03/07/2016: SERBIA – SEEMO CONDEMNS NEWS ABOUT JOURNALIST BEING ARRESTED IN TURKEY

Vienna, 03/07/2016

The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) condemns the arrest of a journalist and two companions in Turkey.

DIHA reporter Serfie Oruc was arrested on 4 July, along with two other individuals that were in the car with her. All three were detained and sent to a prison in Batman, Turkey.

‘SEEMO calls for the immediate release of Serfie Oruc and a transparent investigation into her arrest’, said SEEMO Secretary General Oliver Vujovic said.

SEEMO is a network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in South, East and Central Europe and its 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.

Vienna, 03/07/2016

The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) called for an end to alleged political pressures within Hungarian-language daily Magyar Szo in Vojvodina, Serbia.

According to different sources, political pressure on Magyar Szo staff members continues. For years there have been attempts to put the newspaper under the control of Hungarian political representatives in Vojvodina.

According to the latest decision by the paper’s managerial board, it was decided to ‘rationalize’ work conditions by broadening the journalist staff in the Novi Sad headquarters, while narrowing down the number of correspondents in Senta and Subotica in Vojvodina. Eight journalists and editors received a document asking them to decide whether they were willing to travel daily to Novi Sad for their work, instead of working locally, as they had been.

Requesting that journalists travel daily for work from one town to another may signal an attempt to have them resign or refuse.

SEEMO is a network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in South, East and Central Europe and its 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.

Vienna, 01/07/2016

The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) welcomed the 1 July release of Ahmet Nesin, , arrested on charges of creating ‘terrorist propaganda’ on 20 June.

Nesin was arrested for his participation in a solidarity campaign for the pro-Kurdish newspaper Özgur Gundem. As part of the campaign, the journalist acted as editor-in-chief for one day. Academic Şebnem Korur Fincancı, Chair of Turkey’s Human Rights Foundation and Erol Önderoğlu, Reporters Without Borders representative in Turkey, also participated in the campaign. Both Fincancı and Önderoğlu were also arrested on 20 June on the same charges.

Also Hurriyet newspaper New York correspondent and member of the United Nations Correspondents Association Razi Canikligil was detained on 20 June upon his arrival at Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport. He was questioned and released after several hours.

‘SEEMO was pleased to hear the news of these releases in Turkey. A prison sentence for journalistic work is not acceptable, and this is a positive sign, after a long while, and hopefully shows that Turkey is willing to make changes in regard to freedom of expression’, SEEMO Secretary General Oliver Vujovic said earlier today.

SEEMO is a network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in South, East and Central Europe and its 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.

Vienna, 13/10/2016

The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) supports Greek journalist, Kostas Vaxevanis, who published an open letter to Mario Draghi, president of the European Central bank. The open letter protested against the behaviour of a high representative of the Bank of Greece, who allegedly stated during a session in Greek Parliament that reading the investigative magazine HOT DOC is “dishonourable”.

Vaxevanis, who runs HOT DOC, also stated that the magazine often published information regarding legal investigations that the wife of the high representative is currently under. The journalist also criticized the practice using the official website of the National Bank of Greece as a platform to post announcements in support, as if it were a personal website.

SEEMO fully supports Kostas Vaxevanis in his calls for EU authorities to pay attention and monitor the behaviour of the heads of Greek institutions.

SEEMO is a network of editors, media executives, and leading journalists in South, East and Central Europe, and its 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.

Vienna, 27/06/2016

The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) expressed full support for the ‘Podrzi RTV’ initiative, in support of the independence of public broadcaster Radio Televizija Vojovdina (RTV) in Novi Sad.

Activists and organizations in Serbia have been calling for transparency and an explanation of the recent dismissals of editors-in-chief and journalists working for the regional public broadcaster RTV. Aside from the hasty and non-transparent layoffs, several TV shows are being taken off air. The management said the station is switching to a different, summer program.

SEEMO also joins #PodrziRTV in its condemnation of the recent stalking and intimidation of Maja Zivanovic, a local journalist working for the investigative analytics centre VOICE.

‘The events surrounding RTV and its employees have been very unclear. We call on the management of the broadcaster to provide transparency in its processes, especially its decisions regarding suspended content and the dismissed journalists and editors. We stand in support of our colleagues’, SEEMO Secretary General Oliver Vujovic, said.

SEEMO is a network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in South, East and Central Europe and its 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.

