Croatian Journalists’ Association (CJA) calls on HNK Hajduk Split to promptly withdraw its decision to revoke the accreditation of Pero Smolčić, journalist and sports section editor of Slobodna Dalmacija, justified only by the club’s “internal rules.” This decision blocks journalist and editor Smolčić from accessing the press rooms of the Split club as well as the journalist’s box at the Poljud stadium, thereby de facto preventing him from performing his daily work.
The Croatian Journalists’ Association believes that such a move can only be legitimate in cases where the journalist, through their work, has knowingly and deliberately caused concrete and provable harm—and even then, the decision must be well justified. General disagreement with the style of writing, tone used in articles, or the opinions of journalists and their media can in no way be grounds for withholding the right to report and the right to work.
Revoking accreditation without explanation, citing only “internal rules,” sets a precedent that leads to arbitrariness and, consequently, to restrictions on journalistic freedoms.
Damir Petranović, president of the CJA branch in Split-Dalmatia County
Hrvoje Zovko, president of the Croatian Journalists’ Association