September 9, 2020<\/p>\n
Source: International Press Institute<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \u0106uruvija, an investigative reporter, owner of the Dnevni Telegraf newspaper and Evropljanin magazine, and a vocal opponent of authoritarian president Slobodan Milo\u0161evi\u0107, was shot 14 times with an automatic pistol outside his house in Belgrade.<\/p>\n In April 2019, four former spies working for the State Security Department in the former Yugoslavia were convicted for the killing and each sentenced to between 20 and 30 years in prison, in a landmark ruling for impunity and press freedom.<\/p>\n Now, the Special Department for Organized Crime of the Court of Appeals in Belgrade has ruled to overturn the first-instance verdict and return the case to court for a retrial, prolonging a 21-year fight for justice.<\/p>\n In its\u00a0justification<\/a>, the Court said the appeal was accepted due to a \u201csignificant violation of the provisions of the criminal procedure\u201d regarding the decision to find all four suspects guilty, while leaving who ultimately pulled the trigger unnamed.<\/p>\n In the initial verdict, two alleged hitmen were named as \u201caccomplices\u201d, though who actually executed the murder was recorded by the Court as an \u201cunidentified person\u201d due to a lack of sufficient evidence.<\/p>\n The Appeal Court\u2019s decision,\u00a0published<\/a>\u00a0on September 7, said that not identifying the \u201cdirect perpetrator\u201d was \u201ccontradictory\u201d and not \u201csufficiently clear\u201d and that the retrial would aim to eliminate \u201cdeficiencies and violations\u201d surrounding the issue.<\/p>\n Ivana Stevanovic, of the\u00a0Slavko \u0106uruvija Foundation<\/a>, an organization set up in the journalist\u2019s name that has long fought for justice, expressed disappointment and told IPI that it was uncertain how long the process would take, as it was currently unclear whether the retrial would re-examine evidence about the \u201cunknown person\u201d partially or in full.<\/p>\n Slobodan Ruzic, the attorney of Slavko Curuvija\u2019s family,\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0he hoped the retrial would deal with the shortcomings raised by the Court but ultimately confirm the first-instance conviction. \u201cI expect that the repeated procedure will not last long and I expect that a conviction will be passed again\u201d, he told the Beta agency. He added: \u201cOf course, the injured party and I, as their attorney, are not happy about this decision.\u201d<\/p>\n Scott Griffen, IPI\u2019s deputy director, said: \u201cThis decision underscores how incredibly difficult it is to achieve full justice for the killing of journalists in Serbia. This retrial could foreseeably take many months or even years, further delaying justice and prolonging closure for the family.<\/p>\n \u201cWith the first trial marked by controversial decisions, allegations of government obstruction and threats against investigators and witnesses, any new trial is also likely to be equally as politicized and problematic. We hope that the court will render a conviction again without undue delay and that those who ordered, planned and committed the murder of Slavko \u0106uruvija to finally be sent to prison. The fight for impunity \u2013 in Serbia and around the world \u2013 remains an uphill one, but it must go on.\u201d<\/p>\n Veran Mati\u0107<\/a>,\u00a0president of the Commission for the Investigation of the Murders of Journalists in Serbia, also expressed disappointment at the decision and said he expected the new trial to be \u201cshort-lived\u201d.<\/p>\n Despite heavy sentences handed down by the court, the Prosecutor appears determined to attain a definitive verdict on which of two assassins at the murder scene pulled the trigger. Currently, both are named as \u201caccomplices\u201d, though which executed the murder is recorded as unknown<\/p>\n — IPI – The Global Network for Press Freedom (@globalfreemedia) September 7, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n