Original article (in Serbian) was published on 20/8/2024; Author: Stefan Janjić
On August 15, on its cover, Informer called activists Ivan Bjelic and Nikola Ristic “wretched”, “fake environmentalists”, and “dangerous thugs”. In its imitation of investigative journalism, this daily claims that it “exposed Bjelic and Ristic” by “finding documentation” that shows that the two “have positions in the Youth Council, which was founded and financed by the Republic of Serbia”.
The mentioned “documentation” (which is actually the decision on one piece of A4 paper) could be accessed by anyone with an internet connection since it has been publicly available for almost a year and a half on the website of the Ministry of Tourism and Youth. Earlier than Informer, this was also done by some Twitter users (1, 2) – with a different subtext – insinuating that Bjelic and Ristic were in fact covert collaborators of the authorities.
Alleged Millions
The Youth Council is a body established in 2014 in accordance with the Youth Act. It has a total of 44 members, of which 18 are youth representatives, who are not elected by the Government of Serbia but are delegated by youth associations and federations – nine by the Youth Umbrella Organization of Serbia (KOMS), and nine by the Scout Association of Serbia.
In the text, Informer on several occasions links the membership of Bjelic and Ristic in the Youth Council with “millions”. The description of the money flows is quite unclear, so it can be read in two ways: that “millions” are compensation for work in the Youth Council, or that membership in the Youth Council provides “millions” to the associations represented. Neither is true. Associations do not receive money for participating in the Youth Council, and neither do individuals.
Engagement in the Council is Voluntary
Our editorial office was told by the Ministry of Tourism and Youth that the work of members of the Youth Council “is not paid”, and the work in all “potential expert teams and working groups created based on the Decision on the Education of the Youth Council” is not paid either.
This can be confirmed indirectly – by looking at the income list of public officials who are also members of the Youth Council. For example, the register of the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption shows that the Minister of Tourism and Youth Husein Memic – at the same time the President of the Council – has no income on this basis.
Informer’s text was also shared by the web portal 24 sedam.
