Double standards for journalistic villains to the opposition. These days is current the court decision that the chief editor of “Focus” Jadranka Kostova and the journalist Vlado Apostolov should pay 6,000 euro to UBK Sasho Mijalkov for slander and, plus to reimburse the cost of his attorney.
The court decision immediately met the backlash by Jadranka Kostova, who said that with such “court decision, we are free to close the Focus”. Unlike current statements, the weekly magazine “Focus” did not opposed when in 2006 paid 30 000 euro to the head of state at that time Crvenkovski, who sued them for the scandal with the secret bank accounts.
The writings of weekly “Focus” from that period were informing that Crvenkovski has 210 000 dollars on account in Swiss bank American Express Bank, which the former President considered as “total lie and crude forgery” and sued the newspaper.
Crvenkovski then in a private prosecution to Nikola Mladenov demanded 50 thousand euro for the damage of defamation, while the court decided that the journalist should pay 30 thousand euro, which also was and still is the highest penalty that has been imposed on a journalist.
“Focus” then did not objected to this decision, unlike this one when the court decides the weekly magazine to pay five times lower amount than the amount that Mladenov paid to Crvenkovski.
The VMRO – DPMNE MP, Miloshoski during yesterday’s debate in Parliament, in his answer to Makraduli mentioned this case from 2006. Miloshoski asked why he in 2006 as a Member of Parliament did not came to rostrum to defend the magazine and to advocate for media freedom.
- You call on journalists and various media, depending on the time as it fit to you. I will remind you of one case, 16th of October 2006, the complainant Crvenkovski sued Nikola Mladenov and in a hearing that lasted only three hours the journalist was sentenced to 30,000 euro. He had to pay for slander and insult. Makraduli that year was member of this Assembly. Makraduli in 2006 has never come to rostrum to defend the magazine and to advocate for media freedom, said Miloshoski.