The Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia (IJAS) strongly condemns the attack on photojournalist Gavrilo Andrić, who was covering the local elections in Negotin, as well as the violence against students and citizens, accompanied by a complete lack of an adequate police reaction.
While documenting events in front of a polling station, Andrić was attacked by a group of people on quad bikes. One quad ran over his leg, and the passenger on the vehicle simultaneously snatched the phone from his hand while he was recording. Shortly afterward, a physical clash broke out between SNS supporters and students, and videos posted on social media clearly show the presence of SNS officials, including former handball player Vladimir Mandić.
Although Andrić located his phone and asked the police to accompany him so it could be retrieved, the officers, as reported, did not comply. In the end, accompanied by several people, he reached the parking lot where the phone was found, and two inspectors were already present at the scene.
IJAS reminds that the duty of the police is to protect citizens—including journalists, students, and all participants in public life—and not to “look away” from violence or give preferential treatment to groups connected with the ruling party.
It is particularly alarming that violence at public gatherings not only continues but is escalating, while police still fail to take timely and decisive action they are obligated to undertake. Such failure to respond effectively leaves room for perpetrators to act with impunity, deepens the sense of insecurity among citizens, and sends the message that journalists, students, and citizens are left without protection from the very institutions meant to stand between them and violence.
IJAS once again emphasizes that the red line was crossed long ago, and that this persistent lack of an adequate police reaction indicates a serious erosion of the institution itself—a process that must be urgently stopped in order to prevent further weakening of its authority and its crucial role in society.
Attacks on journalists, endangering their physical safety and destroying their equipment, accompanied by intimidation of students and citizens, represent a direct assault on freedom of expression and the public’s right to be informed about the electoral process.
IJAS will provide legal and all other forms of assistance to our colleague Gavrilo Andrić in protecting his rights.
Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia
Belgrade, 30 November 2025
