Prosecutor's Office of BiH orders SIPA to question journalist Avdo Avdić and Hayat Television officials regarding Vučić, Čović, and Szijjárt

(Patria) - Journalist Avdo Avdić, who is the editor of the Istraga.ba portal and the editor and host of the show "Istraga sedmice" on Hayat Television, will give a statement on Friday at the premises of the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) regarding the publication of a document about the arrival of Danilo Vučić, son of Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, at the celebration of the unconstitutional Day of Republika Srpska on January 9, 2023.

Avdić published the document on the Istraga.ba portal.

The Embassy of Serbia filed a report with the Prosecutor's Office of BiH regarding the publication of the document, which ordered Avdić to be questioned.

Furthermore, the Prosecutor's Office of BiH has also ordered that the responsible person at Hayat Television be questioned because a sound recording of a conversation between the president of HDZ BiH, Dragan Čović, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, Péter Szijjárt, discussing the amendment of the Election Law on "Christian principles," was published in the show "Istraga sedmice."

In a statement to the media, Avdić said that the Prosecutor's Office of BiH ordered SIPA to investigate who gave him the document related to Danilo Vučić's arrival in Sarajevo.

"To avoid offering my own assessments of the judiciary's work, I will quote the Law on Criminal Procedure of BiH, Article 82. Here is what it says: A person who would violate the duty of professional secrecy with their testimony (religious official or confessor, journalist for the purpose of protecting information sources, lawyer, notary, doctor, midwife, etc.) cannot be heard as a witness, unless they are released from that duty by a special regulation or by the statement of the person in whose interest the secrecy is maintained." Therefore, a journalist cannot be questioned about the source of their information. It does not say they can refuse, but rather that they CANNOT be questioned. The Prosecutor's Office of BiH knows this, yet they are calling. Why? Because they think that such operations will silence me or other colleagues. Well, they won't," Avdić stated.

The Prosecutor's Office of BiH has ordered the implementation of two investigations "against" media outlets in Sarajevo. The first investigation concerns the publication of a recording of the conversation between @Dragan_Covic - @szijjartopeter on the show @IstragaB sedmice @HayatMediaBIH In that conversation, the leader of HDZ and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary talk about…

— Istraga.ba (@IstragaB) June 6, 2024