SafeJournalists: The police once again failed to protect journalists during the protests in Serbia – an urgent response from institutions and the international community is necessary.

These events represent a serious threat to media freedom and further deepen the atmosphere of impunity that encourages new attacks. The SafeJournalists network calls on domestic institutions to urgently act in accordance with the law, and on international institutions, primarily the European Union, to utilize all available powers and mechanisms to protect democracy, media freedom, and freedom of expression in Serbia.

Yesterday in Belgrade, several journalists were physically obstructed and prevented from reporting on two organized protests by students and citizens in front of Ušće Park and the First Basic Court in New Belgrade.

Photojournalist Gavrilo Andrić was obstructed twice by the police while attempting to document the events during the protests. Police officers initially pushed him without any explanation while he was filming and photographing events near the park in front of the former Hotel Jugoslavija, where the construction of an aquarium opposed by citizens is planned. At that moment, Andrić had a clearly displayed press credential.

During the evening, while Andrić was filming the police's actions during the arrest of demonstrators, one member of the Gendarmerie  physically attacked him. When the photojournalist identified himself as a journalist, the police officer moved away, and after Andrić requested his credentials, the officer cursed at him. We emphasize that recordings from the protests reveal that police officers used the most vulgar insults during interventions and the arrest of citizens.

A journalist from the Mašina portal was obstructed and hindered while filming by police officers. Student photojournalist Luka Pešić was chased twice by police officers in the evening hours, while journalist Nada Gladović from the YouTube channel Srbin Info and journalist Darko Simić were surrounded by members of the police brigade while trying to film the confiscation of motorcycles from citizens after the protests.

The day before, at a protest in Novi Sad, journalist Žarko Bogosavljević was attacked in front of the Serbian National Theatre, where the 200th anniversary of Matica Srpska was being celebrated. In a video circulating on social media, Bogosavljević is heard repeatedly identifying himself as a journalist and emphasizing that he is on the ground to do his job, but this did not prevent an attacker, who was among supporters of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party, from assaulting him.

In the same group where Bogosavljević was located, there were several other journalists from Reuters, Odjek, and Storyteller, who were also pushed and exposed to aggression, but Bogosavljević was the only one who sustained multiple blows. It is especially concerning that the attack occurred in the presence of the police, with a lack of timely and effective response. Additionally, the N1 TV crew was also obstructed during this incident.

Journalist of Revolt magazine and activist Lazar Dinić stated to the media that after the protests in Novi Sad, he received a series of threatening messages and comments in which unknown individuals threatened him that they would "find" him and "rip out his heart and chop it into pieces". Such messages represent direct threats to life and must be urgently prosecuted.

Moreover, journalist Dejana Cvetković, who reported from the protest in Surdulica on February 14, received sexist insults, was publicly denounced, warned that individuals possessed her phone number, and her profile was shared in a controversial Viber group where calls for lynching were made. Sexist targeting, sharing personal data, and calls for violence represent a serious form of pressure and endangerment of safety, especially when involving elements of digital violence and doxing.

The SafeJournalists network demands that the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Serbia (MUP) urgently conduct an internal control and determine the responsibility of police officers who failed to protect journalists on the ground, as well as those who participated in pushing, insulting, and obstructing journalists, and to inform the public about the results of the process.

To promptly establish clear operational procedures for police conduct towards media workers at public gatherings, including the obligation for the police to actively prevent attacks on journalists and to ensure safe zones for their work, while respecting the role of journalists in the public interest.

From the relevant prosecutors' offices, including the Special Department for High-Tech Crime, we expect urgent identification and prosecution of perpetrators of threats and online harassment, particularly in cases of death threats, calls for lynching, and sharing personal data, as well as ensuring effective evidence collection (recordings, digital traces, identification of accounts and group administrators).

From the Government of the Republic of Serbia and the highest state officials, we expect them to publicly and unequivocally condemn attacks on journalists, without relativization, and to send a clear message that journalists are protected by law and that an attack on them is an attack on the public interest.

The SafeJournalists network also calls on international institutions, primarily the European Union, the Council of Europe, OSCE/ODIHR, and representatives of the international community in Serbia, to publicly and clearly condemn attacks and threats against journalists, demanding a swift and transparent investigation and prosecution of the perpetrators.

We expect them to insist that progress in the areas of rule of law and fundamental rights (including media freedom) be measured by concrete results: the number of resolved cases, final judgments, and demonstrated accountability of institutions. It is also necessary to enhance monitoring and demand that the authorities in Serbia ensure an environment in which media can operate without fear, threats, and violence, especially during protests and events of high public interest.

The SafeJournalists network reminds that attacks on journalists, especially in the presence of police and without institutional response, represent an alarming signal of the erosion of standards for the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms. Journalists must have the ability to report safely from public gatherings, and institutions are obligated to protect them, not obstruct them.

The SafeJournalists network will continue to document all cases of attacks and pressures on journalists and inform domestic and international actors, insisting on accountability and an end to impunity.

Croatian Journalists' Association

Association of Journalists of Kosovo

Association of Journalists of Macedonia

Association of BH Journalists

Independent Association of Journalists of Serbia

Media Union of Montenegro

Source: SafeJournalists