Aleksandar Šapić v. BIRN (2)

BIRN (media), Milorad Ivanović (chief and responsible editor), Radmilo Marković (Journalist)

BIRN

In progress.

1. With the lawsuit that initiated the procedure, the plaintiff uses an imbalance of power, such as his financial advantage, political/social influence or authority as a power holder, in which way he puts pressure on the defendant – an actor participating in the public debate.

Šapić is the mayor of Belgrade, which gives him significant political and institutional power. He is suing professional journalists and editors of the research portal BIRN, who operate under constant conditions of pressure and restrictions. There is an obvious imbalance in the position of the prosecutor against the media.

2. The arguments presented by the prosecutor are partially or completely unfounded.

Šapić claims that the text stated an “absolute untruth” when it states that the municipality “illegally legalized” his facility. The municipality of New Belgrade legalized the mayor’s seven-room apartment on Bežanijska kosa, even though this building – in that form and dimensions – did not exist on the satellite image of the Republic Geodetic Institute from 2015, which is the basic prerequisite for illegally built buildings to enter the legalization procedure in general, according to the Law on Legalization of Buildings. Also, city municipalities can pass decisions on the legalization of buildings up to 400 square meters of gross developed construction area (GFA), while the City of Belgrade is responsible for larger areas. Šapić’s building, according to official data from the cadastre, has 403 square meters of land area.

3. The lawsuit or legal remedy, that is, the request or proposal submitted by the plaintiff is disproportionate, excessive or unreasonable.

Šapić is seeking compensation for non-material damages in the amount of six million dinars for mental pain caused by the text in BIRN – considering the nature and content of the text, the request is disproportionate and excessive, and represents an attempt to financially exhaust journalists through high fees and court costs.

4. Claims represent abuse of rights, i.e. distributive use of authority by public authorities against actors participating in public debate.

Aleksandar Šapić, as a holder of public authority, abuses his position in order to target investigative media and in an attempt to prevent journalists from dealing with the potential illegal actions of public officials.

5. The lawsuit was filed against (i) an individual, i.e. a responsible media editor and/or a journalist and not (only) against an organization that organized the disputed activity, i.e. a media publisher and/or a journalist who published the news within a public debate.

Šapić sued not only BIRN as a publisher, but specifically journalist Radmilo Marković and editor Milorad Ivanović, which indicates that pressure is directed at individuals with the aim of exhausting them and hindering them in their work.

6. The lawsuit is accompanied by an offensive public relations campaign designed to harass, discredit or intimidate actors participating in the public debate, or is intended to divert attention from the substantive issue at hand.

Aleksandar Šapić was a guest in shows where he openly targets journalists who report critically about him. He is also known for his unprofessional behavior towards the media at conferences, where he directly insulted BIRN journalists as well.

7. The plaintiff, or persons related to the plaintiff, in the previous period were or are now participants in multiple and coordinated filing of lawsuits against actors participating in the public debate.

Šapić filed two SLAPP lawsuits against BIRN journalists and editors in a short period of time (a villa in Trieste and the legalization of an object), with a total of 12 million dinars, which shows coordinated pressure. He has also sued other journalists and media, and he is the winner of the audience award at the European SLAPP Competition” for the year 2024, and the “Disruptor of Transparency” award at the SLAPP Competition for the Western Balkans”, held at the end of 2023. year.

8. On the occasion of the same event in the framework of public debate, several lawsuits were filed against the same defendant on different grounds.

Šapić filed two lawsuits against BIRN for two different texts, both related to his property and construction issues – a villa in Trieste and a building on Bežanijska kosa – referring to multiple actions against the same journalists for the same topic of illegal construction.