31. 03. 2004

B92 Demands Investigation Of Bomb Incident

BELGRADE, March 31, 2004 - Radio Television B92 wrote yesterday to Serbian Interior Minister Dragan Jocic demanding that he personally ensure that there is a serious investigation into the placing of a bomb under a B92 crew vehicle in Raska at the weekend. The bomb was found on Saturday, March 27, under a crew vehicle being used to cover the events of March 17 in Kosovo. The vehicle was parked in Raska, just twenty metres from the local police station. The Interior Secretariat in Kraljevo has announced that the bomb was not live and there was no danger of it exploding. The statement also expresses the presumption that the bomb was placed under the vehicle by an unidentified individual in order to avoid being found with it in his possession. Saturday was a market day in Raska, the car was parked in a crowded area, and the vehicle could have activated the bomb while leaving the car park. Events preceding the incident were not mentioned in the police statement, which dismisses the finding of the bomb with the claim that it had probably been discarded during an earlier police search of the area. On its arrival in Raska on March 17, the vehicle under which the bomb was later found was first parked in front of the Putnik Motel near the town's bus station. Contact was made immediately with the police, who approached the vehicle a number of times. In addition to relaying material recorded by our crew in Kosovo, the vehicle also provided a satellite link for foreign television stations, such as the BBC and RAI who were also reporting from Kosovo. On March 18, the vehicle was repositioned after our technician, within sight of passers-by and taxi-drivers at a nearby rank, was warned that the vehicle would be set on fire. When the technician told police what had happened, they advised him to move the vehicle to the car park next to the Raska police station. These policemen also know the identity of the individuals who made the threat. However, nowhere in the police statement is there any mention of these people having been interviewed after the bomb was discovered. The vehicle was moved and parked next to the police station, where it stayed until March 27. On March 26, the technician prepared the vehicle for the return journey to Belgrade. At this point there was no bomb, which indicates it was placed under the vehicle during the night of Friday, March 26. The bomb was spotted by a passer-by when our technician was moving the vehicle. Police arrived at the scene immediately and confirmed that the bomb was genuine and was fitted with wires used to activate the device when attached to the vehicle (which, fortunately they were not). It comes as an unpleasant surprise that the site at which the bomb was found was not subsequently secured, allowing curious bystanders to approach and gather at the spot. Nor was the car park secured when the investigating magistrate, police inspector and forensic expert arrived. The forensic expert photographed the area, put the bomb in his pocket and left. Neither the bomb nor the vehicle were dusted for fingerprints. B92 has informed Police Minister Jocic of its concern that there has been an attempt to play down what happened in Raska as an insignificant incident. The claim in the police statement that, in fear of a police search, someone had disposed of the bomb precisely in the car park beside the police station and exactly under our vehicle seems, to us, highly improbable. It appears even more unlikely that someone who had no intention of using the bomb should keep it in their pocket, primed for use and with the original military wires attached. This tense political situation and the high level of intolerance in this society are a serious threat to journalists and their work. B92 has reminded the minister of the recent threats to journalists from Subotica's Hrvatska Rijec and the physical assault of journalists during the riots in Belgrade on March 17. We expect the new government to invest greater effort than its predecessor in ensuring that journalists are protected. Objective and impartial news coverage - as demonstrated during the terrible violence in Kosovo - is of paramount importance in mobilising all possible means of bringing such violence to an end and stabilising the situation. Incidents such as this - if they remain unsolved - contribute directly to a situation in which professional coverage will be prevented by self-censorship and the caution essential to avoid putting the lives of journalists at risk. For this reason, we have insisted in our letter to the minister that each and every act of violence against journalists and the media be resolved without delay or downplay and that the public be fully informed.