ANEM'S WEEKLY REPORT ON MEDIA REPRESSION IN SERBIA

MAY 27 – JUNE 2, 2000

DANAS FINED 570,000 DINARS

BELGRADE, May 27 2000 - Belgrade magistrate Mirela Stanojlovic-Nikolic today fined daily Danas a total of 570,000 dinars under the Public Information Act. The paper was convicted on charges brought by Deputy Serbian Prime Minister and Radical Party leader Vojislav Seselj, over an article published on May 24 under the title "Lilic demands urgent dismissal of Serbian Radical Party leader". The article quoted a letter from Law Faculty academic Stevan Lilic to faculty dean Oliver Antic as saying, among other things "There is no need to emphasise that Seselj is an unscrupulous plagiarist who didn't hesitate to plagiarise Lenin's celebrated 'What to Do'." Danas Editor-in-Chief Grujica Spasovic told Radio B2-92 today that this was the third time Seselj had laid charges against the paper but that today he had actually appeared in court for the first time, surrounded by a large number of brutish-looking armed guards. Spasovic added that the defendants knew that Seselj and those who st!

ood behind him had no interest at all in determining the facts of whether or not he was a plagiarist but only about destroying media not controlled by the government. If Seselj had cared about the truth, added Spasovic, he would have sued Lilic directly and not used the Public Information Act. Danas has to date been convicted seven times under the Public Information Act and fined a total of 2.2 million dinars.

REUTERS CORRESPONDENT RELEASED

BELGRADE, May 27 2000 - Reuters Belgrade correspondent Julijana Mojsilovic and Serbian Renewal Movement representative Uros Balov were released from custody this evening. They were detained earlier today, with another nine citizens, when they attempted to visit Otpor activist Momcilo Veljkovic in prison.

RADIO INDEKS JAMMED

BELGRADE, May 27 2000 - Belgrade's Radio Indeks has been inaudible in most of the Belgrade area since 9.00 p.m. Listeners tuning in for the station's main evening news bulletin instead heard trumpet music. Indeks Editor-in-Chief Aleksandar Vasic told Radio B2-92 that another signal was drowning Indeks but that the source had not been confirmed. Earlier this evening Otpor activists had called on Belgraders to put speakers in their windows and play Radio Indeks news loudly across the city at 9.00 p.m.

BLIC SIGN REMOVED FROM BEOGRADJANKA ROOF

BELGRADE, May 28, 2000 - A large neon billboard for Belgrade daily Blic has been removed from the roof of the Beogradjanka building in central Belgrade. The 23-floor office block is the tallest building in the central city and houses the editorial offices of the paper. Blic board president Borivoj Pajovic announced that the sign was removed yesterday without any kind of explanation in breach of a valid contract. Pajovic said that Blic's contract was valid until November but that in this state the law of strength ruled and that force was stronger than law.

TWO HEARINGS OF CHARGES AGAINST SANDZACKE NOVINE

NOVI PAZAR, May 27, 2000 – Two hearings were held in Novi Pazar on Friday on charges against the Editor of "Sandzacke novine", Amir Numanovic, brought by Daut Masovic and Slavko Petrovic from Tutin, under the Public Information Act. The receivership manager of the Collective Farm in Tutin, Daut Masovic, had filed charges because of the text published a year ago in "Sandzacke novine" in which it had been stated that there had been no reasons for the introduction of receivership and dismissal of Director Nail Dzemic. The editor of the weekly told Beta that the next hearing under that charge was scheduled for June 15, while the other charge by Slavko Petrovic had been dismissed as unjustified.

POLICE ARREST INDEPENDENT TELEVISION DIRECTOR

BELGRADE, May 29, 2000 - Police this morning detained the head of an independent television station in the outer Belgrade area of Mladenovac. Milos Maslaric, the director of TV Mladenovac was interrogated at the local police station. He refused to take part in an inventory of the station's equipment and warned police that the station was the property of the Mladenovac City Assembly. Police then took Maslaric to the station where they forced entry to the premises. After being dragged into the building by police, Maslaric said that the humiliation he had suffered was a reflection of the behaviour of the police. He was released after refusing to sign the police inventory of the station's equipment. Police changed locks on the studios and sealed the building.

TV Mladenovac, which is a subsidiary of Studio B stopped broadcasting on 17th May on police orders.

The president of the Mladenovac Municipal Assembly, Predrag Cokic, described this morning's break-in at the premises of TV Mladenovac and the subsequent inventory of its equipment as an attack on public and City property. Cokic said this was yet another attack on the independent media, one which was totally unnecessary as he would have given the police the keys had they requested them.

