Home  /  ANEM Activities  /  Public Statements

20. 08. 2014

ANEM PROTESTS AGAINST PRESSURES ON ’RADIO 021’ JOURNALIST

Belgrade, August 20, 2014 - The Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM) strongly protests against pressures on a journalist of Novi Sad 'Radio 021', a member station of ANEM.

After the newsroom received information from a listener about a traffic accident in which one person was killed, the 'Radio 021' journalist went to the event site to prepare a report for his radio and web portal, without disturbing the ongoing police investigation. He was then surrounded by three men in plain clothes who told him not to take photographs and asked for his identification documents. One of them claimed to be a policeman, but he did not show an official ID. The men then called a traffic policeman in uniform to ask the journalist to present his ID. The traffic policeman gave them the journalist's ID which they photographed.

ANEM considers it discouraging that all of this happened less than twenty days since the adoption of new media laws in Serbia, which laws were expected to improve the state of media freedoms in the country. ANEM asks from the Novi Sad police to inform the public of the reasons for photographing personal documents of the journalist who was merely doing his job, and which regulation stipulates such an action.

Namely, the new Law on Public Information and Media stipulates that the information on events about which the public has a legitimate interest to know are published freely. It is also stipulated that free flow of information via media must not be jeopardized, particularly not by pressuring, threatening, or blackmailing journalists. ANEM thinks that in this specific case there was no reason which could justify photographing of the journalist's personal documents, and that the facts known so far point towards a dangerous intention to intimidate the journalist and influence his reporting, which is impermissible.

ANEM asks from the Ministry of Internal Affairs to publicly distance itself from the unacceptable practice of intimidation of journalists. ANEM especially asks that the Ministry investigates if in this case there was an abuse of authority by officials, to inform the public on the findings, and to sanction those responsible for the incident. ANEM extends its full solidarity to the newsroom and journalists of the Novi Sad 'Radio 021'.

 

ANEM President, Milorad Tadic

  • No comments on this topic.

Latest news

Other news
Pravni monitoring
report
ANEM campaigns
self-governments

Poll

New Media Laws

To what extent will the new media laws help the Serbian media sector develop?

A great deal

Somewhat

Little

Not at all

Results

Latest info about ANEM activities

Apply!

Unicef
Unicef

The reconstruction and redesign of this web site were made possible by the support of the American People through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and IREX.
The contents of this web site are the sole responsibility of ANEM and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID, IREX or the United States Government.

 

9/16 Takovska Street, 11 000 Belgrade; Tel/fax: 011/32 25 852, 011/ 30 38 383, 011/ 30 38 384; E-mail: anem@anem.org.rs