“If the journalists from Macedonia find that the Appellate Court`s decision on the Kezharovski case is unjust or in violation of the human rights, the Norwegian Trade Union will call upon the Norwegian diplomacy to get involved and review the case”- said Eva Stabel, a representative of the Norwegian Trade Union, to the Macedonian Ambassador in Oslo, Enver Abdulahi.

Stabel again drew attention to the fact that the Kingdom of Norway spends 6 million Euros on Macedonia`s development annually.

The meeting was initiated by the Ambassador after he had received a letter from the Trade Union wherein the union demands that Kezharovski be acquitted.

The initiative for the letter to the Macedonia Ambassador was raised by the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) which two weeks ago called upon all of their members to send letters to the Macedonian Ambassadors in their countries with messages for acquitting Kezharovski.

The first letter from EFJ was sent to the Macedonian Ambassador to the European Union, Andrej Lepavcov. In the letter, EFJ states, among other things: “We are deeply disappointed by the fact that your country continues to neglect the fundamental international principles and values of independent journalism and does nothing to protect the freedom of the press, the investigative journalism and the freedom of expression.”

Also, the IFJ and EFJ representatives scheduled a meeting with Lepavcov.

So far, letters of support to the Ambassadors in their respective countries has been sent by the Belgian Association of Journalists and the Serbian Trade Union of Journalists.

In the context of the international pressure for acquitting Kezharovski, the South East Europe Media Organization (SEEMO) today issued a public statement calling upon Macedonian authorities to dismiss all charges against the journalist Tomislav Kezharovski.

The General Secretary of SEEMO, Oliver Vujovikj, gave his full support to Kezharovski and all other journalists from the region facing a similar situation.

“The treatment of and the court procedure against Tomislav Kezharovski has been a source of deep concern for us for a long time. It is absolutely necessary that journalists and media workers are safe against these type of pressure and censure attempts” –stated Vujovikj.

Kezharovski was sentenced to four and a half years for allegedly revealing the identity of a protected witness. Currently, the journalist is on house arrest and the decision of the Appellate Court in Skopje on Kezharovki`s appeal is due in the days that follow.