Svetovna organizacija Novinarji brez meja (RSF) je v posebnem zapisu o Sloveniji zavzela stališče do pregona slovenskih novinarjev. K zapisu je dodala še povezavo na lestvico medijske svobode v svetu za leto 2015 (Slovenija zavzema 35. mesto med 180 državami), na koncu pa so dodali še screenshot tvita Janeza Janše, namenjenega »potencialnemu teroristu«, novinarju Eriku Valenčiču:
Kako so se odzvali slovenski mediji? Skromno in previdno. STA je informacijo povzela s tem opisom:
Novinarji brez meja kritično do postopkov proti novinarjem v Sloveniji
Pariz, 19. februarja (STA) – V organizaciji Novinarji brez meja so se danes kritično odzvali na postopke, ki v Sloveniji potekajo proti novinarjem zaradi izdaje tajnih podatkov. Kot so zapisali v sporočilu za javnost, je vlada pod vodstvom SDS leta 2008 naredila korak nazaj s spremembo kazenskega zakonika, ki da je poprej dovoljeval objavo tajnih podatkov v javnem interesu.
Novinarska organizacija v sporočilu, objavljenem na njihovi spletni strani, omenja “tri podobne primere”, zaradi katerih so sedaj pod drobnogledom pravosodja štirje novinarji – Anuška Delić, Erik Valenčič, Meta Roglič in Peter Lovšin.
Delićeva je pisala o domnevnih povezavah med SDS in neonacistično skupino Blood & Honour in tudi Valenčič je v filmu Koalicija sovraštva raziskoval povezave stranke z neonacisti. Rogličeva in Lovšin sta medtem pisala o dogajanju v Slovenski obveščevalno-varnostni agenciji (Sova).
Kazensko ovadbo proti vsem je vložila Sova, ki jim očita objavo tajnih podatkov. Proti Delićevi že poteka sojenje, Valenčič je bil konec januarja zaslišan na državnem tožilstvu, že lani sta bila zaslišana tudi Rogličeva in Lovšin.
Novinarji brez meja so kritični do trenutno veljavnega kazenskega zakonika, ki ga je sprejel parlament v času vlade pod vodstvom SDS leta 2008, češ da vsebuje določila, ki ogrožajo svobodo informacij.
Kot veliko oviro za slovensko preiskovalno novinarstvo navajajo tudi povezave med medijskimi tajkuni in obveščevalnimi službami. Omenjajo povezave med nekdanjim šefom Sove Sebastjanom Selanom, Bojanom Petanom in Francijem Zavrlom.
Vestičko STA sta povzela Dnevnik.si in Planet Siol, v posebnem okvirčku pa so novico dodali še pod članek o varuhinji človekovih pravic v Delu.
Zelo slab medijski izkupiček je prvo, kar bode v oči glede na težo in pomen organizacije RSF. Preseneča, ali pa tudi ne, molk RTV Slovenija, POP TV, Večera in drugih, ki se niso potrudili nisi s pripravljeni povzetkom STA, kaj šele čim več od tega.
Drugič, preseneča dovolj indikativna omemba povezav med obveščevalnimi službami (Sovo) in medijskimi tajkuni v Sloveniji. V RSF ne podajajo le ugotovitve, da so prav takšne povezave resnična ovira za preiskovalno novinarstvo – očitno zaradi medijskega lastništva omenjenih tajkunov -, temveč omenjajo tudi oligarhičnega poslovneža Bojana Petana, kakor pravijo, in njegovo nastavitev bivšega direktorja Sove za direktorja Marine Portorož, medtem ko je isti Sebastjan Selan postal direktor Term Čatež – in obe podjetji obvladuje omenjeni. Danes je predsednik nadzornega sveta Marine Portorož omenjeni Petan, namestnik predsednika pa Franci Zavrl.
Tako Zavrl kot Petan sta po hišnih preiskavah nekaj mesecev nazaj kazensko ovadena skupaj s tremi drugimi, ker naj bi se družbe, ki sta jih vodila ali jih vodita, z njuno pomočjo okoristile za več kot 26 milijonov evrov. A to še ni vse, poročilo RSF omenja tudi cenzurno neporočanje Dnevnika o tem primeru:
Connections between media tycoons and the intelligence services is a real obstacle to Slovenian investigative journalism. In 2012, former Sova chief Sebastjan Selan became chief executive of Marina Portorož and director of Terme Čatež in 2013, both company owned by oligarch businessman Bojan Petan. The latter is being prosecuted for alleged abuse of his position and abuse of trust in business activities. Along with businessman and lobbyist Franci Zavrl, Petan allegedly embezzled 26 million euros and caused 54 million euros in damages to the Marina Portorož and Terme Čatež companies in 2009 and 2010, which Selan also runs. Petan also owns the Dnevnik newspaper. He is being investigated by Bosnian authorities for alleged organized crime activities and money laundering. Dnevnik has covered investigations of its owner and did not mentioned the police investigations of organized crime activities and money laundering against Petan. Even after Zavrl’s and Petan’s homes were searched, only Zavrl’s name initially appeared on Dnevnik’s website and its news pages, when all other medias reported about Petan. It took several hours for the newspaper to finally mention him.
