One point less and Serbia would be from the category of "free" fell into the category of "partially free" countries when it comes to freedom on the Internet, a new report by a non-governmental organization shows Freedom House "Free on the Internet".
In that report, Serbia has 70 points out of a possible 100, it says Radio Free Europe (RSE).
Of the eight threats to freedom on the Internet monitored by this Washington-based organization, two were recorded in Serbia. First in the category in which pro-government participants manipulate the narrative through an internet discussion. It states that pro-government media are spreading content that falsely accuses the opposition of buying votes ahead of the 2023 elections.
The second category out of eight is the one that records cases of physical attacks and murders of bloggers or people active on the Internet, he writes Voice of America (VOA).
The report for Serbia says that journalists often face physical attacks and threats related to online and offline reporting.
The Independent Association of Journalists of Serbia documented 183 attacks in 2023 and 36 additional attacks on journalists in the period from January to April 2024, both online and offline.
The 2023 figure represents an increase from 2022, when there were a total of 137 attacks, the report said. Out of a total of 219 cases in 2023 and early 2024, 15 were physical attacks. Other attacks are verbal, pressure and threats, as well as attacks on journalists' property.
Intensive control in Serbia
Mila Bajić, the chief researcher at the non-governmental SHARE Foundation in Belgrade, who participated in the preparation of this report, points out in an interview with RFE/RL that Serbia has been losing points in every report for the past few years.
"We notice that control in Serbia is intensifying," says Bajić.
In contrast to world trends, Serbia has not had so many problems with content generated by artificial intelligence.
"We encounter much more things like shutting down the internet, abuse of infrastructure systems to deny access, shutdown of social networks," says Bajić.
And he adds: "For example, we don't have any problems with the category." obstacle to access (obstacles when accessing the Internet). Serbia has a very high level of internet penetration in the whole country and very many people have access to the internet. In our country, the biggest problem is the manipulation of content and the violation of user rights, i.e. the human rights of citizens in the digital space", Bajić points out.
The integrity of the election and the incitement of doubt
Disinformation campaigns during elections usually broadcast false and misleading stories that either paint the image that electoral institutions and processes have been compromised, with alleged foreign interference, in order to present the election as rigged or, in the most authoritarian states, to create the image that irregular elections are legitimate, the report states.
In the run-up to Serbia's December 2023 elections, pro-government tabloids published such false and misleading information about the opposition and independent media, including a fake video allegedly showing the opposition buying votes. A Freedom House report notes that in authoritarian countries, pro-government commentators are mobilizing to portray irregular elections as free and fair.
Source: RFE/RL, Voice of America
