It will soon be 20 years since Vladimir Mitrić, correspondent of "Večernje novosti" from Loznica and Šabac, was beaten in front of his house with a bat attacked a policeman from the Novi Beograd Police Station, and inflicted serious bodily injuries on him. This attack was very similar to the one in which Milan Pantić, Mitrić's colleague from Jagodina, was killed. Mitrić survived only by a miracle, according to the announcement Associations of independent electronic media (ANEM).
As it is added, from then until today, for almost 20 years, Mitrić has had police protection, which is probably unheard of in Europe.
"The rapist was sentenced to only six months in prison. In this case, there are four final verdicts against the former police officer, but for a decade and a half he has successfully avoided paying his obligations to the journalist," according to the ANEM statement signed by Veran Matić, president of the ANEM Board of Directors and a member of the Permanent Working Group for safety of journalists.
Court fees and enforcement
During that time, Mitrić must regularly pay court fees so that the executions do not expire, as well as advance payments for proceedings, which have so far been successively unsuccessful. According to personal testimony, Mitrić has spent at least two million dinars so far on the costs of the trial and achieving justice, so the justice by which the violent man was convicted cost him as much as two years' gross salary, according to the announcement.
The execution was also attempted on July 9, it is added, but the executioner did not find anything more than a television set in the apartment of the abuser.
"It is obvious that everything was prearranged, a show for me and that it is a serious violation of rights that has been going on for years," claimed Mitrić, who was present in front of the house during the failed execution, according to the statement.
"It's no wonder that, almost 20 years after the attack, I can't live without police protection."
New threats
In the meantime, Vladimir Mitrić received new threats again from a former policeman, which he reported to the Permanent Working Group for the Safety of Journalists, according to the announcement.
It is added that the case has been resolved and the abuser has been legally sentenced for endangering safety and insulting, but the journalist still feels insecure because of the threats that continue, but also because of the obstruction in the realization of justice.
"This is a humiliation and a betrayal of justice, which would not be possible without the support of those who should not be doing it. These are all tails from the time when I was beaten twice and my property was demolished three times. Fortunately, the judiciary was now up to the task, but the executions are not in their hands, but in the hands of public enforcers, among whom there are those close to the debtor's neighbors," Mitrić testified.
He also adds that some who helped the debtor to avoid his obligations to him, as well as to be lightly sentenced to only six months in prison in Loznica (which is probably enough time to return to work), have since been dismissed or arrested for various criminal offenses. However, as he says, there are still those whose positions are not to be underestimated, which is the reason why he continues to go through such situations, according to the statement.
ANEM reminds that the journalist of the Žig info portal Milan Jovanović is going through a similar situation, whose house was set on fire, as a result of which the former mayor of the Grocka municipality, who was sent to serve a four-year prison sentence, a member of the MUP and two other people, were sentenced, but there is no progress in the compensation procedure.
Facilitate the administration of justice
ANEM calls on the judicial authorities, the Ministry of Justice and other competent institutions, to enable the administration of justice, so that the victims have effective reimbursement of trial costs, adequate and quickly realized compensation for damages, to prevent secondary victimization in the process of achieving justice.
"The Chamber of Public Bailiffs is especially invited to supervise the work of the public bailiff responsible in the case of journalist Vladimir Mitrić and to determine, in accordance with the Rulebook on the supervision of the work of public bailiffs, whether there was a violation of the Code of Ethics of public bailiffs and the Rulebook on the Standards of Professional Conduct of Public Bailiffs. The permanent working group for the safety of journalists will carefully monitor the development of this case," according to the ANEM statement signed by Veran Matić.
Source: ANEM
