March 30, 2011 - FOCUS ON SOUTH SERBIA

30. March 2011.

Vranje – A group of 35 national and international journalists was on a three-day visit to the Pcinj district until yesterday. The group consisted of professional print and electronic media journalists from Germany, Great Britain, France, Italy, Austria, Greece, Spain, Turkey, Russia, Bulgaria and the Media Department of the OSCE Mission to Serbia, аs well as from domestic information houses, such as RTS, B92, Prva, Tanjug, Beta, Politika, Blic, Vecernje novosti and representatives of the Executive Committee of the Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia (IJAS) and Media Center from Belgrade.

A reception was given for the journalists, during which Budimir Mihajlovic, Governor of the Pcinj district, addressed them. He spoke about economic situation in South Serbia. Miroljub Stojcic, Mayor of Vranje, acquainted the attendees of the event with the history of Vranje and with the city’s cultural heritage, as well as with the implemented projects and capital investments, which were carried out in cooperation with domestic and foreign partners.

Igor Andonov, Deputy Mayor of Vranje, and Slobodan Stamenkovic, President of Vranje Assembly, spoke about Vranje’s tourist potential and about operation of the multi-party local assembly. Igor Andonov, Deputy Mayor of Vranje, also said that he was in touch with the Italian embassy in Serbia and that he was negotiating with it about the holding of the “Week of Italian Culture” in Vranje.

Representatives of the city’s leadership replied to the journalists’ questions, which mostly referred to inter-ethnic relations in South Serbia and to the issues of privatized companies.

The journalists visited the “Prohor Pcinjski” monastery, the municipalities of Presevo and Bujanovac and the “Jug” army base”. The visit was organized by the Media Center from Belgrade and by the Find for an Open Society, while “Novine Vranjske” and Media Center from Vranje made the visit possible.