The BH Journalists Association (BHJA) has requested an urgent public statement from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) regarding the obstruction of the professional work of Balkans Investigative Reporting Network Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIRN BIH) journalist Selma Melez, who was denied access to interview three migrants of Sudanese origin currently accommodated in Sarajevo.
According to a complaint submitted by journalist Melez to the Journalists’ Help Line, she was prevented from contacting the migrants, who suffered severe health consequences—including amputations due to frostbite—while traveling through Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIH) along the Bihać–Tuzla–Sarajevo route. Reporting on their case is undeniably in the public interest, given the seriousness of their injuries, the humanitarian dimension of the case, and the broader issue of institutional accountability in the treatment of migrants in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In her attempts to obtain consent for interviews, Melez was reportedly referred from one institution to another—from the IOM, to the private nursing home where the migrants are accommodated, and finally to the BIH Ministry of Security’s Service for Foreigners’ Affairs. Ultimately, she was informed that the facility acts upon instructions from the IOM and that journalists are prohibited from entering the premises or speaking with the migrants without IOM approval, which was not granted.
BH Journalists emphasize that no organization, including international or humanitarian bodies, has the authority to prevent journalists from performing their professional duties, particularly when it concerns adult individuals who are medically stable and capable of independently deciding whether they wish to speak with the media. Denying journalists access in this case constitutes a serious violation of the right to freedom of expression and the right to information, as guaranteed by domestic legislation and international conventions.
The BHJA further notes that preventing direct contact with individuals who have survived extreme and inhumane conditions raises serious concerns about the transparency and effectiveness of the actions taken by institutions and organizations involved in migrant care.
BHJA therefore demand that the IOM urgently issue a public statement on this case and provide a clear explanation of the legal basis on which journalists are being denied access to adult migrants accommodated in a facility outside the jurisdiction of the BIH Service for Foreigners’ Affairs. At the same time, and in the public interest, BHJA expect the IOM to immediately enable BIRN journalist Selma Melez to have direct, in-person contact with the three Sudanese migrants in order to conduct interviews and inform the public about the case from the perspective of the migrants themselves—victims of an ineffective domestic and international system for the protection of people on the move.
The BHJA will continue to monitor this case and, should the practice of obstructing journalistic work persist, will inform domestic and international institutions responsible for the protection of media freedom and human rights.
The full letter can be read here
