On 31 October 2024 Kosovar journalist Vehbi Kajtazi (vehbi.kajtazi) discovered a Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking device attached to his car during a routine inspection, sparking widespread alarm within the press community. Kajtazi, specializing in security and justice and editor-in-chief and sole owner of the news platform Paparaci (https://paparaci.com/), and former editor-in-chief of the Insajderi portal until 2021. had recently expressed suspicions of being followed by agents from the Kosovo Intelligence Agency (Agjencia Kosovare e Inteligjencës – AKI), and had notified the authorities of these concerns just days prior.
You can read previous SEEMO article about this here: https://seemo.org/ressources/29-10-2024-pristina-prosecutors-office-inititates-investigation-of-journalists-vehbi-kajtazi-and-lirim-mehmetaj/
Upon discovery, the device was handed over to the Kosovo Police, who promptly removed it and initiated an investigation. Initial police findings confirmed it was a GPS device, used for tracking locations. The incident has led to heightened worries among journalists, who view this as an escalation in intimidation tactics against the press.
Kajtazi, who has been vocal about his lack of safety, took to social media to share his concerns, saying he feels increasingly unsafe due to the lack of both physical security and legal protections. He has since called for his case to be taken up by the Special Prosecutor’s Office to ensure an unbiased investigation.
Kajtazi’s initial suspicions of surveillance by the AKI even led to a parliamentary committee summoning the AKI director for a hearing on 30 October 2024, a session allegedly boycotted by ruling party members.
Connected to the security of Kajtazi is also the information, that one person was sentenced by Pristina Basic Court on Monday 4 November 2024 to 150 days in prison for sending a message to Kajtazi, threatening to pour gasoline on him. The threatening message was sent through Facebook several weeks earlier, on 9 October 2024.
The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) condemns the discovery of a GPS tracking device on the vehicle of Kosovar journalist Vehbi Kajtazi as a serious violation of press freedom and an alarming attack on the safety of journalists. Such incidents are entirely unacceptable and pose a direct threat to the right of journalists to operate without fear or intimidation. SEEMO calls on Kosovar authorities to conduct a thorough, transparent investigation to identify those responsible and ensure accountability. SEEMO will follow closely the developments related to the case in question, until it is fully clarified by the authorities of Kosovo. SEEMO will continue to closely monitor the situation to support a safe environment for journalists in Kosovo.
South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) is a regional non-governmental, non profit network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in Southeast, South, East and Central Europe. SEEMO members are in Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Moldova (with the territory of Transdnestria), Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Türkiye / Turkey, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. Austria, Italy, Vatican and San Marino have a special status in SEEMO. SEEMO has over 3000 individual members, and additional media as corporate members.
#fyp #mediafreedom #seemo #freespeech #southeasteuropemediaorganisation#ngo #journalist #kosovo #vehbikajtazi #paparaci #journalistattack #SEEMO #pressfreedom #mediafreedom #freemedia