(CPJ/IFEX) – CPJ is deeply disturbed by NATO’s missile attack against state-run Radio and Television of Serbia (RTS) in downtown Belgrade early on the morning of 23 April 1999. The attack destroyed RTS’s main newsroom and studios, knocking it off the air for several hours, and reportedly killed at least nine people and injured eighteen […]
(CPJ/IFEX) – CPJ is deeply disturbed by NATO’s missile attack against
state-run Radio and Television of Serbia (RTS) in downtown Belgrade early on
the morning of 23 April 1999. The attack destroyed RTS’s main newsroom and
studios, knocking it off the air for several hours, and reportedly killed at
least nine people and injured eighteen others.
**Updates IFEX alerts of 23 April, 22 April, 21 April, 13 April, 12 April
and 9 April 1999**
The attack follows the 21 April bombing of a Belgrade office building that
housed three private television stations, TV Pink, BK TV and TV Kosova, the
latter a station owned by Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic’s daughter,
Marija. All three channels were knocked off the air, although no injuries
were reported. Since last week, NATO has targeted more than a dozen
television transmitters throughout Yugoslavia.
According to CPJ, NATO’s decision to target civilian broadcast facilities
not only increases the danger for reporters now working in Yugoslavia but
permanently jeopardizes all journalists as noncombatants in international
conflicts as provided for in the Geneva Conventions. It represents an
apparent change in NATO policy only days after NATO’s spokesman Jamie Shea
offered assurances in a letter to the International Federation of
Journalists (IFJ) that civilian targets would be avoided:
“The Alliance shares your concern for freedom of the media and the treatment
of
journalists. Allied air missions are planned to avoid civilian casualties,
including of course journalists, and have been frequently aborted when it
has proven impossible to distinguish between military and civilian targets.”
CPJ condemns NATO’s air attack against RTS and other broadcast outlets in
Yugoslavia. CPJ is troubled by the NATO members’ decision to place military
objectives over their stated commitment to freedom of expression.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to the Secretary General:
of RTS in Milosevic’s propaganda campaign, you believe that hate speech and
propaganda is best countered with increased objective reporting, not with
violence
Appeals To
His Excellency
Javier Solana
NATO Secretary General
FAX: +11 322 724 3422
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
