IWPR & MEDIA PLAN

MONITORING REPORT Vol II/ No 15

THE B&H MEDIA FORTNIGHT IN REWIEW: 12-25 MAY '97

THERE IS NO WESTERN MEDIA CONSPIRACY

The 22nd May evening news on Republika Srpska’s state television, SRT contained the following item of interest: ‘International Crisis Group, according to the Dutch press, has produced several projects for suppressing, during the local election campaigns in BiH, those media which have a nationalist bias, and promoting those media which campaign for a united Bosnia without entities. These projects are the responsibility of the London-based Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR), its Sarajevo colleague Media Plan, the Winston Foundation whose motto is ‘For Peace in the World’, and the German association ‘Friederich Naumann Stiftung’, who will provide the initial funding. In order to promote, on RS territory, the idea of a unified BiH, it is planned to strengthen the influence of the BBC, Radio Free Europe, the Voice of America, and the so-called Liberty TV, which is based in Prague, and directly financed by American Congress.’ To prevent any further misapprehensions, IWPR and Media Plan advise the public and the media to disregard every suggestion (whether from unnamed Dutch papers, or the minds of SRT journalists), which implies our work is linked with a Western media conspiracy whose goal is ‘a united Bosnia without entities’. Since 1992 IWPR, an independent media charity has been working to provide help and support to all Bosnian journalists and organizations who believe in a free and fair media. It continues to do so. Since 1996 we have been proud to work in close partnership with the independent organization Media Plan, which supports the further development of media throughout Bosnia. Our cooperation has the long-term goal of supporting the freedom of the media, and the increase of media pluralism and professionalism. The only political elements in our joint activities are the articles of the Dayton Peace Accord. We are not here to suppress any media, anywhere in BiH. We monitor and call attention to unprofessional journalistic practices on both sides of the inter-entity boundary line. SRT’s inaccurate, poorly sourced report is precisely the kind of unprofessional journalism that our monitoring is here to address. We hope our report will help improve the quality of the work of journalists and editors at SRT and their colleagues throughout Bosnia. I.W.P.R. & Media Plan

CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE INCLUDE:

• Voters pressed to register
• Brcko election controversies
• Hard words inside the Federation, parts 1-4
• MIRROR, MIRROR ON THE WALL
• Trouble in Krtovo?
• Radio Oslobodjenje from the Serb Sarajevo suburb of Lukavica
• A SHORT MEDIA NEWS

REGISTRATION UNDER DURESS

OSCE’s calls to the voters to register for the local elections have met with a luke- warm response in many parts of BiH. However, in the next couple of weeks (registration ennds on the 16th of June) the registration campaign may yet be warmed up by mounting patriotic fervour. At present (RS) RTV Srpska is providing viewers with the most intensive coverage of the registration. Viewers are daily bombarded with newscasts about the number of registration points in the RS, and the number of citizens who have registered, together with claims from RS political and religious leaders that registering to vote is crucial for the destiny of the RS. Sometimes the enthusiasm of the media amounts to overt pressure on viewers. SRT’s evening news newscast, Novosti, on May 15th, for example, contained an inaccurate announcement, supposedly from OSCE, that those who fail to register will lose their right to vote in the 1998 national elections. Three days later, the news contained a milder version of this threat in the words of Petko Cancar, the head of the RS Elections Commission, who claimed ‘there are indications’ that those not registering now will lose the right to vote next year. Serbian state television (RTS) also called upon the Serb refugees from BiH living in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to register for the elections, announcing that ‘registration will have no effect on refugee status or on the decisions of refugees about where they will live after the elections’. (14/5) RTS is apparently trying to calm the fears of Serb refugees of being forced repatriation to BiH (RS). TV Hercegbosna sent daily newscasts about the registration of voters in those parts of BiH under Bosnian Croat control. OSCE spots appeared frequently in the news programmes, together with calls to register made by religious and state leaders. Bishop Peric of Mostar announced, on the 23/5 newscast, that ‘if everyone wants to have what is his, then we must ensure registration today, and legitimate, honest and free elections tomorrow. What our brave fighters defended with their blood, all citizens who are of age must defend with their signatures and their votes.’ In contrast to its brethren in the RS and Croat areas, TV BiH continues to ignore the voter registration process. This might explain why voter registration figures in Bosnjak-majority areas of the Federation are significantly lower than those in Croat- majority regions and Republika Srpska.

