The Belgrade Centre for Human Rights expresses its concern about the fact that journalists were taken in for questioning by the police. On 11 July, a journalist of the radio Free Europe and of the daily newspaper Danas, Nataša Odalović, and the editor of the Reporter magazine, Vladimir Radomirović, have received subpoenas issued by the district attorney, Rade Terzić, to come in for questioning to the police office in Belgrade. In both cases the police wanted to investigate the allegations made in the texts published by the two journalists. The Belgrade Centre recalls the similar behaviour of the investigation authorities in the last-year case of publishing a list of police officers that are allegedly suspects before the Hague Tribunal in the daily papers Blic and Reporter.The Belgrade Centre emphasises that the right to protect their source of information must be guaranteed to journalists in order to secure the true role of the media in a democratic society. This right is recognised by most democratic countries. According to international standards and comparative legal practice, informing the public about the matters of public interest would not be possible if the journalists would be forced to reveal their sources. Many cases of misuse of power would never be spotted, because citizens would be afraid to cooperate with journalists.
International standards allow for this right to be restricted in exceptional situations, when a pronounced public interest is involved, e.g. the need to protect lives, to find perpetrators of grave criminal offences or to collect evidence in favour of the wrongfully convicted persons.
The Belgrade Centre for Human Rights calls upon the investigation authorities not to use unnecessary pressure on journalists and to bear in mind the role of the free press in a democratic society. Also, the Centre calls upon the authorities of the Republic of Serbia to adopt as soon as possible a new Information Act, that would regulate this issue.
