A remembrance ceremony was to be held in the Bosnian city of Mostar on Friday to mark the killing of three journalists from Italy's Rai public broadcaster 24 years ago during the filming of a documentary on the effects of war on children, Italian foreign ministry said.
A wreath of flowers was due to be laid and a minute of silence observed in remembrance of the sacrifice of the three journalists - Marco Luchetta, Dario D’Angelo and Alessandro Sasha Ota, who were killed by a grenade on 28 January 1994.
The commemoration was organised by the Italian Embassy in Bosnia-Herzegovina in conjunction with the city of Mostar "to renew the sense of their commitment and reaffirm the importance of a free and professional press," the ministry said.
At the spot where the three Trieste-based journalists lost their lives and where a plate commemorates them, Milenka Rustia, Ota’s widow, Italy's ambassador Nicola Minasi, Mostar's mayor, Ljubo Beslic, and the Italian MP Marco Bergonzi, were due to join the families of the three journalists.
The commemoration was to continue at Mostar’s City Hall with a debate on the freedom of the press and information, organised with the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe's mission to Bosnia-Herzegovina and attended by Bruce G. Berton, the Head of the OSCE mission, the foreign ministry said.
The event will begin with the screening of original material shot by the three reporters on the day of their death and images taken from the documentary “For that Smile” dedicated to them by the Croatian public service TV Hrt4.
The debate, which will be open to the public, will include journalists, war correspondents, media organisations and representatives of schools, universities, NGOs and of civil society. Rai will be represented by two correspondents who will take part in the debate moderated by Ena Bavcic from Civil Rights Defenders.
On the panel, there will also be Zeljka Sulc, spokesperson for the local OSCE mission - a major player in defending the freedom of the media, of education and transparency in elections in Bosnia Herzegovina.
Italy is the current chair of OSCE.
