Serbia targets journalists in crackdown on independent media

FRANCE 24 English

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00:00It's the commemoration of a tragic anniversary,

00:03the assassination of a journalist for which justice has yet to identify those responsible.

00:08There were no representatives of the government at the event.

00:11Most journalist associations hold that the authorities continue to target the independent press.

00:17We have a very open call on violence against journalists from the top of this country.

00:24We have absolutely ineffective attacks. We have more than a half of the attacks of the NN people.

00:33Since a large protest movement against corruption has swept through Serbia, several journalists have been attacked.

00:39One of the media outlets facing constant pressure and threats is TV station N1,

00:44a favourite target of Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.

00:48N1 is labelled as anti-Serbian media and its journalists are called foreign paid mercenaries.

00:55The situation has worsened because the government feels seriously threatened by the ongoing protests in the streets of Serbia.

01:03In Serbia, while pro-government media receive financial support, independent media are being hit.

01:10Government allies bombard them with defamation lawsuits.

01:14We are constantly being taken to court. It's very dangerous. First, it drains our resources.

01:21We don't have much money or staff. We spend our time defending ourselves over trivial matters.

01:26And meanwhile, we have no time to do our actual job.

01:33Since President Aleksandar Vucic came to power, Serbia has continuously slipped down in global press freedom rankings.

01:41The country is now second to last in Europe, just ahead of Russia.

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