THE NAÎVETÉ OF OSCE

RTV BiH turned its attention to Brcko after the head of OSCE, Ambassador Robert Frowick, announced that elections will be held only in the RS-controlled parts of the municipality. The journalists of Radio BiH took the gloomiest view of the decision at all levels, and broadcast political party calls for voters to boycott the elections. ‘Until new regulations for the Brcko elections have been agreed upon, the political parties will stay away, and voters will not show any sign of registering for the elections,’ was the dominant note in the reporter’s summary (13/5). The influence of the official government was evident in how TV BiH framed a statement from the Office of the High Representative. (14/5.) Spokesman Colum Murphy said in support of OSCE that Frowick’s decision could not be overturned, as it was ‘written in stone’. This was placed immediately before the oft-quoted statement of Mirsad Djapo, Deputy Mayor of the Federation Brcko municipality: ‘This decision is unacceptable, for fully 25,000 people will be left without voting rights.’ On this note the report ended. TV BiH carried the statement by Deputy President of the Federation Ejup Ganic concerning the shortcomings of the Brcko voting system: ‘OSCE is a naïve organisation, a cover for those who want to divide our BiH’. (Dnevnik, 21/5.) TV BiH failed to give the OSCE any opportunity to reply. The assault continued three days later: Robert Farrand, Brcko Supervisor, attempted to make a simple announcement in the Bosnian language, ‘If you don’t register you can’t vote’, but mispronounced the word ‘glasati’ (to vote) and was forced to repeat himself. TV BiH ran the embarrassing little recording twice over, to maximise its entertainment value. The final comment on the Brcko decision was reserved for an angry former Brcko resident who said (of the election regulations) ‘all this is dust thrown in the eyes of Bosnjaks.’ In neither report was OSCE given the opportunity to explain Frowick’s decision, which revolved around the problems of holding elections in municipalities split by the Inter-Entity Boundary Line (IEBL).

TV BIH: COVERING A MINISTER AND DEPUTY AT LOGGERHEADS

Internal disagreements in the state Ministry of Foreign Affairs led to a sharp exchange between (Bosnian Croat) minister Jadranko Prlic, and his (Bosnjak) deputy Husein Zivalj. TV BiH covered the protest letter which Zivalj sent to the Croatian Ministry of Foreign Affairs about nationalist statements by Croatian officials, and the forced entry by Croat police into the town hall of (Federation) Kulen Vakuf. (17/5.) Prlic retorted that Zivalj was exceeding his duties by sending this missive and that the note of protest was sent to Croatia without his (the Minister’s) knowledge. (18/5.) The next day Zivalj repeated his protest, and criticised Prlic for evading the real issue. TV BiH carried Prlic’s response that members of the BiH Foreign Ministry should not act on their own volition, but should be mindful of the responsibilities of a state ministry. The squabble had one redeeming feature: namely that TV BiH covered the arguments of both antagonists evenhandedly and without comment. On the other hand, when it came to the Croat Herceg-Bosna community’s setting up headquarters in the Federation port of Neum, TV BiH laced its coverage with expressions of suspicion of Bosnian Croat intentions. The reporter on Dnevnik (23/5) asked ‘What is the real significance of this?’ After BiH Foreign Minister Prlic had declared that the community had nothing to do with secessionism, but was simply an umbrella for Bosnian Croat groups in BiH, the reporter decided ‘time will show what lies before us.’ On the anniversary of the founding of the Croat Community of Herceg Bosna (HZ HB) the reporter reminded viewers that ‘in 1993 HZ HB called itself "The Croatian Republic of Hercegbosna"’. (24/5.) However, Croat media in Bosnia and Croatia were low-key in their coverage of the event. Croatia Television news simply stated that, when the establishment of this office was announced, ‘foreign diplomats attended carefully to every word, and most concluded that the consolidation of the HZ HB community means nothing prejudicial to the terms of the Dayton Peace Agreement.’ (25/5.)

MOSTAR: HEATING UP

The two local TV stations, Bosnjak and Bosnian Croat, were most excited during the monitored period, by the subject of the municipal elections, and the possibility of the division of Mostar into six municipalities, three Bosnjak, and three Croat. The main news on Croat-run HTV on May 13, carried the station’s own comment: ‘It has long been known that the SDA’s (The main Bosnjak party) approach to Mostar has been based chiefly on securing a solution for the town centre.’ The guest on the 22/5 news was the leader of the Mostar HDZ, Mile Puljic, who, in view of the sluggish voter registration, declared that, ‘the program of registering for the elections has a special significance for the Croat people, mainly because by succeeding in the elections we can establish our rights to constitutional sovereignty and equality in BiH.’ Bosnjak-controlled TV Mostar also focused on the elections: During the evening newscast, (Dnevnik 16/5.) the station’s director held a 15 minute interview with the Deputy Mayor and leader of the party ‘List for a United Mostar’ Safet Orucevic. Orucevic called upon voters to register, declaring that participation would guarantee ‘a multi-ethnic Mostar.’ Both stations covered the Jelic incident. In a medals ceremony for HVO (Bosnian Croat army) soldiers in Mostar (11/5), Zlatan Jelic, a member of a delegation sent by Croatian President Franjo Tudjman greeted the soldiers with the phrases ‘God and the Croats, ready for the homeland.’ These phrases are associated with Croatia’s WWII fascist regime, under which hundreds of thousands of Serbs and Jews were murdered. TV Mostar pounced on the speech: The lead story on Dnevnik (16/5) was the news that ‘Western Diplomats yesterday expressed their deep concern that Bosnian Croat officials in Mostar used fascist slogans in their medal-presentation ceremony.’ TV Mostar also ran the High Representative Carl Bildt’s comment that ‘the big powers will not tolerate attempts to glorify the Nazi Ustasa state which massacred Jews and Serbs in the Second World War.’

