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OSCE Mission in Kosovo condemns unprofessional, irresponsible journalism by local daily

OMIK 37/07

PRISHTINE/PRISTINA, 7 August 2007 - The OSCE Mission in Kosovo issued the following statement today:

"The OSCE Mission in Kosovo has observed a worrying development of increased unprofessional and irresponsible reporting by the daily Infopress.

"On 9 March, Infopress published an article entitled "Squad in Gracanica" about the conflict in Kosovo together with a list of names of Kosovo Serbs from that village. In May, it published two articles about a Kosovo Serb police officer it accused of human rights violations, as well as a series of articles on "Serb massacres in the Mitrovica region," followed by an article about the organization of "Serb forces" in Istog/Istok municipality. From 30 May to 6 June, it published lists of Kosovans, mostly Kosovo Serbs, including their full names and additional information, who were allegedly military reservists with the Yugoslav Army in Kosovo.

"These lists have caused significant concern among the minority population and within the Press Council of Kosovo, which paid a visit to the media outlet to draw its attention to the potentially dangerous consequences such irresponsible reporting might have. According to Article 10.2 of the European Convention on Human Rights, the exercise of freedom of expression "carries with it duties and responsibilities." It is the duty and responsibility of Infopress to understand that such reporting could provoke certain readers to carry out "justice" outside the judicial system.

"Although Infopress stated it had completed the publication of such lists, names of mostly Kosovo Serbs from different Kosovo regions were again published on 23 July, and a week later. From 30 July to 4 August, every issue of Infopress contained more lists.

"The OSCE Mission strongly condemns these publications, which lack basic journalistic standards and reflects negatively on the editorial principles of Infopress. The reasoning as well as the forces behind these articles are unclear. This kind of irresponsible journalism does not help to inform the public, nor does it contribute to peaceful co-existence of different communities in Kosovo. It creates a negative image of Kosovo and is detrimental to the aspirations of most Kosovans to live in a tolerant civilized European society governed by the rule of law.

"The OSCE Mission is also concerned about Infopress' explanation that the articles were produced in an attempt to support the judiciary. The self-understanding of any media should be to monitor and scrutinize the executive, legislative and judiciary - and not to fill alleged gaps or act on their behalf. The clear division of powers of government together with a politically independent media are the indispensable cornerstones of every democratic society. It is not the role of the media to act "in support", on behalf or in place of the judiciary or any branch of government.

"The OSCE Mission in Kosovo calls upon Infopress, and Kosovo's newspapers in general, to follow the professional code of conduct which they themselves have agreed to abide by as members of the Press Council, and to contribute to responsible, professional and de-politicised reporting, taking into consideration the accuracy of information, the newsworthiness of an article, quality of writing, as well as the notion of public interest."