The local united opposition in the town described the break in at the premises of the already-banned station, which has been surrounded by police cordons for days, as a continuation of the violent abuse of the constitution, carried out without any legal grounds in a typically criminal manner.

RADIO 021 SIGNAL JAMMED

NOVI SAD, May 29, 2000 - The signal of Novi Sad Radio 021 has been disrupted since last night. The station has been rebroadcasting news programs from Radio B2-92. Listeners from throughout the city have complained to the station about the jamming, saying that its transmissions are either inaudible or severely disrupted.

NATO LEADING MEDIA WAR AGAINST YUGOSLAVIA: MATIC

BELGRADE, May 29 2000 – A media war against Yugoslavia is being conducted from outside the country through global world media under the control of NATO and its allies as well as from within through the establishment of a media fifth column, Federal Information Minister Goran Matic said today. Matic, in a statement reported by state-controlled daily Politika said that behind that war stood the British and American governments which had established a special body to organise and finance media within Yugoslavia with the aim of destabilising, manipulating and interfering in the internal affairs of the country. Elements of these enemy activities, said the minister, included the establishment of self-proclaimed independent media and broadcasts in Serbian via satellite and short-wave radio from neighbouring countries. Matic alleged that the opposition, non-government organisations, "phantom" unions and the student movement Otpor were some of the organisations involved in these enemy activities. He added that the enemy had suffered a number of major defeats over the past few weeks, including the loss of several crucial strategic points for the destruction and destabilisation of Yugoslavia.

OTPOR ACTIVISTS ARRESTED

POZAREVAC, May 29 2000 – Otpor activists Zoran Milovanovic and Ivan Jevremovic were released from the police station in Pozarevac this morning after being detained for 12 hours. They were given no official explanation for their detention but police implied that the reason was that they were found with copies of the Banja Luka daily Reporter which they had brought back

KRUSEVAC JOURNALIST ARRESTED

KRUSEVAC, May 30, 2000 - Krusevac police today apprehended Miroljub Arsic, correspondent for the Montenegrin daily Vijesti and of Montenegrin Radio and Television. While Arsic was in custody police searched his apartment and representatives of the opposition and non-governmental organisations gathered at the local police station to request his release. He was released after two hours' interrogation, telling Beta that police claimed they had solid evidence of him being the ideological founder of Otpor in Krusevac and that he had been planning and organising the student movement's activities. "I denied that because it simply wasn't true," said Arsic.

Representatives of the opposition, non-government organisations and Otpor waited in front of the police for Arsic’s release. On leaving the police station, Arsic publicly, in protest, signed a membership card for Otpor.

Police had originally attempted to detain Arsic at his home last Thursday only to discover that he was in Belgrade, Some three weeks ago Arsic had received anonymous telephone threats advising him not to leave his house.

FRANCE PRESS CORRESPONDENT IN COURT AGAIN

NIS, May 30, 2000 - The investigating judge of the Military Court in Nis today continued interrogating Kraljevo France Press and Danas correspondent Miroslav Filipovic who has been accused of espionage and disseminating false information. Defence lawyer Zoran Ataljevic told Beta that the Military Court had still not responded to complaints about Filipovic's detention. Ateljevic added that, as a precautionary measure, the defence had requested that the application for Filipovic to be released from remand custody be entered in the court register. The investigating judge of the Nis Military Court, on the application of the military prosecutor, last week ruled that Filipovic be remanded in custody for thirty days.

MEDIA IN MAY FINED MORE THAN 2 MILLION DINARS

BELGRADE, May 30 2000 – Serbian private and independent media were fined a total of 2,230,000 dinars in the past month, the vice-president of the Independent Association of Serbian Journalists, Dragan Banjac, said today at the associations monthly protest meeting in central Belgrade. During May Studio B was fined three times and weekly Vreme and dailies Blic and Danas once each. The magistrates convicting media under the Public Information Act were Milica Radosavljeivc, Milan Marinovic, Olivera Veljkovic, Nevenka Markovic and Mirela Stanojkovic-Nikolic.

Senior Association official Filip Mladenovic told protesters that "when Serbia becomes a legal state", media would seek recompense of the fines paid under what he described as the unconstitutional Public Information Act.

INTERNATIONAL JOURNALISTS SIDING WITH ENEMY: INFORMATION MINISTER

BELGRADE, May 30, 2000 -- Yugoslav Information Minister Goran Matic today accused the secretary-general of the International Journalists Federation, Aiden White of "giving instructions and support to the so-called independent Serbian media in order to complement with NATO propaganda in the covering up of crimes in Yugoslavia," the SRNA news agency reports. "The heroic people of Serbia and Yugoslavia know who supports them and who imposes embargoes, kills women and children, destroys bridges and buildings and who wants to serve NATO and the USA," reads Matic's letter to White.

