April 1, 2017
While a press conference was being held by Nataša Jeremić, the wife of opposition presidential candidate Vuk Jeremić and a former journalist of public service broadcaster Radio-Television Serbia, Dragan J. Vučićević – chief editor of pro-government tabloid, Informer – attempted to enter the room, but was denied entry by security. Informer has openly supported Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić during the election campaign, criticising his political opponents.
Throughout the press conference, Vučićević argued behind the closed doors with the security team, who also didn’t want to permit the entry of the journalists of pro-government Television Studio B, nor those of tabloid Srpski telegraf, which is also used by the regime to crackdown on the prime minister’s presidential election opponents. The refusal of entry was apparently due to the fact that they were not accredited.
Several editorial departments of pro-government media outlets condemned the move as “an attack on the editorial department of Informer”, determining that Jeremić’s staff had violated the principle of freedom of speech and reporting.
The press conference was scheduled in response to the announcement of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party, published in the midst of the presidential campaign, that Nataša Jeremić, a former presenter of the central news programme of the public service broadcaster, manages the entire narcotics market in Serbia – a claim that even prompted PM Vučić to apologise to the citizens of Serbia.
Photo: YouTube Screenshot
