2020 as many as five cases of attacks on journalists were recorded.