Epidemic of threats to editorial offices and attacks on journalists: A consequence of the atmosphere created by the authorities.

During the protests in New Belgrade, journalist Darko Simić ("Politički globus") was physically attacked; an unknown individual from the group gathered in front of the SNS premises rushed at him and punched him in the face while shouting, "What are you filming?"

The editorial team of the portal Autonomija.info from Novi Sad received threats following the incident during a photography exhibition related to the protests in Bački Petrovac.

They were told that they are "communist bastards" and warned that "for the publications, everyone will receive a reward of two 9.2 mm"—a clear allusion to firearms and liquidation.

Several journalists were attacked while reporting from the field during various protests in Vrbas; the targets of the attacks and insults were the journalists and cameramen from N1, and the editor-in-chief of the portal Mašina was hit in the head multiple times with a frozen water bottle.

Our editorial team also came under fire from opponents of professional and critical journalism after publishing a caricature by Predrag Koraksić Koraks, which was characterized by government supporters as a call for the assassination of Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić.

The editorial team of Danas received a threat via Facebook Messenger from an account belonging to a certain Mikica Kljajić, warning that it may be possible to get "hit by a bomb or a rocket launcher, and then to get blown apart."

The message ended with the words that "they will come to their homes soon." The case has been reported to the Prosecutor's Office for High-Tech Crime.

"Today, we are witnessing an escalation of violence against citizens who are peacefully protesting. Independent media and journalists are exposed to increasingly drastic threats and attacks. The need for urgent reactions from journalistic associations is now a daily occurrence, which was not the case even in the 1990s," says Veran Matić, president of the Permanent Working Group for the Safety of Journalists, in an interview with Danas.

He adds that most attacks and threats against journalists in Serbia have an organized character, often carried out by paid bots and hired individuals, while individual reactions, he says, are most often from people with mental health issues or those influenced by fake news, further exacerbating the violence.

He notes that there are numerous testimonies indicating that such behavior is largely inspired by content in media outlets like Informer.

"Female and male journalists from critical media have become everyday targets of hate speech, threats, and violence—not due to a specific event, but because they exist and do their jobs. Reporters on the front lines of protests and police violence, investigative journalists uncovering corruption, and especially female journalists, who are additionally endangered because of their gender, are under attack," says Matić.

He assesses that professional journalism is under systematic attack, with the intent to be completely stifled. According to him, pressures manifest through physical attacks and threats, impunity for perpetrators, and the establishment of a network of media and associations that merely imitate the real ones, thus blurring the line between facts and propaganda and weakening the recognition of authentic sources.

"Unfortunately, European institutions and countries at the top of the media freedom list do not provide sufficient support to professional and critical media in Serbia. Therefore, solidarity among journalists, newsrooms, and all those who value freedom is extremely important. Only in this way can we protect each other," says Matić.

The editorial team of N1 constantly faces threats and attacks against its journalists; during protests in Vrbas, an assistant to their cameraman was hit multiple times with stones, and at a previous protest, journalist Jelena Mirković was "hit" with a laser in the eyes and verbally assaulted by supporters of the SNS.

N1's program director, Igor Božić, assesses that the latest wave of threats and attacks on journalists is directly connected to the tense social situation in the country. He points out that independent media cover events that, according to him, "clearly annoy the authorities," which is used as a basis for attacks on journalists.

"You can clearly hear on pro-government media that all of this wouldn't happen if N1 and Nova weren't reporting on it. That, of course, has nothing to do with the truth—they would very much like to conceal the situation in society if there were no one to report on it," says Božić.

He adds that such a narrative leads to open threats, even intimidation through gestures that imitate slaughter, with the aim of dissuading journalists from their work.

Božić warns that the police's failure to respond to specific incidents "clearly indicates that things could get worse from above."

"If someone in power doesn't get their act together, we are heading into a situation where the lives and health of journalists could be endangered," emphasizes Božić.

In early July of this year, N1 received a threatening letter stating that they would end up like "Charlie Hebdo."

As Božić reminds, not even a month had passed since that threat, and journalists had not received any information about the progress of the investigation.

"Despite our constant reminders about such threats, we cannot reach the perpetrators—whether it's electronic threats or, as in this case, a letter," says Božić.

He emphasizes his disappointment with the inefficiency of institutions and believes they must be aware of the consequences.

"For all future attacks, their failure to respond or poor handling should be held accountable," concludes Božić.

Perica Gunjić, editor of the portal Cenzolovka, believes that Serbia today functions as a state that systematically intimidates protesting citizens, inciting violence with the support of criminal groups and the police, while daily targeting and accusing the media, often with completely fabricated claims.

"In that state, a woman stabs dean Natalija Jovanović in Niš because, as she herself says, she watches Informer TV every day. This megaphone of the authorities, led by its mentally unstable owner, yells all day about betrayal and calls for reckoning and violence against traitors, with critical journalists being the biggest targets, right next to students, professors, scientists, and the rest of the half-world in progressive Serbia," says Gunjić.

He warns of the danger produced by the daily exposure of citizens to propaganda content. He believes that individuals are under the influence of such messages for hours, increasing the risk that verbal threats could turn into physical attacks.

"These so-called ordinary people are sucking on this poison for who knows how many hours a day, and it's only a matter of time before they run out of their sedatives or alcohol and move from words to deeds. They know that if someone gets stabbed, Vučić would say that this journalist, like the dean, is a criminal and that injuries are like when you cut a cucumber, while the prosecutor's office would accuse the journalist of provoking and intentionally running into the knife to accuse that honest Informer viewer, thus participating in the destabilization of the state," says Gunjić.

**Source: [Danas](https://www.danas.rs/vesti/drustvo/pretnje-novinarima-n1-danas/)**