02 Nov Three Freedoms Under the Magnifying Glass: October 20 – November 2, 2023

Posted at 11:56h in News, Three Freedoms Under the Magnifying Glass by

Belgrade, November 2, 2023

Violations of basic freedoms in Serbia

October 20 – November 2, 2023

 

In the period from October 20 to November 2, several examples of violations of freedom of expression and association were recorded.

Despite the fact that they had credentials, Veran Matić, a member of the Permanent Working Group for the Safety of Journalists, and a TV Insider journalist were denied access to the main hearing at the trial of the controversial businessman from Vranje, Dejan Nikolić Kantar. In recent years, Kantar has come to the attention of the public due to violent behavior, death threats and harassment of the owner of OK Radio from Vranje. SNS MP Nebojša Bakarec and Minister of Internal Affairs Bratislav Gašić used the first meeting of the autumn session of the Assembly of the Republic of Serbia to deal with the independent media. This was the last session of the Assembly in this convocation, since parliamentary and local elections were announced for December, and there is a justified fear that attacks and targeting of the media will increase during the pre-election campaign period.

Activist and pensioner Branislava Tatić was thrown out of the local cinema where the October Awards ceremony of Bačka Palanka municipality was organized. Although the event was open to the public, the security forcibly threw the activist out of the building, where the police waited. Environmental activist and one of the organizers of the protest against violence in Čačak, Jevđenije Julijan Dimitrijević, was attacked after the protest in the city center. Graffiti calling for the murder of activist Aida Ćorović appeared in Vrbas.

You can find more details about these cases in the full report below.