Belgrade, January 22, 2002 - The Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM) insists on the urgent adoption of the Broadcasting and Public Information Acts.

The delay in adopting new media legislation consistently provokes new "cases," such as the incident involving Tamara Sretenovic, a former journalist at TV Kragujevac, or Vesna Sladojevic, the former editor of Novi Sad television channel Apolo.

Tamara Sretenovic, who worked part-time for RTV Kragujevac for four years, refused to allow her report on the G17 Plus press conference to be broadcast after the editor made a number of alterations.

RTV Kragujevac editor-in-chief Nenad Jankovic confirmed for B92 that Tamara Sretenovic's contract had been terminated due to her failure to respect the program editor's decision. Jankovic added that it was a matter of editorial intervention rather than censorship.

Vesna Sladojevic, until recently editor of Novi Sad television channel Apolo, said she had been sacked because she "demanded journalists be protected from pressure, whether directly or from their directors".

ANEM emphasises that in the legal vacuum that has emerged in the total absence of media legislation, the rights and responsibilities of journalists and editors also remain unregulated.

ANEM points out that since RTV Kragujevac and TV Apolo were public companies founded by the Kragujevac and Novi Sad assemblies, it repeatedly, and unsuccessfully, called on the authorities to declare themselves on the future of local public media and their full independence in informing the public.

ANEM requests that the management of both media houses try to find a solution that does not jeopardise the rights of journalists, and preserves the professionalism of the media.

Until a legal framework for journalists and media is adopted, and the obligations of the founders defined, all those who work in the media industry must invest maximum effort toward professional and fair self-regulation within the profession.

Veran Matic,
ANEM Chairman