The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) mission to Serbia on Monday urged the Serbian authorities to investigate and prosecute all cases of violence against journalists.

“More journalists were attacked in Serbia. These unacceptable acts hamper the state of media freedom and democracy in the country. The authorities should systematically investigate and prosecute all cases of violence against journalists, in line with their OSCE commitments,” OSCE representative on freedom of the media Teresa Ribeiro wrote in a post on the X social medial platform a day after the Serbian local elections in which attacks on journalists were reported.

She reposted a statement by OSCE Serbia, which said it “deplores threats and attacks on journalists while reporting on elections on 2 June.”

The OSCE mission to Serbia said “journalists have a crucial role in covering elections,” and urged “political leaders, public officials and authorities to unequivocally condemn and promptly investigate all cases of violence and threats against journalists, in line with 2018 OSCE MC Decision on the Safety of Journalists.”

Source: N1

The past election process and the election day itself were marked by campaigns to slander journalists, targeting and interfering with their work, and even physical attacks by ruling officials and activists of their party. The Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia (IJAS) condemns all forms of pressure on journalists, especially targeting by the authorities, and warns that it is extremely dangerous to accuse the media of being responsible for instability in society.

Yesterday in Novi Sad, a journalist from the newspaper Danas Ugljesa Bokic was attacked while he was trying to conduct a survey with young people who left the premises of the Novi Sad Fair, when a man grabbed his phone and punched him in the chest. The doctors concluded that the journalist suffered a bruised sternum from the blow. The case was reported to the police, and the attacker was later identified as a former police officer.

The Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia calls on the competent institutions to solve this case as soon as possible and punish the attacker.

Journalists in Novi Sad were interrupted all the time while reporting on the elections. At one point, they were also physically threatened. Namely,  activists of the Serbian Progressive Party threw tear gas at journalists while they were reporting from the location near the Novi Sad fair where the incident took place, when a group of citizens broke down the door of the hall where the call center of the Serbian Progressive Party was located.

Journalists from Novi Sad warn that there is an unprecedented hunt against journalists in that city.  

Regime tabloids accused Zarko Bogosavljevic, journalist of the 021.rs portal, of violent behavior at a polling station. Also, journalist Dinko Gruhonjic once again found himself a target of SNS propaganda. During yesterday’s day, leaflets were distributed near the polling stations, on which Gruhonjic was once again slandered, and previously members of the ruling party said during the campaign that he is the candidate of the united opposition for mayor of Novi Sad.

Another attack took place yesterday in Zemun Polje, when the journalist of the Mašina portal Marko Miletic was attacked by activists of the Serbian Progressive Party. Namely, he received information that some malpractices were taking place at the polling station in Zemun Polje and he went to investigate.

“There were representatives of the City Election Commission who gave SNS activists the list they were working on. The girl who had the list made it clear that she was using the list to call people to see who voted. When I approached, a member of the election commission gave me that paper to take a photo. At that moment, people rushed out of the SNS premises and immediately aggressively attacked the opposition activists who were there and me, and it turned into a chase,” Miletić told NUNS.

The President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, Ana Brnabić, continued to target the journalists of the N1 television.

When the journalist of this television, Zaklina Tatalovic, asked her to comment on the fact that “people are fighting and running in the streets”, Brnabic answered briefly: “You are fighting”. Later, she accused journalists of tensions in society.

“You are the ones who cause tensions in society, you are the ones who call for violence in society, you are the ones who spread fake news, you are the ones who spread half-information and all of this is the cause to have instability in society, not because of politics, but because someone is lying to the people. Who lies to the people – you lie to the people,” said Brnabic.

The Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia believes that such targeting of journalists by the President of the Assembly is shameful and very dangerous. It is irresponsible to accuse journalists, from the position of the greatest power in the country, for instability in society.

We expect political officials, especially those in power, to respect the laws and not endanger journalists and the media because of editorial policies they don’t like. Exercising pressure on the media, especially with abuse of official position, is prohibited by law. We remind that holders of public and political positions are obliged to tolerate critical opinions related to the results of their work.

Instead of targeting, political officials should concentrate and answer journalists’ questions, without discrimination, which is what the law obliges them to do. That’s why we demand that they stop drawing targets and accept responsibility for everything they do.

IJAS will inform all relevant international organizations about all the mentioned events.

Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia

June 3, 2024

The Audiovisual Media Authority (AMA) of Albania recently presented its 2023 annual report to the Committee for Education and Means of Public Information.  On May 27, 2024, Armela Krasniqi, Chairwoman of AMA’s Board, during the presentation at the Committee, underscored as an achievement the adoption of the New Broadcasting Code. The new code aligns with both national and international legal frameworks and incorporates recommendations from domestic and foreign experts. The second session took place on June 11, 2024, when the Committee reviewed and unanimously approved the draft resolution assessing AMA’s activities in 2023. 

