The Association of Journalists of Serbia published an overview of the terrible situation in the Serbian media and called on the authorities to change things. But that call, like the previous one, will go in vain
Harassment, dismissals, persecution journalists… This is just a part of the list that the Association of Journalists of Serbia (UNS) put together before World Media Freedom Day, which is celebrated on Sunday (May 3).
There is nothing to celebrate in Serbia. In its proclamation, UNS reminds of the unsolved cases of murder of journalists, 261 cases threats against journalists just in the last year, the increase in the number of physical attacks, the terrible situation of journalists in Kosovo and Metohija…
“The year between the two World Media Freedom Days will be remembered by journalists and media workers in Serbia for numerous dismissals and by the owner’s retaliation of the media against male and female colleagues who were trying to do their job professionally in the midst of a change in editorial policies and at a time of deep social division,” UNS adds.
Who gets budget money?
They remind that the Council of the Regulatory Body for Electronic Media does not yet exist. They state that project co-financing of the media from the budget is pointless because people from some new media associations are appointed to the commissions and they distribute money to the eligible ones.
“In the previous year, money was also received by tabloids and media that do not respect the journalistic code”, announced UNS.
“The year between the two World Press Freedom Days was also marked by drastic violations of the Serbian Code of Journalists, especially in cases of reporting on tragic events.”
Requests, but to whom?
At the end of the proclamation, the UNS demands that things change, including the provision of “effective institutional protection” of journalists against the pressures of officials, media owners and “other powerful people”.
Most of the things on that list of demands could be changed by the authorities of Aleksandar Vučić, but who else would hope for that – they brought the media to this point.
source: UNS, Vreme
