02. 12. 2004

JOURNALIST FINED FOR LIBELING RTV PINK

SUBOTICA, December 2, 2004 - A political writer for Belgrade news weekly Vreme, Dejan Anastasijevic, has been found guilty of libeling Television Pink. B92's Subotica correspondent Larisa Inic reports that Anastasijevic has been fined 10,000 dinars and costs of 25,100 dinars to be paid within three-months. RTV Pink sued the Vreme journalist over an article under the headline "Documents on the genesis of the Pink Empire" in which he claimed that the company was operating under damaging agreements with Radio Television Serbia. The plaintiff sought a prison sentence saying that the article has caused irreparable damage, while the court observed that the description of Pink as a thieving company was arguable. Speaking to B92, Dejan Anastasijevic said that the article proved that RTV Pink was built by the money of the Serbian people and not the managerial competence of the station's owner. "The real issue here is my choice of words. I used the word 'theft' to describe this television as being built at the expense of the state and public funds. The problem here is not what they did, it's just my description of it and I will definitely file an appeal," said Anastasijevic. Anastasijevic says that the ruling wouldn't bother him if the state prosecutor did his job and examined the documents quoted in the contentious article.