Veran Matić, Chairman of the Board of the Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM), has strongly condemned a court ruling ordering the Slavko Ćuruvija Foundation to pay more than one million dinars (€8,800) in damages to three former state security officials. Matić branded the verdict a devastating blow to the legacy of the assassinated journalist and to freedom of expression across Serbia.
The first-instance ruling, handed down by Judge Ljiljana Ilić of the Second Basic Court in Belgrade, stems from a lawsuit filed by Ratko Romić, Milan Radonjić, and Miroslav Kurak. The trio sued the foundation—established by Ćuruvija’s children—over a public statement titled “A country that does not punish murderers has no future,” issued after the Belgrade Court of Appeal controversially acquitted them of Ćuruvija’s 1999 murder.
Matić described the verdict as “bizarre” and an inversion of justice, noting that 27 years after the journalist was gunned down, his family is now being legally forced to financially compensate the very individuals who were previously convicted twice by lower courts before being acquitted in final proceedings.
According to Matić, the court entirely disregarded the arguments and evidence presented by the defense. Instead, the ruling relied heavily on the appellate acquittal—a judgment that the Supreme Court of Serbia has since formally ruled was marred by substantial and essential violations of criminal procedure in favor of the defendants.
“This verdict continues the systemic stifling of freedom of expression and directly threatens the vital work of the Slavko Ćuruvija Foundation,” Matić stated, warning that more than 20 parallel lawsuits are currently active against lawyers, public figures, and university professors who publicly questioned or commented on the controversial acquittals.
Matić concluded by warning that the handling of Slavko Ćuruvija’s case has become a global symbol of total impunity for crimes against journalists, marking a dramatic collapse in Serbia’s media freedoms and adherence to the rule of law.
“Just as it was during the mired regime of the 1990s, free and professional journalism remains critical today for keeping the public informed about state abuses of power,” Matić said. “It is time for the verdict against the Slavko Ćuruvija Foundation to set off multiple alarms.”
