Investigation urged into attack on Tanjug cameraman

Investigation urged into attack on Tanjug cameraman

BELGRADE -- The International Federation of Journalists and the European Federation of Journalists have been urged to react after a cameraman was attacked in Brussels.

The Independent Association of Journalists of Serbia on Tuesday sent a request to the two organizations, calling on them to contact the relevant bodies at the EU headquarters in Brussels and seek further information concerning the incident, when a Kosovo Albanian protester assaulted the cameraman working for the Serbian news agency Tanjug.

The NUNS urged the IFJ and the EFJ, which are based in Brussels, to contact the relevant Belgian police and judiciary bodies and ensure that they initiate an investigation against the attacker.

The NUNS underlines that Tanjug's reporters were "just doing their job, filming a group of Albanians from Kosovo who protested against the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue at Schuman Square in Brussels on Monday."

Tanjug's reporters introduced themselves and asked whether someone would like to give a statement as to why they had gathered and what they were protesting against.

In reply to this, one protester came forward without any particular reason and struck cameraman Marko Trosic across the face, cutting his lip.

The NUNS noted it was "an unpleasant surprise" that the Belgian police officers who saw the attack did nothing, "but just advised the Tanjug news crew to get out of there, and told the cameraman that he could press charges against the attacker, if he wanted to."