Serbia to revoke coronavirus information control decree after criticism

https://news.yahoo.com/serbia-revoke-coronavirus-information-control-093820711.html

Reuters•April 2, 2020

Serbia's government will revoke a decree giving it control over information on the coronavirus outbreak, following protests and the detention of a journalist for reporting a major hospital lacked protective gear and properly trained staff.

Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said the decree, enforced on Saturday, would be revoked on Thursday "so not a shadow could be cast on our work."

The emergency measure, which said information about the coronavirus outbreak could only come from Brnabic or those authorized by her, had drawn criticism from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) watchdog and local media associations.

On Wednesday, police detained Ana Lalic, a journalist with private news portal Nova.rs, after she reported that staff at the hospital in the northern city of Novi Sad lacked protective gear and proper training.

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Many hospitals in Serbia lacked basic safety gear at the start of the outbreak. The government has since bought equipment and aid has arrived from China and the European Union.

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