Skopje, 25 July, 2019 – The Agency for Audio and Audiovisual Media Services condemns the summoning of journalists Goran Momiroski and Ljupco Zlatev to the Skopje Department of the Interior Ministry due to their articles about an alleged abuse of the official position of the General Secretary of the Government of RSM and the request to disclose their sources of information.
Domestic and international legislation guarantees the journalists’ right to protect their sources. Demands to disclose journalists’ sources constitute not only pressure on journalists, but also violation of the Constitution of the RSM, the Law on Media, the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, and the recommendations of the Council of Europe.
The absence of protection for the sources of information may deter them from communicating with the journalists on matters of public interest, which in turn leads to self-censorship and undermines the vital role of the media as correctors of the government.
Regarding the latest pressures on journalists, the Agency for Audio and Audiovisual Media Services intends to inform the representatives of the diplomatic corps, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Desir, and the Council of Europe’s Human Rights Commissioner Dunja Mijatovic.