Vienna, 23/06/2016

The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) condemns the arrest of freelancer and Belsat TV contributor Kastus Zhukouski and media staff member Alyaksei Atroshchankau in the town of Lojeu, Homieĺ region on Tuesday, 21 June by local police officers.

The team was filming a report about the state of the economy in the Belarussian regions and a local brick factory, when they were approached and arrested by police. According to Zhukouski, they were taken into custody, where senior police officers took their equipment and destroyed it, handcuffed them both and pushed him to the floor, followed by a boot pushing his head against the ground.

After spending several hours in police custody, an ambulance was called and both media workers were taken to the hospital and treated for several body injuries. ‘The violent intimidation of journalists is never acceptable, and this incident is particularly disturbing because of the alleged involvement of police officers. SEEMO urges authorities to conduct a swift and transparent investigation into the alleged mistreatment of Kastus Zhukouski and Alyaksei Atroshchankau, and to ensure that the responsible individuals are held accountable’, SEEMO General Secretary Oliver Vujovic said.

SEEMO is a network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in South, East and Central Europe and its 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.

Vienna, 21/06/2016

The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) expressed concern over the detention of Erol Onderoglu, Reporters without Borders representative in Turkey, as well as human rights activist Sebnem Korur and journalist Ahmet Nesin yesterday in Istanbul.

The three are being charged for ‘terrorist propaganda’ after openly stating their solidarity in a campaign supporting the Kurdish daily Ozgur Gundem.

‘The arrest of and detention of Erol Onderoglu Sebnem Korur and Ahmet Nesin is appalling, and shows how hostile the environment in Turkey is to journalists,’ SEEMO Secretary General Oliver Vujovic, said ‘SEEMO calls for the immediate release of these individuals, as well as all other media workers currently in detention because of their journalistic work.’

SEEMO is a network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in South, East and Central Europe and its 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.

Vienna, 20/06/2016

The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) condemns death threats against Zoran Kesic, host of the satirical talk-show 24 Minutes.

‘SEEMO calls on authorities in Serbia urgently to investigate this threats against one of the leading TV presenters in Serbia’, SEEMO Secretary General Oliver Vujovic said.

SEEMO is a network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in South, East and Central Europe and its 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.

Vienna, 19/06/2016

The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) again expressed deep concern regarding recent developments in the public broadcaster Radio Televizija Vojvodina (RTV) in Novi Sad, Serbia.

Last month, SEEMO helped raise awareness about hasty dismissals that occurred within the regional public broadcaster. The managerial board laid off several editors in a non-transparent manner. The changes may have been political in nature.

‘It is a primary concern of ours to see media issues in RTV resolved as soon as possible’, Oliver Vujovic, SEEMO Secretary General said.

SEEMO is a network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in South, East and Central Europe and its 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.

Vienna, 16/06/2016

The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) protested against the latest worsening of conditions for journalists working in Turkey.

On 12 June, Syrian journalist and reporter Ahmed al-Qader was attacked for the second time in only three months, in the Turkish town of Urfa. It was reported that al-Qader was shot three times by gunmen that rode a motorbike. Their identities are yet to be revealed.The journalist is hospitalized and in stable condition.

Earlier in June, journalists held a protest in front of a courthouse in Istanbul against the imprisonment of dozens of their colleagues. The latest addition were tens of Kurdish editor-in-chiefs and journalists put ‘under watch’ for their potentially critical reporting, several of them in connection to the Turkish daily Ozgur Gundem (Free Agenda).

In a separate development, authorities dismissed Professor Zeynep Sayın Balikcioglu from Bilgi University after allegedly insulting the President during one of her lectures’. A statement issued by the University said that all ties were severed with Balikcioglu because she insulted national values and the President, by mentioning and defaming Turkishness in her lecture and suggesting to students that they could read the Bible and Torah.

‘Crackdowns on journalists and free-thinkers in Turkey have reached a critical and dangerous level’ SEEMO Secretary General Oliver Vujovic said. ‘We send our support to journalists, media workers, academics and public intellectuals in Turkey that face grave punishments for their freedom of thought and expression. We call on authorities to release all journalists currently imprisoned as a result of their journalistic work, and we hope that the university will allow Professor Zeynep Sayin Balikciouglu to regain her position in that institution’, Vujovic added.

SEEMO is a network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in South, East and Central Europe and its 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.