In an 18 January 2000 letter to President Milan Milutinovic, WAN expressed its serious concern over an attack on a transmitter belonging to Serbia’s largest opposition television channel, Studio B. According to reports, on 16 January unknown attackers broke into a container housing the Studio B transmitter on Mount Kosmaj, around forty kilometres south of […]
In an 18 January 2000 letter to President Milan Milutinovic, WAN expressed its serious concern over an attack on a transmitter belonging to Serbia’s largest opposition television channel, Studio B.
According to reports, on 16 January unknown attackers broke into a container housing the Studio B transmitter on Mount Kosmaj, around forty kilometres south of Belgrade, and stole equipment worth approximately US$52,000. Dragan Kojadinovic, the director of Studio B, claimed that the theft of the channel’s transmitter had halved the number of viewers who could receive its programmes.
Kojadinovic has reportedly speculated that government forces might have been behind the attack, although this has been denied by officials. Many of Studio B’s news programmes have been jammed for several months and Kojadinovic suggested that the theft was in response to the television station recently finding a way around the problem in some parts of the city.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to the president:
– respectfully reminding him that it is the duty of the state to ensure that journalists are able to carry out their professional duties without fear of attack and intimidation, and to protect a citizen’s right to freedom of expression
– respectfully calling on him to ensure that a thorough investigation into the attack is undertaken and that those responsible are brought to justice
– urging him to ensure that in future Serbia fully respects international standards of freedom of expression
Appeals To
APPEALS TO:
His Excellency Milan Milutinovic
President
Republic of Serbia
Fax: +381 11 337 0401
Please copy appeals to WAN.
