Image courtesy of Slavko Ćuruvija Fondation

19 February 2024: The Serbian authorities must urgently condemn and address threats to writers and journalists, PEN International and Serbian PEN said today, following persisting attacks against independent voices. Ending impunity for crimes against writers and journalists is of the utmost importance, after landmark convictions for the assassination of prominent journalist, Slavko Ćuruvija were recently overturned.

On 2 February 2024, the Belgrade Court of Appeals acquitted four former Serbian state security officers who had already been twice convicted of the murder of journalist, editor, and publisher Slavko Ćuruvija, who was shot and killed outside his house in Belgrade in April 1999. Ćuruvija was an outspoken critic of former President Slobodan Milosevic. According to independent news outlet Balkan Insight, the verdict, which cited lack of reliable evidence, was reached on 19 April 2023, but was only made public on 2 February 2024 and is final. The decision sends a dangerous signal that attacks against writers and journalists in Serbia will go unpunished.

‘PEN International condemns the acquittal of the former Serbian state security officers who were previously convicted for their role in the murder of Slavko Ćuruvija. The outrage felt in Serbia and beyond is a justified response to a verdict that sent out shockwaves amongst Serbian writers and journalists, who are working in an increasingly toxic and suffocating atmosphere, in which impunity remains the norm. PEN International calls for all those responsible for the killing of Slavko Ćuruvija to be brought to justice. With independent voices in Serbia facing mounting risks, we once again urge the Serbian authorities to systematically, publicly, and unequivocally condemn all acts of violence and targeted attacks against writers and journalists, to ensure impartial, prompt, thorough, independent, and effective police investigations into all alleged crimes against writers, and to hold those responsible to account,’ said Ma Thida, Chair of PEN International’s Writers in Prison Committee.

The shocking verdict came in the wake of sustained threats against independent voices in Serbia in recent weeks, orchestrated by both state and non-state actors, who aim to silence their opinion and critical reporting. Amongst those targeted are writer and journalist Marko Vidojković, and journalist Nenad Kulačin, co-hosts of the satirical podcast Dobar loš zao (The Good, the Bad and the Evil), who continue to be smeared in pro-government tabloids, and routinely threatened online via social networks.

In December 2023, outspoken street artist and writer Andrej Josifovski, better known as Pijanista (the Pianist), was notably detained outside parliament in Belgrade after writing on a sculpture using spray cans of artificial snow. In January 2024, Josifovski reported being threatened with a gun by an unknown individual who was subsequently apprehended by the police, though no weapons were found. At the same time, allegations of inappropriate behaviour by Josifovski started circulating in pro-government media, accusations that local activists – speaking to PEN International – fear are part of a coordinated campaign to discredit him. Josifovski denies any wrongdoing.

Additional information

An October 2023 report by PEN International, drafted in cooperation with PEN Bosnia and Herzegovina, PEN Kosovo, the Montenegrin PEN Centre, and Serbian PEN, documents the myriad threats and harassment faced by independent journalists, writers and activists in Serbia – one of the most dangerous places in Europe, outside of Ukraine, to work as a journalist. The ongoing stigmatisation of independent voices by political leaders and the state’s failure to prevent and sanction such acts, fuel a climate of anxiety, fear, and insecurity. Ethnic tensions continue to rise, with writers who question official narratives and criticize those in power most at risk of being targeted. Many feel they have no choice but to self-censor.

On 8 February 2024, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on Serbia condemning a snap election held in December 2023 as unfair, marred by media bias and irregularities. Alarmed by ‘reports of the widespread and systematic scale of fraud’, the resolution called for an independent international investigation and specifically denounced ‘the absence of media pluralism during the election campaign, as well as disinformation and the widespread unethical and biased media reporting in favour of the incumbents’. The resolution further noted with concern ‘that a large number of media outlets are influenced or controlled by the government’ and condemned ‘the attacks instigated by media outlets close to the government against critical journalists’.

In September 2023, the Assembly of Delegates of PEN International adopted a resolution on threats to freedom of expression, peace, and stability in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, and Serbia, which specifically calls on the authorities of Serbia to immediately end the glorification of war criminals, revisionist narratives and hate speech, and to condemn all acts of violence and targeted attacks against writers, journalists, and activists. The resolution further calls on the international community to remind the Serbian authorities of their national and international obligation to uphold the right to freedom of expression, and to send a clear message that pressure and violence against writers, journalists, activists, and other dissenting individuals will not be tolerated.

For further details contact Aurélia Dondo, Head of Europe and Central Asia Region at PEN International: Aurelia.dondo@pen-international.org