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SERBIA-MONTENEGRO
I.
Montenegro TV changes rules for political broadcasts.
The Montenegro TV
programme council held a session [on 8th February].
The Montenegro TV programme council passed a decision to
advertise for the post of state television’s editor
in chief.
The programme
council has also asked the Montenegro TV editorial board
to apply slightly changed rules in party political
broadcasts until new rules are adopted.
Statements by
political parties cannot be longer than 30 lines; reports
from their news conferences can be for up to three
minutes long. The “Stranacko ogledalo”
programme [Political Party Mirror; screened after the
main evening news bulletin] can show only one statement
or one report daily. The Montenegro TV editorial
board was asked to strictly observe the legal provision
banning any report which includes offensive references to
individuals or institutions. The council instructed
its chairman and the Montenegro TV editorial board to
meet as soon as possible with representatives of
parliamentary parties to draft rules for political party
broadcasts on state television.
TV Crna Gora,
Podgorica, February 8, 1999
II.
Government party accuses media of treason.
Yugoslav United
Left [JUL—junior member of Serbian government
coalition, led by wife of Yugoslav President Slobodan
Milosevic] spokesman Ivan Markovic has accused certain
opposition politicians and media of betraying the
country, and listed them all by name, the Belgrade media
reported this evening. . . .
He said that
among the traitors were also “the media that lie
because they are paid to lie, and whose editorial
policies are based on promoting their lies in the most
sensationalist manner.”
Markovic said
that “now they are arguing over the money they have
received,” and that this was the reason why the
division of the ‘Blic’ daily would never be
completed. “‘Blic,’ ‘Glas
javnosti,’ ‘Danas,’ ‘Dnevni
telegraf,’ Radio B92, ‘Monitor,’
‘Vreme,’ and the ‘Evropljanin’ of
unknown origins are lying and seeking printers abroad to
publish their lies,” Markovic said.
He added that on
the list of traitors were also “the free journalists
always on duty who think they have bought their freedom
just because they are selling themselves to various
agencies.”
Beta news agency,
Belgrade, January 14, 1999
III.
Yugoslav ministry bans Serbian Cacak TV.
The director of
Cacak TV [local Serbian TV rebroadcasting Montenegrin
TV], Stojan Markovic, talks to our news programme:
[Markovic]
Cacak TV
[central Serbia] started a test run on [Orthodox]
Christmas Day, 7th January. The intention was to
end the test run by 17th January and then start with the
full-scale programme. The formal opening of
Cacak TV was planned for 17th January. Let me just
recall that employees of ‘Cacanski glas’ [local
daily] submitted on time all the necessary documents to
the Federal [Yugoslav] Telecommunications Ministry with
regard to the open competition for TV frequencies.
So far, we have not received a reply.
At about 1300 [on
12th January], a federal inspector for radio
communications turned up at our premises accompanied by
his assistants and members of the Cacak police. He
handed to us an order banning the TV programme and told
us he intended to confiscate some of the broadcasting
equipment.
Let me remind you
that over the past few days, during the test run, Cacak
TV has been rebroadcasting the Montenegrin TV satellite
programme. This stirred up a great deal of interest
amongst our viewers and citizens of Cacak in general, and
all the others who could tune into Cacak TV. We
think this is one of the reasons why the inspector came
[on 12th January] to give us the order banning the TV.
Several hundred
Cacak citizens turned out to defend their television and
their right to information as soon as we told them that
the federal inspector was there with the order to ban the
TV.
We shall of
course rebroadcast the second daily news bulletin of
Montenegrin TV again this evening, as we did on the
previous evenings.
TV Crna Gora,
Podgorica, January 12, 1999
IV. Minister
announces media offensive.
Yugoslav Information
Minister Goran Matic has accused foreign media of waging
war against Yugoslavia, and announced a return offensive
for 1999, the independent Belgrade-based news agency Beta
reported on 31st December. In an interview for
‘Duga’ magazine carried by Beta, Matic also
indicated that the new federal media law was likely to be
tough. He criticized Western aid to independent
media and said the funds were intended to promote foreign
interests. The following are excerpts from the Beta
news agency report; subheadings added editorially:
Federal
Information Minister Goran Matic has announced that his
ministry has been preparing a “media offensive”
for next year [1999]. The truth about the situation
in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia will thus be
represented abroad, he said.
In an interview
for the New Year’s issue of ‘Duga’
magazine, Matic said: “We had a year of
difficult trench battles in the media war, but also a
year in which we managed to make a major step
forward.”
“In the last
year, we changed our instruments and our methods of
response. We have learned a lesson from our
previous mistakes in the media war,” Matic said.
Foreign media accused of waging war against
Yugoslavia
He emphasized
that the foreign media had on many occasions
“manipulated” information on the situation in
Yugoslavia. That is “the best proof that an
unscrupulous media war has been waged against us.”
“We are
ready to respond to all manipulation in the best way
possible. We have been more ready by the day
because we are constantly perfecting our
instruments,” Matic said.
Regarding the
domestic media, Matic stressed: “We believes
it is important to divide the media into the outlets
which are nationally responsible and the outlets which
are not.”
“Nobody has
asked the media to support any political option or
political party, only to have a minimum of national
responsibility at the time when the country is
objectively threatened,” said Matic.
