Macedonia Police 'Violated Rights' of Arrested TV Chief

Legal experts say the display of the arrested TV mogul in handcuffs in front of TV cameras violated the law that presumes a suspect's innocence until proven guilty.

"His human rights clearly have been violated," Slagjana Taseva, head of the Macedonian anti-corruption watchdog, Transparency-Zero Corruption, told Balkan Insight.

Taseva said the accusations against A1 TV boss Ramkovski “were presented in the media [by police and the revenue office] as established facts".

Police arrested Ramkovski and 13 of his associates on Thursday night in a massive operation codenamed "Web".

The next day, the suspects were brought in handcuffs before a court in Skopje that ordered 30 days detention.

"This is a flagrant violation of the constitution and of the laws that guarantee presumption of innocence," Osman Kadriu, a law professor at the Skopje-based FON University, said.

“This is a direct breach of their [the suspects'] personal integrity," Kadriu added. The police should not have been so aggressive in portraying the suspects as guilty before a court had reached its decision, he continued.

During the weekend, the police revealed to the media the headquarters from where they coordinated the entire operation to bust the alleged financial crime ring.

Media were able to see flip charts with pictures of the arrested men and graph displays of their connections to the alleged crimes, which range from money laundering to tax evasion.

Taseva noted that police use of the media to film spectacular busts had become increasingly common in Macedonia in recent years.

After Ramkovski's arrest, the police denied A1 TV's claim that the operation against its owner was intended to shut down the TV station, which is seen as pro-opposition.