BLIC TO PRESS CHARGES FOR DISRUPTION OF PROPERTY

BELGRADE, May 31, 2000 -- The president of daily Blic's Administrative Committee, Borivoje Pajovic, announced today that the paper would press charges for disruption of property over the removal of its neon sign from the roof of the Beogradjanka building. The daily would also bring charges against the printing form Borba for its failure to honour a contract to print Blic. "They haven't even returned our neon sign," said Blic, adding that this was unlawful confiscation of property.

SOMBOR INFORMATION CENTRE ON STRIKE

SOMBOR, May 31, 2000 -- SOMBOR, May 31 2000 - The staff union of the official Information Centre in the Vojvodina town of Sombor today began a general strike, in protest at what they described as bad management. The strikers read their demands, which include dismissal of senior staff and payment of several months' salary arrears. The Information Centre operates local Radio Sombor and a newspaper, Somborske novine. According to the union, 29 out of the centre's 39 staff are on strike, which is not supported by the rival Independence union. The centre director, Danilo Sekulic, told media that the strike was illegal and the claims of bad management were not true. The president of the strike committee, Andrija Sremcevic, denied that the strike was politically motivated.

PAPER SUPPLIES CUT TO INDEPENDENT PUBLISHERS

BELGRADE, May 31, 2000 -- Belgrade daily Glas javnosti has been printed in a reduced number of pages in recent days because only half the required amount of paper has been supplied by the only domestic newsprint manufacture, the Sremska Mitrovica firm Matroz. The director and editor-in-chief of Blic, Slavoljub Kacarevic, told Beta today that Matroz had reduced the supply of newsprint from ten to five tons a day, citing technical problems at the factory as the reason. "It's possible that they'll send us none at all tomorrow," said Kacarevic, adding that Glas javnosti had exhausted its paper stocks and was not permitted to import paper.

Matroz Director Dragan Lazic said today that he expected deliveries to be normalised by the end of the week after technical problems had been resolved. "We have cut supplies to all our customers," said Lazic, adding that all printing firms needed paper because their reserves were running out.

Glas javnosti has been plagued with newsprint shortages over the past year. Parent company ABC Produkt has applied three times for a licence to import paper but the Federal government has refused to grant the licence. A new application was sent to the appropriate ministry several days ago.

ANEM STILL DENIED ACCESS TO LEASED PREMISES IN BEOGRADJANKA

BELGRADE, May 31, 2000 -- Staff and associates of the Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM) are still unable to gain access to offices to the association's premises and equipment on the seventeenth and eighteenth floors of the Beogradjanka building, two weeks after the seizure of Studio B. The premises are still blocked by police, with no legal justification "until further notice". This is despite the fact that these premises have no connection with Studio B nor have they ever had any such connection. ANEM leased the premises from the Department for Business Premises of the City of Belgrade. ANEM legal representatives attempted again today to enter the leased premises. They were referred by building security to the building manager who was unable to assist them.

The Third Municipal Court today heard a case brought by ANEM against the Republic of Serbia for disruption of property in the Beogradjanka business offices. Magistrate Savo Mickovic dismissed an objection by the Serbian Public Prosecutor, who claimed that the case was outside the court's jurisdiction, and adjourned the hearing until June 15. The court has still not ruled on an application by ANEM for a temporary order allowing the association the undisturbed use of the leased premises.

The Belgrade Commercial Court has also hear an application from ANEM which demanded that the new management of Studio B meet its obligation under the valid contracts with ANEM. Judge Milojka Zekovic rejected an application for a temporary order and ruled that the case should be heard in the Belgrade Higher Commercial Court.

FRANCE PRESS CORRESPONDENT CUSTODY EXTENDED

NIS, June 1, 2000 -- The president of the Nis Military Court, Vukadin Milojevic, announced today that Miroslav Filipovic, the Kraljevo correspondent for France Press and Danas, had been remanded in custody for a further thirty days while an investigation of charges against him continued. Milojevic said that the Court Council had dismissed appeals from defence lawyers Goran Draganic and Zoran Ateljevic. Filipovic was arrested on May 8 this year and charged by Kraljevo police with the criminal acts of espionage and disseminating false information. According to the defence, Filipovic may be held in custody only until June 18.

NEWS MAGAZINE CHARGED UNDER PUBLIC INFORMATION ACT

BELGRADE, June 1, 2000 -- Charges against the Belgrade weekly NIN and its editor-in-chief, Stevan Niksic, have been scheduled for hearing today by the city magistrate. The charges have been brought by Vozdovac hospital gynaecologist Milos Ognjevic who alleges that the magazine infringed his personal rights in an article published on June 3 last year under the title "A Cry for the Unborn". Ognjevic cites a quote in the article which reads: "I wanted this child. However in a consultation with my gynaecologist I was advised to abort because of the increased level of radiation".