HTV MOSTAR, DID NOT REPORT THE INTERNATIONAL REACTIONS

HTV may be "ready for the homeland," but it doesn't seem too keen on invitations for Croats to go home. Especially when home is in Bosnjak-controlled areas. Both HTV and TV Mostar covered a meeting between Mostar's Mayor, Ivan Prskalo, Deputy Mayor, Safet Orucevic, and Deputy High Representative for Mostar, Sir Martin Garrod on 19 May. While TV Mostar broadcast both Prskalo's post-meeting statement that Croats will not talk about returns until they see that their houses in East Mostar are ready to repair, and Orucevic's call for Croats to return to their homes on the Bosnjak side of the divided city, HTV broadcast only Prskalo's comments, and ignored Orucevic's invitation.

SRT: TROUBLE IN KRTOVO?

Like HTV, Republika Srpska's state-controlled television has never very inspired by the idea of refugees returning to hearth and home when both are in "enemy" territory. There is almost never mention of the trickle of Serb refugees back to Federation areas, and the repeated calls and public protests of Drvar Serbs to return to their homes have gone unnoticed. On the other hand, every return which is in any way unsuccessful gets instant attention. Novosti (16/5) reported, 'The SFOR headquarters in Doboj received information from IPTF that Serbs suffered maltreatment in trying to take back their property in the district of Krtovo. This is the only settlement in the Federation to which a few Serb families have gone back, but their houses were burned.' Several dozen Serb families have returned to Krtovo, between Tuzla and Doboj, since last summer, but IPTF headquarters in Sarajevo said that they had no reports of house burning or harassment in Krtovo, or anywhere else in the Tuzla-Doboj area in the weeks preceding the SRT report. With all the well-documented problems Serbs are having returning to the Federation, SRT should not have to invent stories to scare homesick Serbs.

MIRROR, MIRROR ON THE WALL

* On 21 May at a press conference in Pale, Colum Murphy, spokesman for the High Representative, called upon Serbs 'not to join forces with evil' but to 'join international efforts on behalf of raising ethical standards, promoting peace, and reconstruction.' He warned that harboring and supporting individuals indicted for war crimes would further scar the conscience of generations of Serbs. Though present at the press conference, SRT failed to mention Murphy's ten-minute speech. SRT viewers only learned of Murphy's statements when a letter by RS Premier Gojko Klickovic, read out on the new two days later, in which he demanded that the High Representative say openly in whose name his Murphy was actually speaking.

* Bravo, colleague! - was our monitor's response to the Radio BiH reporter's objective and professional coverage of the sharp debate between the President of the BiH Trades Union, and a representative of the Federation government, about the growth of social problems in the Federation. (22/5.) Unfortunately, a different impression was produced by the radio's coverage of a press conference given by international officials. An American newsletter, "Balkan Watch" quoted Carl Bildt, during his recent visit to the US, as saying that Radovan Karadzic 'would make a good business contact' as 'the legally elected president of BiH'. No other news service appears to have heard Bildt say anything resembling these words. The radio savaged Bildt for the statements (13/5), but its reporter failed to mention that Bildt's spokesman Colum Murphy categorically denied that Bildt had made any such statements, and demanded a letter of apology from Balkan Watch.

