While most Bosnians (79 percent) disapprove of violence against journalists, 27 percent of citizens Bosnia's Serb-dominated entity of Republika Srpska and 17 percent of the Bosniak-Croat shared Federation entity said such violence was justified, the Association of Journalists said on Friday, presenting their research on media freedoms in Bosnia.

Compared to 2018, this year's results show a worrying 14 percent rise in the number of Bosnians approving of violence against journalists.

The research conducted by Journalist Association and the Friedrich Ebert Foundation in Bosnia and Herzegovina also found that Bosnians believe religious institutions the most – 74 percent f them, and then the media (66 percent), followed by State institutions and the international community. Bosnia's political parties and politicians are the least trusted.

Compared to previous results, this year's trust in the media has dropped by 10 percent.

The research on media freedoms and protection of journalists in Bosnia is conducted from 2009 and its results are traditionally presented on the occasion of the World Press Freedom Day with the aim of starting an inter-professional debate among media professionals about the effectiveness of mechanism for the protection of media freedom and the rights of journalists, the public responsibility of the media and the protection of key values of free journalism, Bosnia's Association of Journalists said.