Everyone we spoke to formally and informally in recent days and introduced them to the details of the incredible decision of the judge of the Municipal Court in Sarajevo, from prominent lawyers to colleagues from journalists' associations to the staff of some Western embassies, had the same comment - shocking and unheard of so far!

And, indeed, it is difficult to explain the urges and legal reasoning of Judge Mirsada Karahmetović, who, after the already paid verdict from 2016 for defamation to the Prosecutor of the Cantonal Prosecutor's Office in Tuzla Jasminka Djedović (in the amount of 5,001 KM), issued a decision on June 22nd this year , and already on June 25th, she removed from the account of "Avaz-roto press" an incredible 207,900 KM for non-existent court penalties, increased by 4,256 KM for costs of the enforcement procedure, which in the end totals more than 212,000 KM!?

Motives and interests

This is difficult to explain by legal reasons, but political reasons they are very clear. The couple Izetbegović, Sebija and Bakir, and their housekeeper, the head of the Intelligence and Security Agency (ISA) of B&H Osman Mehmedagić Osmica have all the motives and interests to silence and economically destroy "Dnevni avaz", and it is a public secret that they control the Municipal Court in Sarajevo in terms of personnel and other means.

So, their message, sent through judge Karahmetović, is that they will not stop even from the drastic abuse of judicial power, all with the aim of shutting down the free media. In that sense, "Avaz" is first on their list, because it has been writing and and revealing crime and corruption for years, whose main sponsor is SDA leader Bakir Izetbegović.

Things need to be called by their real names. After they failed to silence "Avaz" by other means, Bakir Izetbegović and his assailants decided to try to destroy "Avaz" economically. First of all, they put pressure on large advertisers and companies under the control of the SDA not to advertise in our newspaper, and that has been going on for years. When they did not achieve the desired effect, they switched to coordinated action with eligible judges and prosecutors, and the result was the verdict of judge Karahmetović.

"Avaz" is a "disruptive factor" and a great obstacle because it continuously writes about the murder of Dženan Memić, the fight of his father Muriz and lawyer Ifet Feraget for truth and justice in this case. As time goes on, the contours of the high-ranking persons behind the cover-up of this murder can be seen.

Fake diplomas

ISA director Osman Mehmedagić Osmica is one of those whom the Memić family publicly calls out and urges not to obstruct the investigation, and KCUS director Sebija Izetbegović has not yet answered why KCUS changed the commissions for expert examination of amnesia of the recently arrested Dženan's girlfriend Alisa Mutap.

"Avaz" also monitors and regularly writes about Osmica's and Sebija's controversial and dubious diplomas. The owner of the American University in B&H, Denis Prcić, was recently arrested, a person suspected by the State Prosecutor's Office of issuing a fake diploma to Osman Mehmedagić.

On the other hand, there are more and more details that show that Bakir's wife Sebija Izetbegović does not have a valid and regular postgraduate diploma. She claims that she started her studies in Zagreb and finished in Sarajevo, while facts and relevant witnesses such as academician Asim Kurjak and professor Sanja Kupešić claim that Sebija never attendet their classes or that they graded her on postgraduate studies at the Medical Faculty in Zagreb.

In addition, the responsibility of the KCUS management for the large number of deaths due to coronavirus infection in the respiratory department of the KCUS has yet to be clarified. The use of Chinese ventilators in KCUS is also disputable, the same ones for which the Federal Prime Minister Fadil Novalić and others are being tried in the Court of B&H.

Should it be reminded that Sebija Izetbegović was a witness in the "Ventilators" case, and prosecutors believe that she was personally involved in the purchase of ventilators from China at a incredible price of 10 and a half million marks.

Exposed lies

Although her husband Bakir is trying to sell the public a false image of Sebija's success in treating coronavirus patients and Fadil Novalić's alleged success in procuring vaccines and in an economic response to the crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic, „Dnevni avaz“ is a media house that exposes Bakar's lies and deceptions of his government.

Bakir's Federal Prime Minister, Fadil Novalić, so far has not independently procured a single vaccine on the world market, and during that time, for example, the president of neighboring Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, built a vaccine factory and saved the lives of Bosniaks from B&H, who go to Serbia to get vaccinated. The same Bosniaks that Bakir has been leading unsuccessfully and dictatorially for 30 years.

Also, "Avaz", on behalf of the public, is looking for an answer to the question why so many people, due to the negligence of the authorities and the lack of vaccines, died from the coronavirus, and they should not have.

This is just a short list of reasons why "Avaz" bothers them and why they want to shut it down at any cost. "Avaz", however, will not give up, it will continue to write about the scandals of Bakir's government and about everything that represents the fight against high corruption and crime, because it is simply the duty of every free media.

In the end, the question remains open for the public and democratic institutions - what will happen to other independent media whose publication would be stopped by a much smaller sentence than the one that was sentenced by the regime to "Avaz".