Nagradno vprašanje je, ali imajo slovenski mediji dobre razloge, da o poročilu RSF raje molčijo kot ne? Še stališče v celoti:
SLOVENIAN JUSTICE SYSTEM SANCTIONS JOURNALISTS IN CLIMATE OF POLITICAL HOSTILITY TO MEDIA
The Slovenian democratic party – SDS – took a regressive step in 2008 by pushing through a new penal code that eliminated previous authorization to publish classified information deemed to be in the public interest. Now, four journalists are being prosecuted for bringing secret documents to light.
In three similar cases, journalists reported on classified documents. These had been leaked by a political group trying to weaken its opponents. The journalists were then hit with legal actions spurred by the targets of the leaked information.
Journalists manipulated in political conflicts
Two journalists from the daily Dnevnik, Meta Roglič and Peter Lovšin, are being investigated for having published a March 2013 article on a crisis within Sova, the Slovenian intelligence and security agency. Their report was clearly in the public interest.
The intelligence agency then launched a criminal investigation of the journalists, who underwent police interrogation. The information that the journalists obtained had clearly been made available by sources within the spy service. That agency was torn by a political conflict between two factions – one on the right headed by former prime minister Janez Janša, the other on the left supported by businessman Bojan Petan.
During the 2011 parliamentary elections, Anuška Delić, a journalist for the daily Delo, revealed the existence of links between the SDS, headed by Janša, and the extreme right-wing “Blood and Honour” group.
Delić is charged with having illegally obtained and disseminated classified information. The prosecutor has claimed that after the documents were published, the intelligence and security service lost its ability to continue gathering information on the Slovenian extreme right, and had to stop wiretapping some telephone conversations. In addition, the article alerted some intelligence agency targets that they were under surveillance.
Delić asserts that the criminal investigation is politically motivated. The case was opened two weeks after the appointment of a new Sova director, Damir Črnčec. “This is a revenge as I published article about SDS party connections to extreme rights just before parliamentary elections”, Delić said. “This is politization of this case and attack on journalists and media.”
The SDS entered the government in 2012, immediately naming Črnčec as spy chief. He is known for having organized courthouse demonstrations after Jansa was convicted of corruption charges.
On same trial against Anuška Delić, former director of Sova Sebastjan Selan is indicted by the prosecutor, as he didn’t request investigation and prosecution of a leak in Sova.
A journalist targeted by the former prime minister
Erik Valenčič, a journalist for Slovenian public television, was summoned to a hearing by a prosecutor on 28 January 2015. He refused to answer questions. In a January 2014 TV documentary, he had made public a Sova report on the Slovenian extreme right. The journalist is charged with disseminating classified information.
The journalist contends that the document, which a parliamentary committee requested from Sova in September 2012, did not contain genuinely sensitive information. And Valenčič in any case left out or concealed information that he did consider legitimately confidential.
Janša, who was prime minister until 2012, posted a tweet about Valenčič on 27 January 2015, accusing him of being a “potential terorist” (sic). The tweet was addressed to the Israeli foreign ministry and the CIA, and included the hashtag “#airportsecurity.” The tweet included three photos of the journalist, taken from his personal files. One image shows him with a Kalashnikov in 2006, in a hotel room in Iraq, where he was serving as a war correspondent. The tweet clearly aims to damage the journalist and his credibility, and to create problems for him when traveling abroad.
Obstacles to press freedom
In 2008, Janša’s SDS pushed Slovenian politics to the right, especially where press freedom is concerned. The current Slovenian penal code, which passed parliament that year, introduced provisions that endanger freedom of information. Journalistes have already been used by Sova and political figures before the adoption of the new penal code, but it happened without such dire consequences.
The pre-2008 penal code included a provision on divulging classified information, authorizing publication when the intention was to bring irregularities to light. That provision provided a degree of protection to journalists, but was eliminated from the present code. It seems clear that that the measure should be restored. In addition, a new provision should be adopted to decriminalize defamation, which remains a crime under Slovenian law.
Connections between media tycoons and the intelligence services is a real obstacle to Slovenian investigative journalism. In 2012, former Sova chief Sebastjan Selan became chief executive of Marina Portorož and director of Terme Čatež in 2013, both company owned by oligarch businessman Bojan Petan. The latter is being prosecuted for alleged abuse of his position and abuse of trust in business activities. Along with businessman and lobbyist Franci Zavrl, Petan allegedly embezzled 26 million euros and caused 54 million euros in damages to the Marina Portorož and Terme Čatež companies in 2009 and 2010, which Selan also runs. Petan also owns the Dnevnik newspaper. He is being investigated by Bosnian authorities for alleged organized crime activities and money laundering. Dnevnik has covered investigations of its owner and did not mentioned the police investigations of organized crime activities and money laundering against Petan. Even after Zavrl’s and Petan’s homes were searched, only Zavrl’s name initially appeared on Dnevnik’s website and its news pages, when all other medias reported about Petan. It took several hours for the newspaper to finally mention him.
Slovenia ranks 35th of 180 countries in the Reporters Without Borders 2015 world press freedom index.
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