Vienna, 05/09/2015
The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) condemns the crude behaviour of Hungarian police forces towards members of international media outlets reporting on the refugee situation at a train station in Hungary on 4 September.
James Mates, the Europe editor of ITV News, tweeted about the treatment journalists were receiving from Hungarian authorities at the Bicske train station, where Syrian refugees were being escorted from trains. Mates stated that members of the media were being “shepherded away” in an alleged attempt to prevent the international community from seeing what was happening.
Journalists were forced off the rail station where incidents between the police and refugees were taking place, as the police declared the area an “operational zone”.
“We call on Hungarian authorities to protect the media and secure the free work of journalists”, SEEMO secretary General Oliver Vujovic stated.
SEEMO is a network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in South East Europe. SEEMO’s press freedom work is supported by the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) project, as part of a grant by the European Commission.