ANEM alarm: Unacceptable interference with the KTV team

During the evening, the traffic police insisted on temporarily seizing the properly registered vehicle of the KTV owner, bearing Zrenjanin license plates, with the unconvincing explanation that "suspicious markings need to be checked."

This is a continuation of pressures on KTV representatives, whereby the police do not provide protection when their safety and work are threatened.

We remind you that this year, the KTV team has been attacked multiple times in Pioneer Park, after which Nemanja Šarović was apprehended. In early April, the team was also attacked by members of the SNS, resulting in injuries to journalists and the destruction of their equipment.

The prosecutor's report states that interviews with the victims have been conducted and additional requests have been sent to the Ministry of Internal Affairs for information gathering, along with urgencies for action. In the case of the second attack, the matter has been referred to the Higher Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade.

Journalists and cameramen from KTV in Zrenjanin are permanently exposed to attacks, threats, detentions, physical injuries, and destruction of equipment. This media outlet is perceived by the authorities as hostile and is systematically targeted to hinder its reporting—especially on the protests of students and citizens of Serbia—through the abuse of institutions.

It is unacceptable for freedom of speech and the media to be restricted in any way, particularly through the abuse of institutions. Any obstruction of citizens' access to information constitutes illegal and unconstitutional conduct.

Veran Matić, President of the Board of the Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM) and member of the Permanent Working Group for the Safety of Journalists

The project "System for the Prevention of Violence and Protection of Journalists" is implemented by ANEM in partnership with Insajder TV and the Center for the Development of Local Media, with the support of the European Union and the Balkan Fund for Democracy.