Chronology of Attacks on Media Workers in the Area Between Pionirski Park and the National Assembly of Serbia

During the nine months since the tents were set up in Pioneer Park, which then expanded to the Assembly of Serbia, the monthly media scene monitoring reports published by the Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM) recorded at least 25 instances of interference and attacks on media workers in and around that enclosed area.

According to data from the Supreme Public Prosecutor's Office, out of all reported cases, only in the incident involving the attack on Insajder TV journalist Nataša Mijušković was a suspect apprehended, thanks to the identification of the attacker by the victim in the database "Ćaci(ji): Guardians of the Party" created by the KRIK editorial team.

In one case, the criminal complaint was dismissed by the competent prosecutor.

Police officers, although they were always present in the vicinity or directly witnessed the attacks, did not act in any case to protect journalists and media workers, nor did they identify the assailants. In some cases, they even participated in the violent apprehension of the attacked individuals.

“This forbidden city, ruled by criminals with criminal records for murder and other criminal activities, is a test for society; it questions whether all of Serbia can be transformed into a space where journalists and those who think differently will be persecuted and beaten. The most important thing in the year ahead is to prevent such possibilities and to stop the establishment of zones of violence like this one in the center of the capital, and to protect everyone who is endangered or attacked, whether they are journalists, photographers, lawyers, prosecutors, educators, miners, or homeless individuals... We must protect everyone through solidarity and resistance so that we may be protected ourselves,” stated Veran Matić, president of the ANEM Board of Directors, member of the Standing Working Group for the Safety of Journalists, and operator on the Safe Line for reporting threats to the safety of media workers at 0800 100 115.

The document "Chronology of Attacks on Media Workers in the Area Between Pioneer Park and the Assembly of Serbia" is available at this link.

Regular monthly monitoring of the media scene in Serbia is conducted by a professional monitoring team from the law firm "Savović," in collaboration with ANEM, with financial support from the European Union. The content is exclusively the responsibility of the Association of Independent Electronic Media and does not necessarily reflect the official views of the European Union.