Abu Dhabi International Airport is seen on July 4, 2017. Serbian journalist Stevan Dojčinović was recently denied entry to the United Arab Emirates. (AP/Jon Gambrell)
Abu Dhabi International Airport is seen on July 4, 2017. Serbian journalist Stevan Dojčinović was recently denied entry to the United Arab Emirates. (AP/Jon Gambrell)

Serbian journalist denied entry to United Arab Emirates

On December 17, 2019, authorities at Abu Dhabi International Airport denied entry to Stevan Dojčinović, a Serbian national and editor of the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, an investigative news outlet, according to Dojčinović, who spoke to CPJ via messaging app, and news reports.

Authorities took Dojčinović to a police station within the airport where they photographed him and took his fingerprints and passport, and said he was on a “blacklist” and could not enter the country, Dojčinović told CPJ.

Dojčinović said that the officers told him the Emirati government was not responsible for the blacklist, but would not provide further details about it.

He was in the airport for about twelve hours before he was put on a flight back to Serbia, he said.

Dojčinović was scheduled to speak at an international anti-corruption conference organized by the United Nations, according to a report by his employer.

CPJ emailed the Emirati Ministry of Interior and its embassy in Berlin for comment, but did not receive any replies.

In 2015, Dojčinović was detained and denied entry to Moscow, where authorities also said he was on a blacklist, he told CPJ.