EU Resolution Voices Alarm Over Macedonia Media

A draft resolution on Macedonia presented on Thursday to a the foreign affairs committee of the European Parliament voices growing concern about media freedom in the country.

It notes a “growing tendency among journalists to opt for calculated self-censorship", which it attributes to political pressure.

The resolution was drawn up by the Slovenian MEP Zoran Thaler, the European Parliament's Rapporteur on Macedonia, 

The document notes “increasing political interference in the work of journalists and an intimidatory campaign against those critical towards the government”.

The draft “is deeply concerned by a considerable deterioration of the media freedom”, citing Macedonia's fall from 34th to 68th position in the Reporters Without Borders' 2010 free press ranking.

Thaler told Deutsche Welle on Thursday that the draft had not mentioned the row in Macedonia about A1 television, or fears that the government sought to shut it down, because the row erupted after the draft was drawn up.

However, "developments in the last few weeks are worrying” Thaler said, noting that the controversies over A1 indicate a further deterioration of media freedom.

The courts in Macedonia this week unfroze the bank account of the media group, which is deeply critical of the centre-right government of Nikola Gruevski and his VMRO-DPMNE party.

The station's boss Velija Ramkovski, remains in police detention over suspicions of committing financial crimes. The Prime Minister has rubbished opposition claims that he ordered the courts move to freeze A1's bank account.

The draft resolution also voices concerns about the lack of political dialogue in Macedonia between the left-of-centre opposition and the government, the independence of the courts and the politicisation of public servants.

Gruevski on Thursday would not comment on the claims raised in the sharply worded document, saying he had not seen it, but he declined to criticise Thaler personally. 

Thaler "is seen here in Macedonia as a friend although we know that having a left-wing affiliation can sometimes affect some of his statements or reports," the premier said. "But he is a close friend and hopefully he'll remain so," Gruevski added.

Macedonia's deputy Prime Minister, in charge of European affairs, Vasko Naumovski, and the Foreign Minister, Antonio Milososki, are in Brussels, attending the session of the Foreign Affairs Committee.