MANS strongly condemns the attack on journalist Milka Tadić Mijović, and calls on all competent authorities to prosecute the attacker and his masterminds without delay, and thus send a message that the government institutions are ready to appropriately sanction any attack on media freedom in Montenegro.
The attack on Mijović is the result of the previous practice of not punishing attacks on journalists, which has created an atmosphere of persecution and lynching of members of the media community, and continuously sent the message that there was no political will to provide appropriate protection to journalists in Montenegro.
Milka Tadić Mijović
Montenegro’s deteriorating position in the global press freedom rankings is a consequence not only of continuous attacks on the media and their property, but above all, of a completely inadequate response by the state, whose actions so far could have only encouraged the perpetrators of such crimes.
Montenegro is currently in a process of social transition in which numerous criminal and related political structures are desperately trying to preserve the influence and dirty businesses established over the past 30 years, which has created a very risky environment for investigative journalists.
Therefore, the new government has an even greater responsibility to do everything in its power to provide journalists with all necessary protection, especially those investigating crime and corruption, and finally adopt policies and practices that will replace promises and formally expressed political will for changes with concrete results.
MANS
