Daughter of Slain Serbian Journalist Slavko Ćuruvija Marks 27-Year Fight for Justice Amid Enduring Impunity

The daughter of murdered Serbian journalist and newspaper publisher Slavko Ćuruvija has reflected on nearly three decades of seeking accountability for his killing, as press freedom organizations mark 27 years since one of the country’s most high-profile unsolved crimes against a journalist.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Jelena Ćuruvija has described the long legal and emotional struggle to secure justice for her father, who was killed in Belgrade on April 11, 1999, during the NATO bombing of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. He was shot outside his home by unidentified attackers while under surveillance by state security services.

Slavko Ćuruvija, a prominent critic of the Slobodan Milošević government and publisher of influential independent outlets, was widely seen as a target because of his reporting and editorial positions. His killing became one of the most emblematic cases of violence against journalists in the Balkans.

Over the years, the case has moved through multiple phases of investigation and trial, including convictions of former Serbian security officials in 2019 and subsequent retrials. However, those convictions were later overturned, and an appellate court ultimately acquitted the accused, leaving the case without a final judicial resolution.

In a recent reflection, Jelena Ćuruvija said that despite decades of proceedings, she feels there has been no meaningful progress toward justice, describing the process as one marked by repeated reversals and continued uncertainty about accountability.

Press freedom organizations have used the anniversary to highlight not only the unresolved nature of her father’s murder but also the broader issue of impunity for attacks on journalists in Serbia. They warn that the failure to secure a definitive conviction in such a high-profile case continues to undermine trust in judicial systems and reinforces risks for journalists working in the region.

Advocacy groups also note that the case remains symbolic of wider structural problems, including alleged involvement of state security structures in past crimes against journalists and the difficulty of prosecuting such cases decades later.

For Jelena Ćuruvija, the anniversary is both a personal and public reminder of a justice process still unresolved nearly three decades later, with no final accountability established for those who ordered or carried out the killing of her father.

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Daughter of murdered Serbian journalist Slavko Ćuruvija on her 27-year fight for justice