“Macedonian institutions should form a joint independent committee that will lead a new investigation to confirm or dispel public suspicions that the journalist Nikola Mladenov had not been killed in a car accident, but that he was assassinated,” reads the statement of the Association of Journalists of Macedonia (AJM), published on the occasion of the International Day of Press Freedom, which is celebrated today.
“Once again we will repeat the Government that media freedom in Macedonia is seriously threatened. Instead of free, we have controlled media, which, instead of public, serve the interests of the ruling parties and the media owners who use the media as a propaganda tool for the preservation of power and making money. Media are sacrificed by certain editors and journalists, who, for petty interests, trample on journalistic ethics and dignity, and are turning into a propagandists,” reads the statement of AJM.
The association said that the situation with the media in the country can be improved “if there is political will from the government” and suggest five steps to achieve “radical reform of the media system” in the country:
- Macedonian institutions should form a joint independent committee that will lead a new investigation to confirm or dispel public suspicions that the journalist Nikola Mladenov had not been killed in a car accident, but that he was assassinated.
- Supreme Court to overturn the verdict of Court of Appeal for journalist Tomislav Kezharovski, who is sentenced to two and a half years in prison for allegedly disclosing protected witness.
- The Supreme Court should also annul the verdict of the Court of Appeal which orders journalists of “Fokus” Jadranka Kostova and Vlado Apostolov to pay about 9 thousand euros in non-pecuniary damages and court and other costs, for alleged defamation of Director of the Security and Counterintelligence Agency (UBK) Sasho Mijalkov.
- The public prosecution should drop criminal charges against journalist Zoran Bozhinovski for alleged espionage, which is unfounded for us.
- All government campaigns to be stopped indefinitely until they find a solution to the spending of public money in media.
- Government to provide a sustainable source of funding for MRT and depoliticize administrative authorities.
- Agency for audio and audiovisual media services to be depoliticized and to ensure the independence of the media regulator, which will be able to create policies and environment for free and independent media.
- The authority to stop the orchestrated campaign against journalists who criticize its policy.
“Without dealing with these challenges to freedom of expression and media freedom, we are convinced that Macedonia will not come out of the political crisis and will be integrated into the EU and NATO. The government will have the greatest responsibility for the consequences of not solving these problems,” reads the statement of AJM.
