12. 12. 2003

ANEM Statement

The Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM) strongly protests a statement by Serbian Radical Party deputy leader Tomislav Nikolic that he is “not sorry that journalist Slavko Curuvija was killed.” The statement merely confirms that this party and its leaders represent the continuation of the darkest period of state terror over free speech and expression in Serbia.

Tomislav Nikolic’s statement, which has been repeated several times, comes as little surprise from one of the leaders of a party that was co-author of the notorious Public Information Act and a significant force in the Milosevic regime’s repression of the independent media. However, the public in Serbia does not forget that under the so-called “Seselj’s law”, the media were hit with astronomical fines, shut down, and subjected to fabricated trials.

Slavko Curuvija, the owner of Evropljanin and Dnevni Telegraf, was subject to persecution and a relentless witch-hunt in which the Radicals played a significant role. The murder of Slavko Curuvija has been condemned the world over, from East to West, North to South. In saying that he is “not sorry that journalist Slavko Curuvija was killed”, Tomislav Nikolic, a recent presidential candidate, lines up not with those with whom he claims he wants to cooperate, but with the perpetrators and commissioners of this brutal murder.

ANEM invites all media, democratic forces and the public to condemn Tomislav Nikolic’s statement and to do everything possible to prevent the return of media terror and persecution in Serbia. ANEM calls on the future authorities to solve the murders of journalists Slavko Curuvija and Milan Pantic as soon as possible, and to bring to trial all those involved in these crimes.

Slobodan Stojsic
Chairman of ANEM Managing Board