The Media Council for Self-Regulation appeals to the Government of Montenegro to inform the Police Directorate of Montenegro that the latest media (IBAR) laws, adopted in June last year, did not envisage any role for the police in regulating media content.
For this reason, we call on the Police Directorate to stop the persecution of journalist Brano Mandić and to drop the misdemeanor proceedings against him.
The Media Council Self-Regulation believes that the police should not deal with matters of satire, irony, or other stylistic expressions in media texts. Nor should the police be involved in interpreting the case law of the European Court of Human Rights regarding freedom of expression. In properly functioning democratic countries, the police should in no way engage with the content of media articles.
Countries where the police do so are neither democratic nor free - and certainly not leaders in the process of European integration.
Ranko Vujović
Executive Secretary
Media Council for Self-Regulation
