The state of media freedom in Croatia is alarming, with Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic discrediting journalists, and five out of seven recorded cases of media freedom violations this year committed by government members or other officials, according to a report by the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR).

Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic has discredited journalists in public discussions due to their critical reporting on him and his party, the report states, according to the Croatian Journalists’ Association (HND). It adds that in April, the Nacional weekly published a recording from an internal HDZ meeting where Plenkovic accused news outlets like N1, Telegram, and Nacional of being part of a conspiracy against him and his party.

The report also mentions that after the Jutarnji list daily revealed confidential WhatsApp communications between then-judge and now Chief State Prosecutor Ivan Turudic and former state secretary Josipa Rimac, concerning their frequent meetings and mutual favoritism, Plenkovic accused Jutarnji list of corruption and malicious reporting. Discrediting comments from politicians are not new, the report notes, pointing to an incident where Plenkovic verbally insulted an N1 television journalist at a press conference to avoid answering her questions.

MFRR further expresses concern about attacks on the media from the Homeland Movement (Domovinski pokret) party. In June, Stephen Nikola Bartulica of the Homeland Movement accused journalist Andrej Dimitrijevic of media harassment and intimidation over alleged unauthorised photographing of his car, which reportedly showed his children, as part of an investigation into Bartulica’s undeclared real estate. Additionally, in May, the leader of the Homeland Movement, Ivan Penava, stated that his party would support a new coalition government led by Plenkovic only if the government withheld funding for the Novosti weekly, published by the Serb National Council. Penava voiced strong disagreement with Novosti’s editorial policy, which is known for its critical approach to the government.

Novosti received threatening messages following this incident, the report highlights. It also refers to smear campaigns against the portals Faktograf and Klimatski Portal, recalls bomb threats sent via SMS to the editorial office of the Nacional weekly in May, and warns that recent amendments to the Criminal Code (dubbed ‘Lex AP’) further undermine media freedom.