Since the beginning of the year, 63 threats and attacks on journalists in the Western Balkans

Since the beginning of the year, 63 threats and physical attacks on journalists have been recorded in the countries of the Western Balkans, announced the Regional Platform of the Western Balkans for Advocacy of Media Freedoms and Journalist Safety, which represents more than 7,800 members.

Regional media associations that are part of this platform condemned the attacks and pressures on journalists that have occurred in recent days in Croatia, Macedonia and Kosovo.

The statement of the Regional Platform specified that these are cases that recently occurred in Slavonski Brod, Skopje and Parteš.

On Wednesday, August 23, in Slavonski Brod, journalists Višnja Ružojčić from HRT and Aleksandra Primorac from the portal SBplus were physically attacked.

According to the SBplus portal, journalists Primorac and Ružojčić were reporting on a shooting the previous night in which a citizen was seriously injured. On that occasion, the journalists found themselves in front of the catering establishment "Hajduk" in Slavonski Brod, when an unknown man physically assaulted them, cursed at them and tried to snatch the camera from Višnja Ružojčić.

The journalists reported the attack to the Brod-Posavina Police Department, which immediately responded. 

On the same day, Wednesday, August 23, in Skopje, a news crew from Nova TV was physically attacked while reporting on a signature collection campaign against the construction of refugee camps in Macedonia.

"The reporters of that media outlet were attacked by a representative of the citizens' initiative that organized the signature collection. The prompt reaction of the police, who immediately identified the attacker, called him in for an informative interview and announced a criminal complaint for violence, is encouraging," stated the announcement of the regional media associations.

Also, on August 23, an incident occurred in Parteš, Kosovo, where the police detained three citizens of Russian nationality, among whom, according to unofficial information, were two journalists from Estonia and Latvia. After being held for several hours, they were released from the detention unit and no criminal or misdemeanor proceedings were initiated against them. This was confirmed by the police administration for the Gnjilane region, but the reasons for the journalists' detention are not known to the public. 
 

The Regional Platform called on local institutions to apply international standards for the protection of journalists, their safety and freedom of expression.

"The Platform calls on authorities, police and judicial bodies in all Western Balkan countries to enable journalists and media to work freely," stated the announcement.

The statement was signed by the Association of BiH Journalists, the Media Union of Montenegro, the Croatian Journalists' Association, the Association of Journalists of Kosovo, the Association of Journalists of Macedonia and the Independent Association of Journalists of Serbia, reports the Patria agency.