04. 03. 2005

LAWSUIT FOR LIBELING “OTPOR”

BELGRADE, March 4, 2005 – First Municipal Court in Belgrade has adjourned for June 8 its main hearing in criminal procedure of Otpor movement members from Pozarevac against some media during Slobodan Milosevic’s regime. Former RTS Editor-in-chief Milorad Komrakov, former “Politika” Director Hadzi Dragan Antic, former high official of Yugoslav left wing (JUL) Ivan Markovic, as well as the lawyer of Uros Rakic, former JUL activist, had appeared before the Court. Defendents Zoran Jevdjevic, Milan Galovic, Zika Djordjevic, Dusan Cukic, Djordje Masinov and Sinisa Vucinic failed to appear at the main hearing due to undelivered summons or professional obligations. The Court has determined that the defendant Nikola Sainovic also failed to appear, since he was in The Hague, while former RTS Director Dragoljub Milanovic is currently serving the sentence in penitentiary Zabela. Member of Otpor movement Momcilo Veljkovic filed a lawsuit for libel in media. According to the allegation, the defendants were making false accounts of Otpor organization and the incident that occurred on May 2, 2000, when the defendant Uros Rakic, speaking at the press conference, described the Otpor movement “as a terrorist organization… consisted of criminals, lazybones and destructive individuals”. Accused journalist Jevdjevic had publicized the report from the press conference through Tanjug news agency. “Politika” journalist Milan Galovic had published the article under title “Members of pro-NATO organization Otpor psychiatric cases known by their crimes”. Otpor movement members were also labeled as “NATO hirelings, criminals, individuals with deviant behavior and homosexuals”.