In recent weeks newspapers and radio stations have been closed by the authorities in Serbia, putting more than 400 journalists out of work. Harassment has reached its severest level since the government introduced a new information law October 20, making it easier to prosecute media that displease authorities.

In response to the ongoing banning, censorship and harassment of media in this Balkan countryduring recent months, on November 5, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) appealed for donations to a fund for Serbian journalists.

IFJ officials explain that мjournalists in Serbia are ready and willing to fight this oppression, but they need money to run campaigns and to help those who have lost their jobs. They intend to fight the law on two fronts, to challenge it in the courts and to galvanize the public into opposing the law.о If 15,000 people sign an appeal, the law must be reconsidered by the Parliament.о

IFJ suggests that even the smallest donation can mean survival to some Serbian journalists. Just as critical, as IFJ explains, мthe independent media are one of the few remaining obstacles to the return of bigotry and war to Serbia and its neighbors.о Send donations to RAS BANK AD BEOGRAD: No DEM 0009852005 with LHB Internationale Handelsbank Frankfurt in Main in favor of DRAGUTIN ROKVIC, AC/7080-202-25-272-8. Use this formulation to make your donations. (For information, the address of RAS BANK AD BEOGRAD is Jevrejska 24A, 11000 Belgrade, Yugoslavia.)

For further information, contact Cailin Mackenzie at IFJ, Rue Royale, 266, B-1210 Brussels, Belgium. Tel: (32-2) 223-2265 or (32-2) 219-7780. Fax: (32-2) 219-2976. E-mail: ifj.safety@pophost.eunet.be. http://www.ifj.org