SEEMO alarmed by ATAKA
February 26, 2007
The Vienna-based South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO), a network of editors, media executives and leading journalists from South East Europe and an affiliate of the International Press Institute (IPI), is alarmed at the pressure applied on the media by the supporters and members of the Bulgarian ATAKA party, including its leader Volen Siderov, on the editorial offices of the Bulgarian daily 24 hours and weekly 168 hours.
The whole letter:
Vienna, 26 February 2007
Your Excellencies,
The Vienna-based South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO), a network of editors, media executives and leading journalists from South East Europe and an affiliate of the International Press Institute (IPI), is alarmed at the pressure applied on the media by the supporters and members of the Bulgarian ATAKA party, including its leader Volen Siderov,on the editorial offices of the Bulgarian daily 24 hours and weekly 168 hours.
Based on information provided to SEEMO, on 23 February at about 1.40 pm Siderov, his deputy Pavel Shopov, and Dimitar Stojanov, ATAKA Member of the Bulgarian Parliament and Member of the European Parliament, together with a group of party supporters, went to the editorial office of two newspapers. In addition, another organised group of some 100 supporters was waiting nearby. When at the editorial office of the print media, the group requested from the journalists a document to justify an article published on the previous day about some financial transactions. During the visit journalists and editors from both newspapers were threatened, humiliated and verbally abused.
During the invasion of the newspapers’ editorial office one ATAKA politician allegedly threatened Nikolai Penchev, editor-in-chief of 168 hours. The politician apparently said to Penchev that he would “rip out” his liver and that he knows where Penchev lives.
We would like to remind Your Excellencies, that those with legitimate complaints against the media have a range of different mechanisms to pursue these complaints. These violent threats represent a serious attempt to pressure the media and they should be condemned whenever and wherever they occur.
SEEMO would also like to remind Your Excellencies that a safe working environment for journalists is a fundamental element of every democratic society. Bulgaria in now a member of the European Union (EU) and these violent actions against journalists by the members and supporters of a political party in an EU country are unacceptable.
Your Excellencies, we ask you to fully investigate this case, including the verbal threats made against the journalists. We call on Your Excellencies to do everything in your power to protect the lives of all journalists, and to take all necessary steps against the persons responsible for this unwarranted invasion of a newspaper.
We thank you for your attention.
Yours sincerely,
Oliver Vujovic
SEEMO Secretary General