Ognjevic alleges that he had sought a retraction from Niksic in June last year. Niksic denies any contact with the gynaecologist and claims that he received no demand for retraction.

The charges have already been dismissed at a first hearing but a court of appeal ordered that they be reheard.

DANAS HEARING ADJOURNED

ZRENJANIN, June 1, 2000 - Hearing of the latest charges against Belgrade daily Danas has been adjourned to this Friday because of the funeral today of the paper's co-founder, Nikola Burzan. The charges, originally scheduled for hearing today, were brought by Zrenjanin District Public Prosecutor Risto Davidovic who claims that his rights were infringed by an article published on May 19 under the title "The officials say you have come in vain".

ACADEMIC JARGON

BELGRADE, May 31 2000 -- A videotape of interviews with academics barred from Belgrade University was today confiscated by private security guards at the Faculty of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering. When the head of VIN TV, Gordana Susa, contacted the government-appointed dean of the faculty to demand an explanation, she was met with a torrent of obscene insults. When a Beta reporter called to confirm the story, the dean used similarly academic language.

JOURNALISTS ASSOCIATION LAUNCHES SECOND BULLETIN ON REPRESSION

BELGRADE, June 1 2000 - The Independent Association of Serbian Journalists today published its second collection of cases of repression against the media. The booklet contains a summary of all repressive measures taken by the Serbian government against independent media in March and April this year and an analysis of state and pro-regime media coverage of recent events in the country. At the launch of the bulletin, association representatives emphasised that the government media had again been "typical purveyors of government policy" but had now also been transformed into "spiritual creators and alter egos of the regime," and had spread hate speech and intimidation.

NIN AND NIKSIC FINED 230,000 DINARS

BELGRADE, June 2, 2000 -- Belgrade weekly NIN and Editor-in-Chief Stevan Niksic were today fined a total of 230,000 dinars under the Public Information Act. Magistrate Slavica Kajganic convicted Niksic and the magazine on charges brought by Vozdovac Hospital gynaecologist Milos Ognjevic who alleged that his honour and reputation had been damaged by an article published on June 3 last year under the title "A cry for the unborn".

TV PANCEVO LICENSE EXPIRES

PANCEVO, June 2, 2000 -- TV Pancevo's Ministry of Telecommunications contract to use Channel 37 expired last night. The ministry had not yet responded to applications from the station to renew the contract, Editor-in-Chief Ofelija Backovic said today. Backovic told media that the company had applied for renewal of the contract in March and had written again last week but had still received no reply. TV Pancevo is the last remaining non-regime television station whose signal can be received in Belgrade.

The crisis headquarters for the defence of local media established in Belgrade the day after the Studio B seizure today warned the Pancevo public that Channel 37 could soon be blacked out. A statement from the headquarters linked a denunciation last week of TV Pancevo by Federal Telecommunications Minister Ivan Markovic, the still unsolved disappearance of the station's main transmitter from Milica brdo, and ten days of intensified disruption of the TV Pancevo's signal to the new "legal" danger to the station's existence.

TV Pancevo is expected to continue operating without a current frequency licence in the meantime.

JAILED FRANCE PRESS CORRESPONDENT NOT ACCREDITED: MINISTRY OF INFORMATION

BELGRADE, June 2, 2000 – The Federal Ministry of Information has notified France Press that Miroslav Filipovic, the correspondent for the agency now on remand in custody on charges of espionage was not accredited as a foreign journalist. The letter implied that because his documents were not in order, and he was presumably being paid unofficially from a hostile country, his situation was very suspicious. "Why would such a prominent world news agency use an illegal source?" asked Zivadinovic.

PRINT MEDIA PROBLEMS CONTINUE

NIS, BELGRADE, June 2, 2000 -- NIS, BELGRADE, June 2 2000 – Nis daily Narodne novine yesterday failed to appear at news-stands. Printing house Prosveta in Nis did not print yesterday’s edition, giving the explanation that it did had no paper the Nis daily should settle a debt of 300,000 dinars.

Belgrade daily Danas in today’s edition informed readers it had been forced to make two unpopular moves: to increase the price of the paper, and to reduce the number of pages. The decision was explained by the drastic fines imposed under the Public Information Act and a lack of paper.

Danas also reported unofficial information that Yugoslavia's only newsprint manufacturer, the Sremska Mitrovica firm Matroz had suspended paper production yesterday, "because of problems with paper production machinery". It was expected that production would resume during the day. The unofficial information about the halt of production in Matroz was reported by Glas javnosti as well but gave as the reason a shortage of gas.

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