ANEM ALARM: A Radio Free Europe journalist was attacked in Gornji Milanovac, and the N1 team was denied access to the event in Novi Sad.

Radio Free Europe correspondent Bojan Savković was attacked this morning in Gornji Milanovac while reporting on the celebration of the Municipality Day and the 211th anniversary of the Second Serbian Uprising. The physical attack occurred near the Cultural Center "Mija Aleksić," where activities related to this event were organized.

According to Savković, as seen in the recording he made, Milan Tadić, a member of the Municipal Board of the Serbian Progressive Party in Gornji Milanovac, attempted to seize his mobile phone while he was filming the attendees at the public gathering. "He approached me and tried to stop the recording by grabbing my hand and the phone, and then pulled me in an attempt to steal the device," Savković stated in his declaration.

The journalist emphasizes that police officers who were nearby immediately reacted and separated them, preventing further escalation of the incident. Unfortunately, the attacker was not identified and apprehended at that moment.

On the other hand, in Novi Sad, the N1 television crew was banned from reporting on the ceremonial opening of the Honorary Consulate of Russia, where it was planned for the Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia, Alexander Gruška, and Honorary Consul Dušan Bajatović to address the media.

N1 journalist Sanja Kosović reported from about 15 meters away from the location where other media were reporting. Despite having submitted a request for accreditation to attend the opening, early this morning she received a response that her "attendance was denied for security reasons," without further explanation. N1's accreditation was rejected with the justification of "for security reasons," and a police officer did not allow the journalist to approach the location where other media were present.

The editor of the "Razglas news" portal, who arrived at the event before the N1 team, managed to record a conversation between the event organizer and a police officer. In the recording, she can be heard saying to tell the N1 team that they do not have accreditation.

"When you see them, N1, tell them they do not have accreditation, nothing violent, just tell them they do not have accreditation," one of the event organizers stated. We wonder whether the police would have intervened physically against the N1 news team, which had every right to report from a gathering taking place in a public area.

ANEM calls on the relevant authorities, police, and the prosecutor's office to urgently respond to the attack on the Radio Free Europe journalist in Gornji Milanovac and to ensure that the perpetrator, who is also a representative of the ruling party, is held accountable for obstructing the work and endangering the safety of media workers. Such behavior is unacceptable, especially from public officials and politicians.

"If the attacker on the journalist in Gornji Milanovac is not held accountable, the authorities and the ruling party will directly legitimize violence against media representatives, which is unacceptable in a regulated and democratic society that Serbia should aspire to. Impunity, we reiterate for the umpteenth time, paves the way for continued threats and physical attacks on journalists, and we call for every attacker to be prosecuted regardless of whether they are an official, a member of a political party, or a random passerby. Relevant institutions must resist obvious pressures from the authorities not to act in cases where journalists are attacked or prevented from performing their essential function of informing the public," stated Veran Matić, President of the ANEM Board, member of the Permanent Working Group for Journalist Safety, and operator on the Safe Line for Journalists 0800 100 115.

At the same time, ANEM points out that the selection and discrimination of media outlets on those allowed to cover certain events and those denied access, especially when they have duly submitted requests for accreditation, is unimaginable and scandalous. Limiting access to public events for certain media undermines the degree of media freedom, media pluralism, and the informing of citizens in the public interest.

ANEM appeals to all journalists and media representatives to regularly report any form of threats to their safety while performing their duties. A free phone number and direct line to ANEM, 0800 100 115, is available to all journalists, where media representatives can receive explanations about the legal treatment of offenses and the procedures they should initiate to report threats to their safety to relevant institutions, police, and the prosecutor's office.

Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM)

The project "Improving the System of Mechanisms for Preventing and Responding to Threats to the Safety and Lives of Female and Male Journalists in Serbia" is being implemented by ANEM in partnership with Insajder TV and the Center for the Development of Local Media, with the support of the European Union.

The OSCE Mission in Serbia supported ANEM's project "24/7 SOS Hotline for Assistance to Journalists and Other Threatened Media Workers," within the project funded by the European Union "Strengthening Freedom of Expression and Media Freedom in Serbia."