The free expression section of the report presents cases of physical attacks on journalists, threats and requests for disclosure of sources of information, and other violations.
(ANEM/IFEX) – The twenty-seventh Monitoring Report contains the results of the legal monitoring of the media scene in Serbia in October 2011. Here are some of the highlights:
* The Report, in its part dealing with freedom of expression, presents cases of physical attacks on journalists, threats and requests for disclosure of sources of information, stoning of media premises, destroying of vehicles, indictment without investigation, yet another endless court proceedings in the case where a journalist was physically attacked. In each of these cases, the authors of the Report analyze the related provisions of the Public Information Law and other relevant laws, as well as the practice and ill-effects of such practices on media freedom and freedom of expression;
* Problems in the implementation of existing media laws are many. For the Public Information Law, this is more evident in the analyzed cases, while, in terms of the Broadcasting Law, the authors deal with the issues of financing of the public service broadcasting, fight against broadcasting “piracy” and political advertising in the media. The Law on National Councils of National Minorities, in the part that is relevant to the media, demonstrates its shortcomings in practice almost every month. The Report elaborates on its concrete shortcomings in this period.
* From what the authors have analyzed in the part of the Report dealing with monitoring of the work of competent authorities, a particular emphasis is made to the segment that relates to the work of the Press Council and the application of the rules on state aid control in the media sphere;
* Changes in the digitalization process and their causes, and the continuation of hitherto bad practices when it comes to the privatization of the media, also evidenced by the recent developments in the “Novosti” case, are the topics addressed by the monitoring team in this Report, as well;
* In the Conclusion, the authors point to possible problems in implementation of the Media Strategy and their causes, even though its implementation has not yet begun.
In particular, the authors also analyze solutions provided in the Media Strategy that are relevant or related to cases treated in this Report.