WE PRESENT: RADIO OSLOBODJENJE

This radio, based in Lukavica, the Serb-controlled suburb of Sarajevo, has the motto: 'Always and only for our own people'. The station is the offspring of the Pale-based Oslobodjenje newspaper (not to be confused with its Sarajevo counterpart.) The daily programming schedule runs from 8 am to 7 PM, on the frequencies UKV/FM, 90.7 MHz. It does not produce its own newscasts, but borrows the morning and evening newscasts transmitted by Srpska Radio. The station's official dialect is 'ekavski', the Serbian variant of Serbo-Croatian which has been declared politically correct by Pale, but the presenters (who are all young and inexperienced) show a tendency to slip into the 'ijekavski' variant, more common in Bosnia and Croatia. Programmes are divided into half-hour, hour and two hour transmissions, with music programmes taking up 70 % of the schedule. Most of the music consists of Serb patriotic and traditional songs, with some Western dance music thrown in. The contents of the morning schedule tend to be better in quality and more varied than the afternoon transmissions. Mornings start with a five-minute daily update on events in Lukavica, followed by children's programmes, then cultural/educational programmes, and religious programmes. The afternoon schedule contains one and two hour long blocks of music, and the 'Youth Programme' (5 pm to 7pm). The gospel according to St John and various church services frame the programmes devoted to upholding the Orthodox faith. The propaganda is sometimes crude ('You must openly declare your faith') and intolerant of atheism. Religious music is played, together with songs associated with the Chetnik movement. In the series 'Sarajevo Throughout History,' (weekdays, 10-11) the focus is the sufferings of the Serb people, with emphasis on the latest war. Literary and poetic quotes, together with the speeches and reminiscences of Serb leaders, Radovan Karadzic in particular, create the not-so-cheery atmosphere. The series at one point describes the 'forcible expulsion of Serb citizens,' from Sarajevo whose presence prevented 'the Mujahadein from sleeping in peace'. This led to the cryptic conclusion, (couched in the heroic couplets of traditional Serb epic poetry) 'As long as black marame (religious mourning veils) are worn, God and justice are on our side.' The series continues with 'Chronicles of a Lost City' (Sarajevo) which was 'so beautiful, so tragic' and which was 'dealt away on a green (conference) table.' The phone-in programme for teenagers is poorly conceived: dance music alternates with party games and quizzes, with no perceptible structure. Sometimes the guests are international officials, who are given a hard time by both the presenters and the audience. The radio covers the SFOR press conferences when these take place in Pale, but the presenter spends more time passing judgement on the spokesman than reporting the news. (An initiative to merge the two radio stations, Radio Oslobodjenje and Radio Ilidza, into one station for RS Sarajevo, was recently announced.)

A SHORT MEDIA NEWS

• * The UN mission to BiH has opened a radio station in Sarajevo's former Army barracks, in cooperation with the Sarajevo University Students' Union. The management promises the output will be 'very progressive', with the latest items on fashion, music and culture. Plans for the future include links with the Internet, and research into the possibilities of digital transmission. 'This is the sound of Sarajevo's future' said the head of UN radio, Henry Pierce. This project will also pay the tuition fees of the students who are employed by the radio. At the opening ceremony, guests included students and high-ranking international officials, including Kai Eide, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General for the region of the former Yugoslavia, who said, 'Without independent media there can be no democracy' (Oslobodjenje, 17/5).
• * The Bihac-based Television of the Una-Sana Canton, in its main news on 21 May, gave a short update on the current status of electronic media in the region. This dwelt on such problems as outdated equipment (up to 30 years old), lack of experts, and deficient salaries. The local station Radio Buzim warned that it might have to shut down altogether, as its equipment is antiquated and staff have not been paid for a year. The municipalities of Kljuc, Sanski Most and Buzim have great problems receiving RTV BiH, making local stations all the more important to viewers. Of particular interest was the comment of the report's presenter: 'The poor condition of existing radio stations opens the way for pirate stations such as the enemy Radio Velkaton (a station broadcasting from Croat territories, and run by supporters of the rebel Bosnjak leader, Fikret Abdic). (SAFAX)
• * Mica Ostojic, the independent agency AIM's reporter for Teslic (RS) was not allowed to cover the activities of the municipal assembly. The president of the municipality, Aleksa Kasapovic, prevented Ostojic from entering the building where the assembly was held, saying that 'traitors and spies have no place in a serious meeting.' Boro Milojevic, member of the municipal assembly, threatened that, if Ostojic did not leave the building alone, he would 'personally throw him out' as he could not be allowed to sit in the same room with 'people who spit upon spying and treacherous newspapers.' This story was carried by the independent media in the Federation and the RS. (Oslobodjenje, 24/5).
• * In early May, a journalist working for an independent publication in the RS told human rights monitors that he had been threatened by an influential religious leader in the area after he published several articles about the situation in Teslic. (OHR Human Rights Coordination Center Human Rights Report, 27/5)
• * International monitors reported that several Federation-based journalists visiting Zvornik (RS) as part of an OSCE cross-entity initiative were menaced by a group of young men on 28 May, as they were getting into a van to take them back across the IEBL. An UN IPTF monitor managed to prevent the youths assaulting a cameraman participating in the visit. Earlier in the day, local police had told UN IPTF that they "could not guarantee the security" of the visitors.) (OHR Human Rights Coordination Center Human Rights Report, 29/5)

The following media were monitored for this week's report: Srpski Radio, Srpska TV, Radio BiH, TV BiH, Hrvatski radio HB, TVIN, TV TPK, TV USK, Radio Brèko(RS), Radija Slobodno Brèko(F BiH), TV Mostar, HTV Mostar, TV Srbije, Hrvatska televizija.

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