The Serbian government has enacted a Conclusion according to which those who convey information from “unauthorized individuals” regarding coronavirus treatment spread disinformation and can be held accountable for that. The only ones authorized to give information are the prime minister, as the Crisis Headquarters chairperson, and the individuals authorized by said headquarters. The lawyers CINS talked with believe that the state of emergency does not justify measures that limit the free flow of information – especially not information pertaining to human health.

While the Serbian Orthodox Church has ordered priests to abide by the Serbian government’s decisions due to potential coronavirus spread, some of them are still consecrating homes ahead of Easter. Although they see nothing wrong with that, epidemiologist Zoran Radovanović believes that this is a risky practice during a pandemic.

Some 120,000 Serbian travelers had planned to travel abroad in spring 2020, according to data provided by the National Association of Travel Agencies (YUTA). Due to the global pandemic of the novel COVID-19 virus, some 80,000 bookings have already been canceled, while the other 40,000 are also considered canceled after the declaration of a state of emergency. In the first ten days of March, tourism in Serbia suffered damage, too, as 64 hotels were left without more than 35,000 overnight stays.

Out of the 89 health care institutions which CINS journalists asked how many ventilators they had in total and how many were currently available, 58 of them declined to answer or, most frequently, told us to ask the Ministry of Health or the Provincial Secretariat for Health Care. Representatives of the Institute for Cardiovascular Diseases Dedinje, one of about 30 institutions which did answer our questions, say that almost all of their ventilators are in use at all times.

A Center for Investigative Journalism of Serbia (CINS) journalist was not allowed to attend a press conference held by Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić late on March 21. The reason – due to coronavirus, the conference was only for televisions and news agencies.

More than 60 medical ventilators in Serbia are not operational, whereas the number of those that are is over 950, according to the Institute of Public Health Dr. Milan Jovanović Batut data CINS obtained yesterday. Relative to population size, the biggest quantities of this medical equipment, necessary during COVID-19 spread, are found in the South Banat and Belgrade districts, while the smallest quantities are in the Rasina, Jablanica and Mačva districts.

We call on the Government and Parliament to stop using institutions for a showdown with independent media and organisations on the same day when Serbia signed a joint statement obliging itself to protect media freedom

The Center for Investigative Journalism of Serbia (CINS) is publishing a legal analysis conducted by the Transparency Serbia organization, which is based on our findings presented in the article headlined Tax Administration Checks Južne Vesti, but Not Televisions Connected with Gašić

The Center for Investigative Journalism of Serbia (CINS) is publishing a legal analysis conducted by the Transparency Serbia organization, which is based on our findings presented in the article headlined REM’s Concessions to Televisions to the Detriment of Children