Serbian authorities arrested former security officers Ratko Romić and Milan Radonjić on Tuesday for what BalkanInsight calls “one of the most notorious crimes of the late Milošević era.”
Ćuruvija, the owner of Dnevni telegraf newspaper and Evropljanin weekly magazine, was shot in the back 17 times outside his home in Belgrade in 1999. According to BalkanInsight, the journalist’s friends and family believe he was murdered because of his criticism of Milošević’s regime.
Reuters reports that the arrests came after a series of anti-corruption investigations led by Serbian leaders in an effort to better position the country for acceptance into the European Union.
Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić, who was Milošević's information minister when Curuvija was killed, said that after new testimony from multiple sources, prosecutors could finally confirm “the criminal role of the state and individuals who committed such a crime allegedly in the name of [the] state.”
According to Serbia's prosecutor for organized crime Miljko Radisavljević, a tip from Milorad Ulemek-Legija led authorities to the two suspects. Ulemek, a former head of a secret police unit under Milošević, is serving 40 years in jail for masterminding the assassination of one of Milošević’s well-known adversaries, reports Reuters.
In an OSCE press release, the Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović said that arrests were good news, as they demonstrated that there would be no impunity for those committing crimes against journalists.
The arrests “show that progress is only possible when there is clear political will and commitment by the authorities,” she said.
Not all are so optimistic. Serbian politician Vesna Pešić “fears that those who ordered the murder will remained untouched,” according to BalkanInsight.
A day before his arrest, Romić was quoted by Politika daily newspaper denying the accusations, saying “I will defend myself with the truth," reports Reuters.
Vučić meanwhile has asserted his commitment to ensuring justice occurs, saying "There will be no fooling around and playing with the state” according to Reuters.
He apologized to Curuvija's family and added, “I am very sad that the investigation took so long.”
Radisavljević said he believes the investigation will be over in a month or two, and that there will be an indictment, reports Reuters.
