Threats were made against N1’s Novi Sad correspondent over a report from a protest in that city.
Correspondent Ksenija Pavkov reported on a protest called over the disputed removal of three children from their home. The mother claims the removal of her children by the Social Services Center was illegal and denies any neglect of the children which was cited as the reason to take away her children. The N1 correspondent said in her report that some pro-regime tabloid reporters were attacked by the crowd and added that many of them believe the children were taken away as part of a plan to give them up for adoption for money outside the country. That part of her report drew anger on social media.
Posts on Telegram called N1 pro-Ustashe (WW 2 Croatian fascists allied with the Nazis) and called for harassment of its staff along with a number of other offensive comments. The posts also accused N1 and its correspondent of trying to present the protest organizers as conspiracy theorists.
N1 reported the threats to the authorities.
Pavkov told the Cenzolovka website that, given the sensitivity of this topic, she paid particular attention to making sure the report was balanced.
“I assessed that the public was insufficiently informed about this case and that this is why the context needed to be explained: who are the people who supported and organized the protest, what it is they hold against the Social Services Center. Specifically, they believe this case is part of an international conspiracy to abduct children, which is why they brought a criminal complaint against the Center during the rally I reported from. I also reported on the Center’s official position, but also allowed for the possibility that in this particular case this institution actually did make mistakes,” Pavkov told Cenzolovka.
Source: N1
