NGOs demand action following attacks on B92 show, producer

NGOs are calling on the authorities to uncover and sanction those responsible for attacking the Pescanik website and the property of the program’s producer. The Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM) also wants an inquiry into claims of disturbances to the Radio B92 signal during the Pescanik show. NGOs demand action following attacks on B92 show, producer The show’s site has been out of action since Saturday, January 24, following a series of synchronized hacker attacks coming from several different locations. Radio B92 listeners in various parts of Serbia claim that the signal has been disrupted, particularly when the Pescanik show is on air. ANEM points out that during the airing of the latest show on January 23, Pescanik producer Svetlana Lukic’s car was vandalized in a car park near the B92 building. The producer is believed to have been the target of previous attacks, and a number of the show’s promotions have been disrupted by force. ANEM warns that this constitutes a serious attack on freedom of expression. In calling for a speedy reaction on the part of the state, the Youth Initiative for Human Rights says that the attacks on journalists constitute a clear warning that media freedoms are still lacking in Serbia, and that the journalistic profession carries with it the risk of repression. The NGO says that the threat to journalists’ security and the disruptions to Pescanik’s work are a result of “the state’s failure to react to Fascist outbursts and the cancellation of the Pescanik rally in Arandjelovac,” in reference to a rally that was forcibly interrupted by a group of New Serbia local officials last year. “Given that Pescanik’s producers and guests frequently criticize the current powers-that-be in Serbia and President Boris Tadic, these kinds of attacks leave scope for serious doubts as to the good intentions of the ruling elite to bring the attackers to justice,” reads a statement from the Youth Initiative for Human Rights. It is stated that failure to resolve the Pescanik case could seriously call into question the pro-European character of the government and the ruling majority, and that a clear message would be sent that criticism of the authorities and freedom of thought and expression was undesirable in Serbia. G17 Plus’s provincial board has condemned the attacks and called on the authorities to track down the culprits immediately, and not to “allow the terror that individuals use in clashing with the media and citizens who think differently.”

NGOs demand action following attacks on B92 show, producer

The show’s site has been out of action since Saturday, January 24, following a series of synchronized hacker attacks coming from several different locations. Radio B92 listeners in various parts of Serbia claim that the signal has been disrupted, particularly when the Peščanik show is on air.

ANEM points out that during the airing of the latest show on January 23, Peščanik producer Svetlana Lukić’s car was vandalized in a car park near the B92 building.

The producer is believed to have been the target of previous attacks, and a number of the show’s promotions have been disrupted by force.

ANEM warns that this constitutes a serious attack on freedom of expression.

In calling for a speedy reaction on the part of the state, the Youth Initiative for Human Rights says that the attacks on journalists constitute a clear warning that media freedoms are still lacking in Serbia, and that the journalistic profession carries with it the risk of repression.

The NGO says that the threat to journalists’ security and the disruptions to Peščanik’s work are a result of “the state’s failure to react to Fascist outbursts and the cancellation of the Peščanik rally in Aranđelovac,” in reference to a rally that was forcibly interrupted by a group of New Serbia local officials last year.

“Given that Peščanik’s producers and guests frequently criticize the current powers-that-be in Serbia and President Boris Tadić, these kinds of attacks leave scope for serious doubts as to the good intentions of the ruling elite to bring the attackers to justice,” reads a statement from the Youth Initiative for Human Rights.

It is stated that failure to resolve the Peščanik case could seriously call into question the pro-European character of the government and the ruling majority, and that a clear message would be sent that criticism of the authorities and freedom of thought and expression was undesirable in Serbia.

G17 Plus’s provincial board has condemned the attacks and called on the authorities to track down the culprits immediately, and not to “allow the terror that individuals use in clashing with the media and citizens who think differently.”