Asked whether
1998 would also be remembered for a restrictive decree
and a tough media law, Matic replied with the
question: “Have you seen the French media
law? It looks like a list of tariffs, fines ranging
from 30 to 300,000 francs?” . . . .
According to
him: “The current customary practice in
Yugoslavia is to present unscrupulous lies as the full
truth.” “Well, this is what is subject to
punishment. Only that, and nothing else . . .
.[agency’s ellipses]”
Assessing the
work of European journalists, Matic said that they know
the situation in Yugoslavia “very well.”
“Had they not known it, it would not be the case
that whenever they make a mistake, it is always to our
detriment.”
“The only
instruction we would have for foreign journalists is the
following: be objective, write truthfully, listen
to all participants in the process, look into what the
terrorists are doing, what acts they are perpetrating,
look at how Kosovo Serbs live. These things have
happened before. A month ago, (CNN correspondent)
Christianne Amanpour compiled a report showing that Serbs
are the victims in Kosovo. You may think that
sounds improbable, but it is true. . . .[agency’s
ellipses]” Matic said.
He said:
“Single information space exists and functions
throughout Yugoslav territory. Whatever trends we
currently have, this space exists and nobody can limit
it.”
“I’ll
tell you one more thing: we have not banned a
single newspaper in Serbia. There have been some
registration changes due to evasion of certain
taxes. We have had some fines for tendentious
reporting. There have been some bans in
Montenegro. Radio Pljevlja and Radio Elmag have
been banned. The Montenegrin Constitutional Court
has now classified that as a ban,” Matic said. . . .
Federal media law likely to be tough
Asked whether the
adoption of the federal law would be an opportunity to
correct some parts of the republican media law, Matic
said the following: “Who knows? Nobody
can say what the future federal law will be like.”
“I even think that given the current political
circumstances, the entire media war hullabaloo and the
mercenaries working for foreign paymasters, we must have
a restrictive variant,” Matic said.
As a reason, he
cited the fact that the EU Council of Ministers had
announced that over 7m dollars had been invested in the
Yugoslav independent media.
“[Independent]
Radio B92 received aid to equip a new studio, (Pristina
[Kosovo] daily in Albanian) ‘Koha Ditore’
received aid to obtain a printing press. Add to
this, the money for the media from the BBC, the British
embassy, Deutsche Welle, Radio Free Europe and so
on. It looks as if our media are getting more funds
[from abroad] than from our own state,” Matic said.
He said that
these funds have been sent “to promote foreign
interests and to finance those who would help promote
these foreign interests from here.” “Up
to 100m dollars are being sent to our media through
various channels. Where is that money?” Matic
asked.
Beta news agency,
Belgrade, December 31, 1998
V. Ministry
rejects Yugoslav broadcast plan.
The Montenegrin
Information Secretariat said [on 28th December] that the
announcement that “RTV [Radio-TV] of Yugoslavia will
soon be heard throughout the entire Yugoslav territory is
another attempt at information terrorism against
Montenegro.”
A secretariat
statement said that the plans for RTV Yugoslavia were
announced in Pljevlja [northern Montenegro] three days
ago by Federal Information Secretary and senior Yugoslav
Left [Serbian junior government party] official Goran
Matic, whom the statement described as “the alleged
federal information secretary.”
“Along with
legal and economic terrorism, this is an attempt to
discipline Montenegro and force it into meekly obeying
the ruling clique which is constantly causing conflicts
and spreading fear, while citing alleged higher Yugoslav
interests and thereby trying to ensure unlimited rule in
the country,” the statement reads. . . .
The Montenegrin
Information Secretariat “stresses that this republic
remains true to all Yugoslav projects in which it can
participate equally with the legitimate bodies of the
federal state and Serbia” and expressed its
conviction that “such times will come soon.”
Beta news agency,
Belgrade, December 28, 1998
VI. Court
asks Serbia to reassess media law.
The Yugoslav
Constitutional Court on 23rd December set the Serbian
Assembly a deadline of 45 days to reply to proposals to
reassess the constitutionality of the Serbian media law,
the independent Belgrade-based news agency Beta
reported. However, the court turned down a request
to halt the carrying out of certain acts or activities on
the basis of the media law.
Beta news agency,
Belgrade, December 23, 1998
VII. Tender
for broadcast frequencies.
The Montenegrin
Ministry of Energy and Mining [on 23rd December]
announced that it was putting radio frequencies and TV
channels up for a two-year short-term tender.
The ministry is
offering 34 radio frequencies, aimed mostly at local
radio stations, and 27 TV channels, also for the local
domain. The monthly charge for the radio
frequencies is between 2,000 and 8,000 dinars depending
on location. Frequencies that cover Podgorica cost
8,000 dinars monthly. The same applies for
frequencies that cover Rozaje. Frequencies that
cover the municipalities of Andrijevica, Zabljak, Pluzine
and Kolasin have the lowest monthly fee.
The cost of a TV
channel is somewhat higher: 4,000 dinars for
Andrijevic, Rozaje, Savnik or Zabljak, and 16,000 for
Podgorica. Only individuals and legal entities
registered as radio and TV producers have the right to
participate in the tender.
Tanjug news agency,
Belgrade, December 23, 1998
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