The Parliamentary Resolution on AMA includes key recommendations for 2024:

• Legislative Contributions: AMA is encouraged to contribute to amending Law no. 97/2013 on audiovisual media in line with EU standards, addressing media financing transparency, media ownership concentration, public advertising, and regulatory independence.
• Audience Measurement: AMA should proactively organize discussions to promote audience measurement processes, which are crucial for transparency and market efficiency.
• Broadcasting Code Implementation: Ensuring compliance with the new Broadcasting Code, particularly regarding anti-discrimination, gender equality promotion, and combating hate speech in audiovisual content.
• Journalist Safety: Playing a proactive role in responding to threats against journalists and improving their working conditions, with a focus on their employment and social rights.
• Professional Standards: Promoting international best practices to uphold professional standards in audiovisual broadcasting and ensuring diversity in media content.

SJN urges for a transparent process for any legal changes to the audiovisual media law and ensures that it will be in line with the European Media Freedom Act and the standards of the Council of Europe, reflecting at the same time the recommendations of the Council of Venice. In addition, SJN urges AMA to clarify its plans for ensuring journalists’ safety and encourages them to cooperate closely with local, regional, and European networks and organizations already focused on the safety of journalists.

The person who threatened the N1 editorial staff on April 24 has been detained, and, having admitted to the crime, he signed a plea bargain.

The prosecution proposed to the court that he be given a one-year suspended prison sentence, which will not be enforced if he does not commit the same offense within three years of the court ruling becoming final.

The seventy-three-year-old man, who signed under a pseudonym, wrote in the threat sent to N1, among other things, that N1 journalists are the worst gang, that they are domestic traitors on the payroll of foreign powers, and have long been publicly hostile towards the people and legitimate government. “You will soon be liquidated, neutralized so that nothing will be left of you,” wrote the man whom the Prosecutor’s Office has identified.

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The Coalition for Media Freedom has called on citizens to assemble at 6 pm Friday on the plateau outside the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade at a rally of support for Radar weekly journalist Vuk Cvijic who was physically assaulted two days ago in downtown Belgrade.

Cvijic was punched in the face, in the middle of a street, by the director of the Srpski Telegraf tabloid, Milan Ladjevic.

“We invite you to support Vuk Cvijic, as well as all journalists who do their jobs honorably, because now everyone can ask the question: Who is next? We need to support professional journalism with this gathering and send a message that the voices of truth will not be silenced. This attack is a consequence of what Coalition members constantly emphasize, which is how important it is to prosecute the threats received by journalists because otherwise they will escalate into physical violence,” said the Coalition for Media Freedom.

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On May 30, 2024, during a plenary session in the Albanian Parliament, MPs were set to vote on establishing the Special Parliamentary Committee on Anti-Corruption initiated by the ruling Socialist Party (SP). The journalists, stationed in their designated gallery, were filming the proceedings as usual but the Guard of the Republic attempted to remove the journalists and prevent them from filming. This intervention sparked a confrontation, with the indignant journalists demanding to be treated with respect and referring to the guard as a “gangster.” This incident underscored the ongoing tension between the media and the authorities, as journalists insisted on their right to remain and report on the parliamentary proceedings.

This is not the first time such obstructions have occurred. On May 17, 2024, media crews were barred from filming a meeting in Parliament with recently dismissed RTSH journalists, despite a formal request and public announcement. Additionally, in November 2023, the Safe Journalists Network sent an open letter to the Speaker of the Parliament, highlighting ongoing issues with journalistic access within the Albanian Parliament. The letter cited a troubling pattern of obstruction and restrictive directives that hamper journalists’ ability to conduct interviews and report freely. Safe Journalists Network has raised concerns in 2021 for the media accreditation regulation of the Albanian Parliament. These regulations confine journalists to a specific area for reporting, granting them access to MPs exclusively in the parliamentary yard. In contrast to the public broadcaster, which is allowed to record proceedings, other media outlets must operate from a designated room, dependent on a parliament-supplied video feed.

In a meeting with political reporters and the Secretary General of the Parliament on November 15, 2023, following several incidents involving the guard, several improvements were proposed, stopping obstructive behavior of the Republican Guard, increasing transparency by sharing parliamentary data and responding quickly to media requests, allowing timely physical media presence to witness dynamics, and improving the quality of robotic cameras broadcasting committee meetings. However, apart from improving the quality of the cameras, the other measures have not been implemented. Since then, political reporters in Albania have repeatedly raised concerns about these issues (See here and here and here). The recently established Association of Journalists of Albania has also reacted, calling for a change in the behavior of the Guard and respect for the work of journalists.

These repeated incidents raise serious concerns about access to information and media freedom within the parliamentary process, threatening transparency and accountability. Obstructing journalists hampers their ability to report on parliamentary proceedings, leading diminishing public trust in the legislative body. Restricting media access undermines the fundamental democratic principles of openness and scrutiny, preventing journalists from informing the public and holding parliament accountable.