Journalists' Association Condemns Politician's Pressure on Reporter

The Croatian Journalists' Association (HND) has strongly condemned statements made by Nikola Grmoja, president of the Bridge party and a member of parliament, on his Facebook profile. HND described Grmoja's actions as unacceptable pressure on journalists and a threat to media freedom.

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I am glad that the beasts leave their mark and that the people can see who we have in the media.

The controversy stemmed from a column written by Milena Zajović, a journalist for Večernji list and an HND member. Zajović's article, titled 'Grmoja follows the path paved by Putin, strengthened by Orbán,' discussed Grmoja's reactions to a performance at an international street performers festival in Istria. Grmoja had previously posted on social media about the play, deeming its content inappropriate for children and announcing his party's intention to propose legal changes to protect children from sexually explicit and LGBT content.

In her column, Zajović noted that neither she nor Grmoja had actually seen the performance, suggesting that judgment should not be based solely on short video clips. She also drew parallels between Grmoja's rhetoric and practices seen in countries like Hungary and Russia's justifications for its anti-LGBT propaganda laws.

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Grmoja is starting down a path paved by Putin, strengthened by Orbán.

In response, Grmoja posted a photograph of Zajović and the headline of her article on Facebook. He labeled her an 'activist Milena who pretends to be an independent journalist for Večernji list.' He added, 'I am glad that the beasts leave their mark and that the people can see who we have in the media.' HND emphasized that such public labeling, questioning of professional integrity, and subjecting journalists to pressure for their published texts constitute an unacceptable form of political pressure. They asserted that politicians, especially those in public office, must be prepared for criticism and reasoned public debate rather than discrediting authors.

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Publicly labeling journalists, questioning their professional integrity, and exposing them to pressure due to published texts represents an unacceptable form of political pressure on the media and the freedom of journalistic work.