Chronology and absurdity of prosecutor Jasminka Djedović's request

The disputed text for which prosecutor Jasminka Djedović received a defamation verdict was not published in "Dnevni avaz", but in the tabloid "Express", whose publisher is also "Avaz-roto press".

The author of the text was the then journalist of this tabloid, Šejla Jugo-Turković, and it was published on July 2nd, 2009. The aggrieved prosecutor of the Cantonal Prosecutor's Office from Tuzla, Jasminka Djedović, who is mentioned in the text, filed a defamation lawsuit on September 23rd, 2009.

On July 6th, 2012, the Sarajevo Municipal Court rendered the first instance verdict on her lawsuit. "Avaz-roto press" was ordered to pay 5,001 KM in the name of non-pecuniary damage due to defamation, increased by the amount of court costs.

"Avaz-roto press" paid the stated amount within the legal deadline, and according to the finality of the verdict, it was published in the tabloid "Express" on October 27th, 2016. Prosecutor Djedović was not satisfied with the size of the area where the verdict of the Sarajevo Municipal Court was published (it is a few centimeters in question) and asked the Court to order the verdict to be republished, which was done on October 8th, 2020.

So, after "Avaz-roto press" paid 5,001 KM in the name of compensation for non-pecuniary damage to Jasminka Djedović and the costs of litigation in the amount of 4,019 KM, and made default interest of 4,232 KM and twice published the verdict on the pages of "Express", last on 22 June 2021, the judge of the Sarajevo Municipal Court, Mirsada Karahmetović, issued a decision on the payment of non-existent court penalties to the prosecutor Djedović in the total amount of an incredible 212,000 KM.

On June 1, 2021, the legal team of „Avaz-roto press“ filed a complaint with the Office of the Disciplinary Prosecutor of the HJPC against prosecutor Jasminka Djedović.

Among other things, the legal team stated that "prosecutor Jasminka Djedović is trying to collect compensation through court penalties that the Court did not award her."

 „Due to the experience and knowledge she has, it is clear to her that the request for the payment of 207,900 KM of court penalties is unreasonably high and that it is contrary to the purpose for which the legislator determined the payment of court penalties. Prosecutor Djedović is part of the judicial system and she must take into account, as required by the Code of Prosecutorial Ethics, that her financial interests must not negatively affect the dignity of the function she performs“, stated the legal team of „Avaz-roto press“ in the complaint to the Office of the Disciplinary Prosecutor.

Even Lukashenko is not doing this

What Bakir's regime is doing and how it is dealing with independent media in B&H has not been seen even in Belarus, which is ruled by "the last European dictator" Alexander Lukashenko.

That is why journalists and editors of "Dnevni avaz" rightly expect an adequate reaction from the representatives of the international community in B&H, Western embassies in Sarajevo, as well as journalists' associations.

This is not the first time that „Dnevni avaz“, as the largest and most influential media in B&H, has been under attack from the SDA authorities.

We remind you of the well-known attempt of the then SDA government from 2000 to impose tax evasion on "Avaz", which was strongly condemned by the US State Department in an official statement on June 26th, 2000.

"Avaz" hired a well-known lawyer Ifet Feraget

After the incredible verdict of the Municipal Court and judge Mirsada Karahmetović, "Avaz-roto press" hired a well-known lawyer Ifet Feraget, who will join our legal team.

Feraget is a lawyer who has been working on the case of the murder of Dženan Memić for years and knows and successfully exposes behind-the-scenes political and court-prosecutor games coordinated by the corrupt government.

On Wednesday, „Avaz's“ journalists will protest in front of the Sarajevo Municipal Court

Due to the brutal confrontation between Bakir's government and "Dnevni avaz" and the blow to our existence, journalists and employees of our company will organize a protest in front of the Municipal Court in Sarajevo on Wednesday, June 30, starting at 10 AM.

In this way, the existence of hundreds of families that directly or indirectly depend on the successful business of "Avaz-roto press" is endangered.

We invite other victims of the Bakir's regime to join us in fighting and protesting against the corrupt and incompetent government and its methods of intimidating the free media.

For 30 years we have survived many tyrants in power

This year, the media house "Avaz" celebrates 30 years of patient work and objective informing of citizens. We have survived many tyrants in power who, like the Ceausescu couple, have tried unsuccessfully to silence and stop us from uncovering the truth about political assassinations, systemic corruption, nepotism, hidden property, radicalism and family theft unparalleled in the region.

Huge costs of paper and printing, distribution and fuel, for the newspaper to reach almost 4,000 sale points throughout B&H every morning, salaries, contributions, fees and duties are already too much of a burden for print media which, unlike in the EU countries, in B&H, the state does not help at all. The most influential, most read and most quoted media in B&H certainly irritates the unsuccessful government, which is trying in every way to extinguish the public voice. Thanks to its loyal readers, "Avaz" has resisted pressure for years and will continue to do so now.