EDITOR IN MILITARY PRISON

AIM Zagreb, January 3, 1996

Although a few weeks ago defence Minister Gojko Susak announced that he would send home more than 40 thousand men from various formations of the Croat Army, one of the conscripts, as military authorities claim, has just set out on a journey in the opposite direction. His name is Bozidar Balenovic, he is 38, and he has ended up not only in a military unit, but having refused to carry out military duties, he was forwarded to spend 30 days in - military prison.

This case would not have drawn attention if it had not concerned mobilization of the Editor-in-Chief of an independent local biweekly - "Otok Ivanic" from Ivanic Grad.

Namely, as his associates - journalists in the journal he himself founded two years ago - say, he was conscripted only due to his editorial policy. The journal published texts about "business deals" of the local power-wielders, about frauds in the local clinic, embezzlements in the cooperative farm, about nepotism, strikes, municipal problems... Local bosses were alluded to in the satirical column as well.

The journal quickly became very popular in the region. With a circulation of three thousand copies, numerous advertisements which made its publishing possible, "Otok Ivanic" mounted rapidly among the most successful local journal in Croatia. Although it opened its pages to all interested parties publishing replies and corrections, it became a thorn in the flesh of local masters with its style.

It exceeded all limits at the time of last elections, when it carried a series of interviews with various candidates. The oppositionists as customary did not hesistate at all to criticize their HDZ rivals, and after a talk with general Martin Spegelj had been published, in which a critical arrow was sent in the direction of general Janko Bobetko, the recently retired head of the General Staff of the Croat Army and candidate of the HDZ in the Ivanic election unit, a counter attack followed. In the beginning of November, immediately after the elections (by the way, Janko Bobetko won in this election unit), Editor Bozidar Balenovic was called up for the first time to join the reserve forces. He responded and submitted the documents based on which he was freed of the obligation to join the armed forces, and therefore to be mobilized in the reserve forces as well. his douments

Namely, in 1984 he graduated at the Theological Faculty and ordained. But in 1987 he left the regular service in the Fransiscan order of his own free will. Nevertheless, the fact that he was ordained and that his vow are still valid (an absolution from Rome is necessary for that), and the Croat Law on Defence prescribes that "ordained priests, persons who have graduated theological studies and are curators of souls in a clerical school, friars who have taken a vow, if they declare in writing that they do not wish to serve in the army" are freed of this obligation.

At first, this was taken into consideration and he was immediately released. But, on December 21, he was called up again and he reported to the military camp near Ivanic Grad. This time he was detained until evening and then taken to Zagreb. He was told by military police there that "due to non-acceptance of call up, refusing deployment to a military post and refusing military outfit", he was sentenced to 30 days in prison. He is in custody for 13 days since.

It is interesting that the fact that he regularly served in the Yugoslav people's Army (JNA) was taken as an aggravating circumstance in the decision about taking him into custody. Indeed, Balenovic was in JNA in 1978/79 while he was still a student of theology. The former authorities recruited ideologically uneligible priests with special pleasure, and it seems that the clerk of the new authorities felt the same kind of pleasure while he was writing the following sentence in the decision: "I believe that the penal measure (custody) will have an educational effect on the perpetrator and serve as an example to other members of the unit".

In his appeal, Bozidar Balenovic states that "it", the communist regime, later took into account his clergyman's status. After he had 'honourably and honestly" served the regular term in the armed forces, he was never called up to reserve forces. Until recently, of course, when the new regime realized that it needed him, and then rejected his appeal.

The International Federation of Journalists was the first to react to the news about the Editor-in-Chief of "Otok Ivanic" in jail by sending protest notes to President Tudjman and other high officials in the Croat administration. Cardinal Franjo Kuharic was also informed about it. The Croat Helsinki Committee, the Croat Legal Centre, and organizations concerned with human rights ran to Mr Balenovic'c assistance.

The Croat Journalists' Society also sent letters to representatives of the authorities appealing for the release of Balenovic. The case is similar to mobilization of Viktor Ivancic, the Editor-in-Chief of "Feral Tribune" who was drafted to the Army in 1994, also as a punishment, as the only among 250 editors-in-chief of media in Croatia.

So far in Croatia, it was customary for the journalists, and especially editors-in-chief, to be deployed doing jobs of the so-called working obligation, in the enterprieses where they were employed. The authorities could, of course, decide about exceptions. Nevertheless, Viktor Ivancic was without much ado, released after pressures exerted from abroad and by international institutions, especially by the Council of Europe. In the "Balenovic case", the administration remains firm expressing a willingness to "put things in order" in the media again, this time in the local ones: not long ago, by a single move of the Director of Croat RTV Ivan Parac, both Director and Editor-in-Chief of Radio Dubrovnik were replaced. By taking Balenovic into custody, the administration has shown that in taming the media it will not shrink from straining relations with the Catholic Church having mobilized a priest, even if he may be a "former" one.

Balenovic was trying to make a good newspaper, he published his guiding principle in the jubilean 50th volume citing Pulitzer's journalistic commandments: a) progress of the environment, b) struggle against corruption, c) a journalist ought to be in opposition to the ruling party, d) struggle against demagogues. And the last commandment which says: "a journalist must always remain consistent, independent and courageous".

To achieve such ideals, especially in circumstances of a local journal, and at a time such as this, is quite a difficult task. For example, back in 1991, the situation in Osijek "Glas Slavonije" was taken care of by Branimir Glavas who broke into the editorial premises with about twenty armed soldiers showing the door to the editor-in-chief. Goran Flauder, Editor-in-Chief of the independent "Bumerang" was beaten up recently also in Osijek. It is difficult for him to find associates because the journalists are afraid of revenge of the local sheriff.

Cynics claim that Balenovic could have done a lot worse - instead of an explosive device in his home, a present usually sent by "anonymous perpetrators"- he has just spent Christmas and New Year's eve in slightly unusual circumstances, in military prison. But, should he fail to respond to a repeated call-up after he serves the 30-day sentence in prison, court martial is in line for him.

IGOR VUKIC