Protected species

For 14 years, Brankica Stanković has been subjected to continuous harassment, primarily by a section of Partizan fans, who do not miss an opportunity to repeat what was inaugurated in 2009 during the football match between Partizan and Shakhtar. In addition to drastic sexist insults and other offenses, the message that she would meet the same fate as Slavko Ćuruvija represented the most direct threat.

This threat appears in various forms from time to time, and Brankica no longer has police protection or strong support from her profession.

The worst part of it all is that those who sang what is obviously the anthem of a section of Partizan fans last night may not even understand what it is about. And that is the most dangerous aspect. The potential and likely violent implications of that act could be the most horrific, as in the case of Slavko Ćuruvija.

We all wonder today how it is possible for a 13-year-old to kill other children. Or in that other case. These are like unannounced incidents.

In the case of BS, everything is announced, as if we are only waiting for the execution, and there is no prevention. Brankica was under police protection for seven years due to clear indicators stemming from threats originating from the stadium. The prison sentence had no deterrent effect; there was no permanent societal condemnation of the threats made from the stadium. As a result, we have a constant repetition of those threats… every few months or years. And, as in the cases of murdered journalists, we can observe that with each passing month and year, the chances of successfully resolving these cases diminish, while it also becomes evident that this was the intention in the investigative actions.

I can imagine that Brankica is still a significant burden to some institutions today. Her commitment to professional journalism, investigative journalism raises questions about how much longer this can continue, who is paying to disrupt our “peaceful sleep.”

The enthusiasm that was transformed into physical protection for journalist BS in 2009 could only be seen in the occasional physical barriers of police officers who protected her. We have never seen the political and professional resolve to stop the attacks on BS. Never. And today she is left to fend for her own protection…

When she intended to leave journalism due to the threats and attacks, I encouraged her by creating opportunities to strengthen her team and address the horrific problem of threats. After everything, she found enough strength to create a new breakthrough and establish an informative, educational, investigative documentary channel, which is broadcast on leading distribution networks. The only one among numerous TV channels…

This has evidently given a new impetus to the attacks on Brankica Stanković, as it is believed that if they break her, a stereotype will be established about a polarized Serbia that will only create mutual hatred and intolerance.

The examples we live through are bizarre, bizarre parallels. But the modus operandi is clear: political targeting, through national electronic media, live or in some other way, elaborated through tabloids that are already personally biased and directed by personal and/or political interests, and then we have results on social media through the multiplication of unpunished hatred and threats, culminating in stadiums and sports halls of national disgrace, dictated by hooligans, to whom the highest authorities surrender.

“So-called independent journalists are protected as a rare species in this society.” This was stated by Dejan Vuk Stanković in the National Daily of TV Pink, comparing the incomparable in a story about double standards.

Recently, in a Belgrade café, three individuals approached Dejan Vuk Stanković, personally insulting him and getting into his face. One of them told him: ‘Shut up, or I will beat you,’ while another remarked that he would “suffer,” after which Stanković reported the incident to the police and made a statement at the Stari Grad police station. In this context, the Minister of Internal Affairs, Bratislav Gašić, stated at a session of the national Assembly that three individuals have been detained due to the attack on Dejan Vuk Stanković.

If independent journalists were a protected species as they are not, someone from the authorities would at least have spoken up and taken concrete actions regarding the threats that Brankica Stanković has been receiving for the past year from Partizan's fan stands. The negligence of the authorities has resulted in the misuse of footage (with the logo of the former TV B 92) in the National Daily of TV Pink, where she is insulted and threatened while a doll with her name is thrown and stabbed. The double standards are evident in that this footage has already been used on the same television for shameless relativization of the demands for the protection of Brankica Stanković.

The worst part is that such an instrumentalized contribution has given momentum for a section of Partizan fans to once again voice new threats directed at Brankica Stanković and TV Insajder last night in the Belgrade Arena. And again, nothing happens despite the existence of recordings like those from the café on Palmotićeva, based on which all those who threatened Dejan Vuk Stanković were promptly detained.

Perhaps the reason is the fact that TV Insajder professionally reports on events from the streets of Belgrade and protests against violence every week. Violence that Brankica Stanković is constantly exposed to simply for doing her job professionally.

We must be honest and acknowledge that there has never been enough professional solidarity with Brankica. The difficult-to-understand animosity towards the former B 92, Insajder, and Brankica has contributed to a much milder collegial response compared to others who are under attack. Something similar is happening now. It is as if jealousy and envy always prevail, since Brankica and the Insajder team are pioneers of investigative journalism who were faster, more viewed, and more influential as part of the former B 92, independent production, or cable TV channel. I know of that feeling that Bojana Lekić writes about on social media while the majority remains silent.

I recently wrote about this lack of solidarity, highlighting the case of Milan Pantić. This weekend marks the twenty-second anniversary of his murder. Some lessons are never learned.