Serbian civil society organisation BIRODI has criticised the country's electronic media regulator for declining to initiate proceedings against Euronews Serbia over derogatory and allegedly discriminatory remarks directed at the organisation's executive director, Zoran Gavrilovic.
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The Bureau for Social Research (BIRODI), which monitors media reporting and political accountability in Serbia, expressed concern on Sunday over the assessment of the professional staff of the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media (REM) and the subsequent decision of its Council not to take action against the broadcaster.
According to BIRODI, Gavrilovic was subjected to a series of personal insults during an episode of Euronews Serbia's Teska prica programme.
The organisation said the remarks included the expression "BIRODI thug", an offensive reference to Gavrilovic as a "stinking Satanist pussycat", and the ethnic slur "Gypsy", alongside comments describing his behaviour in derogatory ethnic terms.
BIRODI said REM's professional staff had characterised the language as satirical commentary, treating it as an aesthetic form of expression.
The organisation rejected that assessment, arguing that the programme's entertainment format did not exempt the broadcaster from its obligations to respect human dignity.
BIRODI also drew attention to Ivan Radovanovic, a participant in the programme whom it described as having links to Olivera Zekic, the former president of REM's Council.
According to the organisation, Radovanovic is a board member of the Foundation for the Serbian People and State, established by the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), and a longstanding columnist for the pro-government tabloid Informer.
BIRODI accused him of publicly targeting both the organisation and Gavrilovic.
It further suggested that the regulator's handling of the case raised concerns about a possible pattern of retaliation against BIRODI, which has documented conditions in Serbia's media sector and initiated proceedings involving Zekic before the country's Agency for the Prevention of Corruption.
"Freedom of expression encompasses criticism and satire, but the entertainment nature of a programme does not automatically exempt it from the obligation to respect human dignity, as guaranteed by Article 26 of the Rulebook on the Protection of Human Rights in the Provision of Media Services," BIRODI said.
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