The Luxembourg-based United Media Sarl company said on Thursday that the arresting of journalists is unacceptable and warned that the state of emergency imposed during the coronavirus pandemic must not be used to impose censorship.

United Media issued the statement following the arrest of Nova.rs portal journalist Ana Lalic at her home on charges of causing panic among the population because of her report that the situation in the Vojvodina Clinical Center was bad and that staff did not have all the protective equipment they needed.  

“United Media is warning that the arrest of journalists such as Ana Lalic is completely unacceptable and the state of emergency must not be used as an excuse for censorship and settling of accounts with the media. That is why we will inform all European officials and media organizations across the world,” the statement said.  

“Journalist Ana Lalic, an example of a professional and brave journalist who wants to inform the public truthfully, spent the night in police custody for publishing the truth that medical staff at the Vojvodina Clinical Center do not have basic protective equipment in the battle against the coronavirus,” it said and added that the state of emergency imposed in Serbia because of the coronavirus pandemic must not be used to settle accounts with journalists who are doing their job in the most professional way possible.  

“It is more than certain that the Serbian government, by introducing its disputed decision on the release of information, wanted to impose complete censorship, control information, set up the basis to deal with “disobedient” journalists who do not want to agree to their rules of reporting, to deal with journalists who do not just pass on the statement by top officials but who take their jobs seriously and try to inform the public truthfully. To what extent does the truth not suit the authorities in Serbia was demonstrated very soon after the disputed decision was adopted in the arrest of the journalist in the middle of the night and putting her in custody. Is that the reflection of a modern, democratic country which wants to become a member of the European Union,” the statement said.  

United Media said that the police knocked on Ana Lalic’s door in the middle of the night, searched her home and took her into custody. “They didn’t question her but ordered her into custody for 4 hours like the worst criminal because she dared tell the people of Serbia the truth that nurses and doctors at the Vojvodina Clinical Center do not have masks, gloves and protective suits and have to treat people infected with the coronavirus. That is not in line with “state views” and assurances by the authorities that health care staff are being taken care of and that the basic equipment is available to them so that they won’t get infected,” it said.

The Nova.rs portal journalist was arrested for allegedly causing panic. “Is it spreading panic when the Crisis Staff formed to combat the pandemic sends a text message to individual citizens late at night saying that the situation is dramatic and that Serbia is drawing closer to the scenario from Italy and Spain which includes 800 dead a day? The Crisis Staff says: How can the truth be seen as spreading panic? That is what we are asking now!,” United Media said.

“Instead of the Vojvodina Clinical Center reporting journalists to the police over reports and “expressing indignation” over the facts in them, perhaps they should inform the public and show them the conditions that their staff works in,” United Media said.

“We believe that this is not an isolated case, that there are a lot more devoted medical staff in Serbia who do not dare reveal the conditions that they work in and risk their lives daily because the system does not work. And the public does not know anything about this because the Crisis Staff did not tell them,” it added. United Media said that “freedom of the media cannot be suspended”.

“The citizens of Serbia have the right to the truth, especially in the challenging and difficult time of the pandemic and the media working as part of the United Media company will tell them the truth every day, whether the state likes it or not,” the statement said. N1 TV is part of United Media.