A group of international press freedom and journalists’ organizations warned in a statement on Wednesday that Serbian journalists face assaults and lawsuits over their critical reporting.

The organizations said they share the conclusion that “24 years after the murder of newspaper publisher Slavko Curuvija in 1999, poor conditions for the safety of journalists, the weak landscape for the rule of law, media capture and a festering climate of hostility towards critical reporting mean that the likelihood of a serious physical attack on a journalist remains a possibility”. It warned that the efforts to prosecute attacks on journalists is being undermined by the wider climate of hostility being generated by leading politicians in Serbia.

ARTICLE 19 Europe, the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), International Press Institute (IPI), Osservatorio Balcani Caucaso Transeuropa (OBCT), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and The Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation said their conclusions were made after multiple meetings with independent journalists and editors, media associations and unions and the Standing Working Group for the Safety of Journalists.

The statement said President Aleksandar Vucic, Prime Minister Ana Brnabic and ruling party MPs lead the way in terms of insulting and discrediting journalists. “Our assessment is that Serbia is one of the EU candidate-states where journalists face the strongest verbal pressure and attacks from the state leadership. Critical and investigative journalism is still viewed by many public officials as an unpatriotic threat to be fought, rather than a healthy and necessary part of the country’s democratic fabric,” it said.

“It is no surprise that Serbia remains one of the most dangerous places in Europe, outside of Ukraine, to work as a journalist,” it added.

“No progress has been made in strengthening the landscape for media freedom and freedom of expression. Media pluralism remains particularly weak, with independent broadcast media systematically disadvantaged in the market, the statement said and cited the Regulatory Body for Electronic Media (REM) decision to award national frequencies to pro-government TV channels, overlooking applications by independent media houses. It added that the state TV (RTS) lacks editorial independence and displays clear bias in favor of the authorities.

“Independent media also face numerous legal challenges. … Serbia continues to be one of the worst countries in Europe for Strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) … with the plaintiffs most commonly public officials, politicians, business people and companies,” it said.

“Overall, media freedom in Serbia remains in a poor condition. No one has yet been ultimately found guilty of the murder of a journalist. The climate of threats against journalists is at its worst point in many years. Media pluralism continues to be weak, with the ruling party overseeing a captured media ecosystem,” the statement said.

“Serbia continues to be held back in its commitments to improve media freedom as part of the EU accession process,” it said.