Attacks on journalists pose a threat to democracy and they are an unacceptable assault on free reporting as well as free and professional work of journalists, said Denis Zvizdic, the state prime minister, commenting on the incident from Friday evening when a group of hooligans entered premises of a local news portal RadioSarajevo.ba and forced a journalist to retract an article involving an FC 'Sarajevo' fan.
“I strongly condemn yesterday's break-in at your premises, the attack on journalists and freedom of speech. Such acts pose a threat to democracy and they are an unacceptable assault on free reporting as well as free and professional work of journalists,” said Zvizdic.
The prime minister, formally the Chairman of Bosnia's Council of Ministers, called on competent institutions to take all measures towards punishing of the perpetrators.
“Let it be a message to all those who think they can go unpunished after assaulting the freedom of media, which is one of the foundations of every democratic society,” he said.
The incident took place Friday evening after RadioSarajevo.ba published a fact-checked article about an FC ‘Sarajevo’ fan who was sentenced to five years in prison in Belarus for possession of drugs.
Related news
After the article was published, the journalists and editors “faced unprecedented death threats,” which also targeted their families.
Member of RadioSarajevo.ba editorial board, Faruk Vele, said the incident was preceded by threatening phone calls.
According to him, the reporter who published the article was also forced to call other media outlets that published the story and ask them to remove it.
“The whole situation lasted for two hours and a half. The police got involved and intervened at the site. The colleague feared for himself and his family, and he was forced to do that,” Vele told N1, adding that the perpetrators did not accept a possibility of giving statements and object details in the article if necessary, but they rejected it.
“The goal was to demonstrate force to exert direct pressure and jeopardise the media outlet, its work, and to forcefully dictate the journalists what to do,” said Vele calling for support of media associations and other media outlets because, as he said, today it was them, the other day it can be anyone.
Association of Sports Journalists in the Federation (FBiH) strongly condemned the “brutal attack on the premises of RadioSarajevo.ba” and urged the investigative bodies to immediately find the perpetrators.
“The attack on a media outlet is an attack on freedom of expression,” said the association.
Federation's entity Prime Minister Fadil Novalic called on judicial and prosecutorial institutions to punish the perpetrators and send, in that way, a “clear message that attacks on media and freedom of speech, which are the foundation of a democratic society, are not allowed.”
Sarajevo Canton delegation headed by Prime Minister Edin Forto visited RadioSarajevo.ba premises on Saturday morning, expressing a firm promise that all measure will be taken to bring the perpetrators to justice.
“Everyone must know that this Government has a zero-tolerance for violence. Free and independent media are not only a pillar of every democratic society but also a key to its progress,” stressed Forto.
The Mission of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in Bosnia and Herzegovina also condemned the attack and urged on competent institutions to carry out an investigation as soon as possible.
“Journalists must be free to do their job,” the OSCE Mission tweeted Friday evening.
Misija @OSCEBiH najoštrije osuđuje napad na redakciju @radiosarajevo i poziva nadležne organe da što prije provedu istragu. Novinari moraju biti slobodni da obavljaju svoj posao. https://t.co/CrL86CTFZ4
— OSCE Mission to BiH ?? (@OSCEBiH) September 27, 2019
