Bosnia and Herzegovina


Major reshuffling within the independent media in Republika Srpska is discussed by Zeljko Cvijanovic in the August 13 1998 issue of the Kragujevac weekly "Nezavisna Svetlost.

The decision of the Republika Srpska government to replace sixteen general managers and editors of the local media there, have marked the beginning of the electoral campaign for the September elections. Coincidence that these replacements took place in mainly in radio stations, which are within the jurisdiction of the municipal authorities where the SDS and the Radicals have the majority, did not perturb the government to come out with the explanation that there is no intra - party conflict involved. The unpleasant task to explain the decision of the government fell in the lap of the information minister Rajko Vasic. He stated that the government replaced the managers and editors due to the chaotic state and lack of legal operation. He insisted that these stations operated solely in the interest of one party - the SDS, or one local mogul, creating dissatisfaction within the public. Prime minister Milorad Dodik explained the entrance of the police into the premises of these stations and the imposition of government directors and editors there as a good sign of the unity of the Serbian police. President Biljana Plavsic, who has her own role in the whole affair, evaded to directly comment the changes.

The striking fact is the silence of the Socialist party in Republika Srpska. Of course, the well known lover of free media, Momcilo Krajisnik was against such a move. He stated that this was just another in a line of usurping moves with which the RS government is stifling the free media there. It is interesting that the representatives of the international community in Bosnia and Herzegovina were also sceptical concerning this move, even though that have shown leniency towards all previous repressive moves of the RS government on the internal political scene.

The question which remains open is what Dodik and Plavsic had in mind when they attacked the local media, since they are completely aware that they will create the rage in the public.

It is a matter that a series of good chances of this government have not been used and that the hopes of the "Sloga" coalition have remained unfulfilled. At this moment it is quite far away of winning a simple majority in the RS parliament. This is mainly due to three things: complete amateurism in media presentation of its policies, even greater amateurism in conducting the electoral campaign and a high level of technological and rethorical similarities of the coalition with the previous ruling team. Simply put, the purge in the local media shows what the new Serbian regime thinks of itself and with how much confidence it is entering the September elections.



Source: Kragujevac weekly "Nezavisna Svetlost," August 13, 1998