Matic reacts to Belgrade Bar Association initiative

Matic said he regarded the initiative to introduce new criminal act - "with the aim of effectively protecting the presumption of innocence and independence of the court" - as "rather dangerous, as much as it is senseless, given that it is being proposed by the representatives of the legal profession, and as professionals in this field, they should know basic principles of human rights protection and democratic society."

"Moreover, the initiative was 'provoked' exclusively by my public statement, and it stems not from true desire to protect presumption of innocence or court independence but rather to protect the interests of certain groups within Bar Association, along with their clients," he said in a statement on Friday, and added:

"Referring to the protection of presumption of innocence as an alleged reason for adopting amendments to the Criminal Code is rather cynical and completely dishonest. First of all, judges as the holders of significant positions, do not perform their duty in the vacuum and the effects of their activities can contribute to negative consequences in the society."

"I don't see anything controversial in my statement, especially as I had specifically underlined that it is my personal standpoint, caused by the way in which entire procedure has been handled, in the context of criticizing impunity for the violence towards journalists, indicated in the numerous relevant international and local reports. My criticism was based on the facts, and it was even confirmed in the second instance, on the part of the competent Court of Appeal," Matic said.

"To reiterate, my public announcement was not aimed at offending the presumption of innocence or exerting pressure on the independence of the courts. Namely, I...