ANEM ALARM: Condemnation of the detention of a photographer and activist on the day of the SNS rally.

According to media reports, the three individuals were detained on Sunday near a banner hung on the outside of a building facing Brankov Bridge. The banner, which read "Students are fighting for you," was displayed while traffic on the bridge was halted to allow a procession of supporters of the Serbian Progressive Party to pass to a rally in front of the National Assembly.

All three were released from police custody the same evening without being asked to provide an official statement to the relevant authorities.

According to publicly available information, prior to their detention, an unknown individual broke into the apartment from which the banner was displayed, seized the banner, and removed it from the premises.

ANEM underscores the alarming fact that the detention of photojournalists and activists has become a dangerous practice that must be urgently stopped. The arbitrary and unpredictable actions of the police violate citizens' rights and create a profound sense of insecurity among them.

According to records from the Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia and the Association of Independent Electronic Media, photojournalist Gavrilo Andrić is one of the most targeted media workers since May 2025:

• he has been unjustly detained by police officers three times;
• he has been physically attacked by police five times, and once he was obstructed in his work by representatives of the Ministry of Interior;
• he has received death threats via social media twice, and once his Instagram account was hacked following a coordinated attack by bots, during which accounts of other independent media were also targeted;
• he has been physically attacked by unknown individuals twice, with his work equipment being seized.

In just one year, Gavrilo Andrić has been subjected to inappropriate police conduct, systematic hindrance of his work, terrifying threats, and physical attacks from officials and aggressors linked to the ruling party.

Gavrilo Andrić is an independent photojournalist who collaborates with various media outlets, student accounts on social media, and publishes content on his own highly followed accounts. His photographs and videos are among the most shared on social media.

"Out of a total of 14 attacks, threats, and other forms of interference with the work and safety of Gavrilo Andrić, not a single case has been resolved nor has the perpetrator been prosecuted, including complaints submitted to the Internal Control Service of the Ministry of Interior. Despite all attempts to hinder his work, his photographs provide an authentic testimony of the rebellion of students and citizens against irresponsible and violent authorities, as well as against the erosion of institutions. They simultaneously depict solidarity, empathy, self-sacrifice, and the re-establishment of broken social ties. In response to violence, Gavrilo answers with photography, capturing the essence of the student movement, its activities, and the values it advocates. Thanks to his photographs, as well as the work of others, particularly independent female and male photographers, the regime's attempts and those of its tabloid media to distort reality will not succeed," stated Veran Matić, Chairman of the Board of ANEM and member of the Permanent Working Group for the Safety of Journalists.

Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM)

The project "Improving the System for Prevention and Response Mechanisms in Cases of Threats to the Safety and Life of Journalists in Serbia" is implemented by ANEM in partnership with Insider TV and the Center for the Development of Local Media, with the support of the European Union.