Ana Lalić Hegediš, a journalist and president of the Independent Journalists’ Association of Vojvodina (Nezavisno društvo novinara Vojvodine – NDNV – https://ndnv.org/), revealed that she was not promptly informed about the escape of a suspect who had been under house arrest for threatening her and her family. Lalić Hegediš learned of his escape only when the daily Danas (https://www.danas.rs/) reported it. The suspect, who had made direct threats to Lalić Hegediš and her husband, had been on the run for over a month before the scheduled court hearing brought the issue to light.
You can read Danas article here: https://www.danas.rs/vesti/drustvo/ana-lalic-ugrozavanje-bezbednosti-osumnjiceni/
The situation was further alarming as Lalić Hegediš and her family had been relocated outside of Serbia due to the threats and returned only after receiving assurances of their safety. It turned out they had returned while the suspect was already at large, a fact that deeply unsettled her.
Dinko Gruhonjić, another journalist and professor at the Faculty of Philosophy in Novi Sad, Serbia, who had also been threatened by this individual, shared similar frustrations. He described feeling like a hunted animal and criticized the authorities for their insufficient response to threats against journalists. Gruhonjić linked the government’s handling of these cases to broader issues of institutional corruption and inefficiency.
The situation underscores the ongoing risks faced by journalists in Serbia and the need for more robust protections and responsive actions from state institutions to ensure their safety.
The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) condemns the alarming situation surrounding journalist’s Ana Lalić Hegediš and Dinko Gruhonjić. It is unacceptable that the suspect who threatened them has escaped house arrest, and neither Lalić Hegediš or Gruhonjić nor their legal representative were informed in a timely manner. This failure by the authorities to communicate crucial information not only endangers Journalist’s safety but also highlights a broader issue of inadequate protection for journalists in Serbia. SEEMO calls on Serbian authorities to take immediate action to ensure the safety of journalist’s and secure police protection to both journalists and their family and to address the systemic failures that allow such threats to go unpunished and unresolved.
You can read previous SEEMO artcile about this case here: https://seemo.org/ressources/03-04-2024-seemo-applauds-arrest-in-connection-with-threats-against-journalist-in-serbia/
The 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.
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