20. 01. 2014
FIFTY- FIRST ANEM MONITORING REPORT
THE SERBIAN MEDIA SCENE IN DECEMBER 2013
The last Monitoring Report for 2013 contains:
Freedom of expression - In the part about threats and pressures, four cases were analyzed in terms of violated rights and freedoms of journalists and the media: the attack on the crews of TVB92 and TV Prva, in order to prevent them from reporting about the interrupted vote at one of the polling stations in Odzaci; threats and attack against RTS crew, while it was making a report about the case of street lights in one Belgrade street, obscured by paint, on purpose by persons unknown, thereby endangering passers-by; the withdrawal of news (about the benefits enjoyed by the daughter of the Governor of the National Bank) from media websites and the hacking of the websites that did not withdraw the said news item or have merely analyzed the withdrawal of the texts as a phenomenon; the threats to the editor of the weekly "NS reporter" from Novi Sad over the texts about embezzlement in healthcare in Vojvodina. In the part about legal proceedings, the authors have analyzed the following court decisions: a) the judgment of acquittal passed by the Appellate Court in Kragujevac in the criminal proceedings against state official Dragoljub Zindovic for the criminal offenses of insult and endangerment of safety of the journalists of TV Forum; b) the decision of the Constitutional Court of Serbia declaring the disputed provisions of the Law on the Security Information Agency (about the authority to implement certain measures and about access to retained communication data) unconstitutional; c) the ruling of the Constitutional Court to initiate a procedure for assessing the constitutionality of certain provisions of the Law on the Film Industry concerning the funds for the development of the film industry, which provisions affect the independence of the work of regulatory bodies in the field of broadcasting; d) the verdict of the Appellate Court in Kragujevac ending, at the detriment of the defendants (media and journalist), a 19-year trial (Mirjana and Stevan Josimovic v. "Svetlost AD" and the then Editor-in-Chief Miroslav Jovanovic) for compensation of damages.
Monitoring of the implementation of existing regulations - The authors have analyzed the Broadcasting Law and the manner in which the RBA fulfills some of its obligations and authority: the obligation to supervise the work of broadcasters and the authority to pronounce measures, in relation to two reprimands the Agency has issued against broadcasters - Radio B92 (over a satirical piece in the radio show "Mentalno razgibavanje") and RTV (due to the manner in which their journalist handled the interview with Kosovo politician Atifeta Jahjaga); the obligation of the RBA to release an annual reports about its work, in relation to the submission of the RBA Report for 2012 to the Parliamentary Committee for Culture and Media; the obligation of the RBA to ensure the protection of minors, especially to make sure they don't have access to programs that may harm their physical, mental and/or moral development. The occasion was the two round tables where two reports were presented - the report of the RBA and the report of the UNICEF Office in Serbia and UNS, concerning protection of children and youth by labelling TV programs by age group they are suitable for.
In the part of the Report - Monitoring of the process of adoption of new laws, the authors comment on the latest information from the Ministry of Culture and Information about the progress in the drafting of new media laws; the authors point to the significance of the media-relevant novelties brought by the new Law on the Seats and Territorial Jurisdiction of Courts and Public Prosecutor's Offices concerning the jurisdiction of courts for trials in media-related disputes and intellectual property disputes, especially copyright and related rights.
Monitoring of the work of competent authorities - The authors consider: the issue of the fight against broadcasting "piracy" and related activities of regulatory bodies - RBA and RATEL in cooperation with other competent bodies; the activities of state authorities - the competitions called by the Ministry of Culture and Information for the financing of projects/programs in the field of public information in 2014 as well as the Draft law on amendments to the Law on electronic communications prepared by the Ministry of Foreign and Internal Trade and Telecommunications, especially media-relevant amendments.
The digitalization process - The authors have analyzed the issue of state aid for the purchase of equipment for the reception of digital television and key matters that aid scheme should regulate.
The privatization process - The authors have concluded that, amid the wait for the adoption of a new set of media laws, there were no developments whatsoever in the field of media privatization.
In the Conclusion of the Report the authors pointed out to the problems in the media sector in 2013 and the waning enthusiasm and increased caution by media professionals relative to media reforms.
The 51st Monitoring Report was made by the expert team of ANEM Legal Department, "Živković&Samardžić" Law Office, in collaboration with ANEM. You may download it here in whole or in parts, by clicking on the respective section below.
The content of this Report is the sole responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The content of this Report is the sole responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Open Society Foundation, Serbia.
Section FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION here
Section MONITORING OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF EXISTING REGULATIONS here
Section MONITORING OF THE PROCESS OF ADOPTION OF NEW LAWS here
Section MONITORING OF THE WORK OF REGULATORY BODIES, STATE AUTHORITIES AND COLLECTIVE ORGANIZATIONS FOR THE PROTECTION OF COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS here
Section MONITORING OF THE DIGITALIZATION PROCESS here
Section MONITORING OF THE PRIVATIZATION PROCESS here
Section OVERALL CONCLUSION here
The COMPLETE REPORT can be downloaded here
send comment
-
No comments on this topic.
