Serbia's Court orders RTS to publish Chairman of United Group Board denial

The Belgrade Appellant Court confirmed the ruling of the Higher Court ordering the state RTS television to air Dragan Solak, Chairman of the Board, United Group, answer to false information that he allegedly used the Maltese tax system to transfer his profit and reduce tax he paid in Serbia.

Oglas

The Court rejected the RTS appeal as unfounded and ordered it to "without delay", i.e., in the second broadcast after receiving the ruling at the latest, air the answer at the same time as the first information on alleged tax evasion in Serbia was broadcast during the RTS prime time news 1, on January 6, 2018.

The TV was ordered to publish the answer by Dragan Solak's attorney, which reads as follows:

"In the name of Dragan Solak, we use this way to deny untrue information aired on your First Channel (RTS 1) in its evening news on January 6, 2018, at 7:50 p.m.

Quoting Malta Today website, RTS added misleading information that Mr Dragan Solak, his wife and two children, "kept individuals," used the Maltese tax system to transfer profit and pay less tax in Serbia "than he would have to."

In the Malta Today article, Serbia was not mentioned in any way, nor it said there was an intention to reduce the tax obligation in Serbia.

Mr Solak lives in Switzerland for a long time where he and his family reside and the country is the centre of their all life activities. Mr Solak and his wife are tax residents as well and regularly pay all taxes and other obligations.

They are by no means taxpayers in Serbia, following Serbia's tax regulations, because they don't live in Serbia and they never attempted to avoid any tax in Serbia."

The ruling orders RTS to pay some 737 Euros (87,600 dinars) trial's cost.

Dragan Solak sued RTS after it did not publish his denial, while the editor-in-chief did not inform him about the reason for ignoring Solaks' answer.

Teme