"CLOSEDOWN OF INDEPENDENT SERB MEDIA IS A WARNING", SAYS RIGHTS GROUP

ARTICLE 19 today alerted international figures and bodies1 to the need for immediate diplomatic action to prevent further attacks on the independent media in Serbia by the authorities in Belgrade. A catalogue of actions carried out by the authorities which ARTICLE 19 has provided to the world leaders includes, in the last fortnight alone, the enforced closure of at least six independent broadcasters, levying of prohibitive on many media outlets, and the annexing by the government press of a well-respected national daily newspaper.

Andrew Puddephatt, Executive Director of ARTICLE 19 said:

"We are convinced that this is a warning signal - that once the non-government media in Serbia has been silenced the government will take the opportunity to tackle other pro-democratic forces.2 This is particularly relevant since local elections could be held as soon as May.

"There is also a possibility that the crackdown is preparing the ground for action by Serbia across the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which would have serious implications for democratic gains in Montenegro," he added.

The escalation in closure or expropriation of independent media is a clear warning sign of the Serbian government's determination to remove any remaining dissenting voices and witnesses. In the past decade, the Yugoslav authorities have consistently used and manipulated the media, including that funded out of the public purse, to obtain support or tolerance for policies which range from those undermining public order to direct incitement.3

Over the last two years, ARTICLE 19 has issued alerts of this nature on the same grounds and been proved right, notably when we raised the alarm early in 1998 about the Serbian government's suppression of the Kosovan independent media - an action which allowed the escalation of human rights abuses in Kosovo to go unchallenged for some time.

ENDS

For further information contact Fiona Harrison on +44 20 7278 9292

Letters have been sent to OSCE Representative on the Media Freimut Duve, US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, UK Foreign Secretary Robin Cook, Greek President Constantinos Stephanopoulos, Russian Acting President Vladimir Putin, UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Opinion Abid Hussain and EU High Commissioner for Foreign and Security Policy Javier Solana.

An example of actions already targeting a wider sphere than the media is the recent summons issued to Democratic Party official Cedomir Jovanovic on charges which carry a possible prison sentence of three years.

See Forging War, by Mark Thompson (ARTICLE 19/University of Luton Press, 1999).

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