Sarajevo, December 13, 2024 – The BH Journalists Steering Committee and Free Media Help Line express their concern over the opening of a criminal investigation by the Sarajevo Canton Prosecutor’s Office against Renata Radić Dragić, a journalist, and Leila Bičakčić, director of the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIN).
The criminal complaint against CIN was filed by lawyer Emina Begić from Bugojno, about whose work this investigative media outlet published several articles in the summer of 2022. After the articles were published, lawyer Begić filed a series of complaints against CIN, one of which ended in a lawsuit for defamation, and in the first-instance proceedings, CIN proved that it did not publish a defamatory article. However, Begić also filed a criminal complaint, accusing the journalist and the director of CIN of endangering her “safety, abusing their position, and obstructing a fair trial” with the published articles.
The BH Journalists Steering Committee and Free Media Help Line believe that the opening of a criminal investigation and the declaration of the journalist and director of CIN as suspects is a typical example of a SLAPP lawsuit initiated with the aim of stopping CIN journalists from researching and publishing content that questions the actions and deeds of lawyer Begić in this specific case, as well as all other investigative topics that this media outlet investigates in order to inform citizens and facilitate debate on issues of public importance.
Criminal prosecution of journalists for articles in which they problematize the criminal actions of others is unacceptable in a democratic society, represents a rigid form of censorship and goes to the core of professional investigative journalism and its public role!
In this context, we remind the Cantonal Prosecutor’s Office in Sarajevo of the provisions of the Anti-SLAPP Directive, which was adopted by the European Parliament in Strasbourg in April 2024 with the intention of preventing unfounded lawsuits and frivolous legal proceedings against journalists and human rights defenders with the purpose of censoring, intimidating or silencing them. This is an act that seeks to strengthen media pluralism and critical journalism, as well as the freedoms and rights of journalists guaranteed by the European Convention and the EU Charter.
Considering the above, BH Journalists expect the Cantonal Prosecutor’s Office of the Canton of Sarajevo and the acting prosecutor to review this entire case with due diligence and dismiss the criminal complaint, taking into account the provisions of the Anti SLAPP Directive and the fact that attorney Emina Begić was convicted without a final decision in criminal proceedings before the Municipal Court in Bugojno, precisely for the acts that CIN wrote about.
BH Journalists Steering Committee
