OSCE Representative welcomes decision by Skopje court to drop charges against journalist Jadranka Kostova

VIENNA, 8 July 2016 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović today welcomed the decision of the Administrative Court in Skopje to annul a previous assertion made by a commission that the Editor-in-Chief of Fokus magazine, Jadranka Kostova, had in the past been a secret services informant.

The Data Verification Commission in Skopje, otherwise known as the Lustration Commission, had previously declared Kostova a secret services informant from 1993 to 1996, a decision that the Representative, criticized (public statement available at www.osce.org/fom/148796).

“The Administrative Court’s decision to drop the charges against Kostova is a positive step towards ensuring an effective balance between the goal of lustration and the goal of media freedom in the country,” Mijatović said.

The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media observes media developments in all 57 OSCE participating States. She provides early warning on violations of freedom of expression and media freedom and promotes full compliance with OSCE media freedom commitments. Learn more at www.osce.org/fom, Twitter: @OSCE_RFoM and on www.facebook.com/osce.rfom.