Newsroom
Skopje Mission speaks out against "patently false and potentially dangerous" media reporting
SKOPJE 25 May 2001
SKOPJE, 25 May 2001 (OSCE) - The Head of the OSCE Spillover Monitoring Mission to Skopje, Carlo Ungaro, today sent the following letter to the editors-in-chief of print and electronic media in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia:
"Some TV news programs yesterday evening broadcast patently false and potentially dangerous information about the activities of the OSCE Mission to Skopje.
"The footage shows an OSCE team vehicle which has had its registration plate stolen (a fairly common occurrence) located in a regularly used observation point some 3.5 kilometres from the conflict area. Three people are shown and described as a team member negotiating with '"armed and uniformed men"'. It is, in fact three members of the two teams in the area at the time (clearly, any armed men in the area would have to be members of government security forces). The commentary also suggests that two prominent members of the Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Defence have indicated that OSCE has no permission to be in the area; this is, of course, nonsense.
"A further piece of footage depicts a Mission vehicle apparently driving through the village of Slupcane and once again the commentary suggests that it is footage from yesterday showing '"OSCE negotiating with the enemy"'. It can only be footage from some days ago (it would have been impossible to approach the area yesterday) and shows one of the Mission vehicles involved in the repatriation of an army soldier. Such patently irresponsible and baseless attempts to discredit the Mission are extremely unhelpful and may put Mission personnel at risk from members of the public.
"I hereby formally request you to publish this letter in a position of prominence, or, in the case of electronic media, to give it public reading during the news programme."
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For further information please contact the OSCE Spillover Monitoring Mission to Skopje, tel: +389 91 111-143, fax: +389 91 111-267, e-mail: [email protected].
"Some TV news programs yesterday evening broadcast patently false and potentially dangerous information about the activities of the OSCE Mission to Skopje.
"The footage shows an OSCE team vehicle which has had its registration plate stolen (a fairly common occurrence) located in a regularly used observation point some 3.5 kilometres from the conflict area. Three people are shown and described as a team member negotiating with '"armed and uniformed men"'. It is, in fact three members of the two teams in the area at the time (clearly, any armed men in the area would have to be members of government security forces). The commentary also suggests that two prominent members of the Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Defence have indicated that OSCE has no permission to be in the area; this is, of course, nonsense.
"A further piece of footage depicts a Mission vehicle apparently driving through the village of Slupcane and once again the commentary suggests that it is footage from yesterday showing '"OSCE negotiating with the enemy"'. It can only be footage from some days ago (it would have been impossible to approach the area yesterday) and shows one of the Mission vehicles involved in the repatriation of an army soldier. Such patently irresponsible and baseless attempts to discredit the Mission are extremely unhelpful and may put Mission personnel at risk from members of the public.
"I hereby formally request you to publish this letter in a position of prominence, or, in the case of electronic media, to give it public reading during the news programme."
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For further information please contact the OSCE Spillover Monitoring Mission to Skopje, tel: +389 91 111-143, fax: +389 91 111-267, e-mail: [email protected].