IPI: Vucic’s Attack on Veran Matic Shocking, Indicates Deterioration of Media Freedoms

Veran Matic(BETAPHOTO/MEDIJA CENTAR BEOGRAD/MO)

The International Press Institute (IPI) stated on July 25 that a recent verbal attack by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic against the president of the Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM), Veran Matic, was shocking, and revealed a broader deterioration of the freedom of the media in Serbia.

This global organization dedicated to the promotion and protection of the freedom of the press said in a Facebook post that it supported and solidarized with Matic and openly called on President Vucic and other Serbian government officials "to refrain from undemocratic attacks on the media community."

"The International Press Institute condemns a recent statement by President Vucic directed against our World Press Freedom Hero Veran Matic. The fact that the president has stooped to the level of attacking Mr Matic, one of the country's leading media experts and a tireless advocate of a safe and pluralistic media ecosystem, is shocking and illustrative of the current level of pressure on independent journalism and media freedoms," IPI said.

The Institute added that the attack on Matic, whom it named one of the 50 World Press Freedom Heroes of 2000, is "yet another alarming example of verbal attacks on media professionals coming from the highest levels of power" and signaled a "broader deterioration of media freedom in Serbia over the past six months." Matic, a member of the Permanent Working Group for the Safety of Journalists, was referred to by Vucic in a July 20 interview with Pink TV as a person who "hates Serbia" and acted against his own country. Vucic also said that "those who were arrested and convicted because of Veran Matic should have that erased from their records" and that Matic "should apologize to them."