ENIn the letter to Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia Vojislav Kostunica, and Minister of Interior Dragan Jocic, SEEMO Secretary General Oliver Vujovic writes:
According to information before SEEMO, on 12 September, Vladimir Mitric,
Loznica correspondent for the Belgrade daily Vecernje novosti, was beaten by
an unknown assailant at the entrance of the building where he lives. The
attacker hit Mitric with a hard object rolled in a cloth and escaped only
after Mitric’s neighbour appeared. Mitric was taken to hospital for medical
treatment.
SEEMO regards this physical attack as a flagrant violation of press freedom.
We ask Your Excellencies to ensure an immediate investigation into this case
and to take all necessary legal steps to find the perpetrators.
We would like to remind Your Excellencies that only four years ago another
local correspondent of Vecernje novosti, Milan Pantic from Jagodina, was
killed and his murderers have still not been found. Also, the 1999 murder of
journalist Slavko Curuvija has not yet been solved.
At present, the press freedom situation in Serbia is alarming. The number of
attacks on journalists has increased in the past months, including threats
against the staff of the broadcaster RTV B92 and the daily newspaper Danas.
SEEMO would also like to stress that a safe working environment for
journalists, without any pressure, is a fundamental principle in every
democratic society.
We thank you for your attention.
Yours sincerely,
Oliver Vujovic
SEEMO Secretary General
