Slavko Ćuruvija – Biography

Who is Slavko Ćuruvija

Slavko Ćuruvija was a Serbian journalist, editor, and publisher, one of the most prominent figures of independent journalism in Serbia in the 1990s. He founded the newspapers Dnevni telegraf and Evropljanin, and lost his life in an assassination in 1999, a crime that remains to this day a symbol of pressure on media freedom in the country.

Early Life and Childhood

Slavko Ćuruvija was born on August 9, 1949, in Zagreb. His father, Rade Ćuruvija, was an ethnic Serb and an officer of the Yugoslav People's Army, who took part in the partisan movement in the Lika region during the Second World War. Besides his military service, his father also worked within the counterintelligence structures of the army and state security service of the time. The family moved to Belgrade in 1958, where Slavko Ćuruvija grew up. His parents divorced in 1965.These circumstances meant that young Slavko Ćuruvija grew up in an environment close to state structures — something that would later, paradoxically, come to define his journalistic career, marked as it was by conflict with that very same state apparatus.

Education

Slavko Ćuruvija graduated from the Faculty of Political Sciences at the University of Belgrade. This academic background steered him toward work in public relations and journalism, fields in which he would go on to build his entire professional career.

Beginning of His Career

After finishing his studies, Slavko Ćuruvija first worked as an executive secretary and public relations associate at the Belgrade company "Mašinogradnja." He soon began writing for the Zagreb weekly Danas as well, and for the Center for Social Research. Between 1984 and 1986, he worked as an analyst at the Federal Secretariat for Internal Affairs and the State Security Service, an experience that later gave him connections and insight into the workings of the state apparatus.The turning point in Slavko Ćuruvija's career came in 1986, when he joined the editorial staff of the newspaper Borba. At this paper, he rose from commentator, through editor of the domestic politics section, to editor-in-chief. Between 1986 and 1988, he wrote commentary and reportage from Kosovo and Metohija. In 1987, Slavko Ćuruvija was one of the few journalists granted direct access to Slobodan Milošević during his visit to Kosovo Polje on April 24 of that year — an event considered a turning point in Milošević's rise to power.He remained at Borba until 1994, when the state effectively took control of the paper, after which he left the editorial staff along with some of his colleagues. During this period, he also wrote regularly for other outlets, including Komunist, NIN, Vjesnik, Večernji list, Nedelja, Pobjeda, and Television Belgrade.

Rise to Prominence

After leaving Borba, Slavko Ćuruvija turned to independent publishing. Together with Momčilo Đorgović, he founded the weekly tabloid Nedeljni telegraf. Already in 1996, the two of them also founded Dnevni telegraf, the first privately owned daily newspaper in Serbia in more than half a century. Slavko Ćuruvija served as director and editor-in-chief of the paper, and after parting ways with Đorgović, became its sole owner as well.In 1998, Ćuruvija also founded the biweekly magazine Evropljanin, bringing together several prominent Serbian journalists, including Aleksandar Tijanić and Ljiljana Smajlović. His publications became known for their open, critical analysis of the government of the time, including their coverage of the conflict in Kosovo.According to later testimony and research, the success of both papers was, in part, also based on Ćuruvija's access to Mira Marković, wife of President Slobodan Milošević. The exact nature of that relationship was never fully clarified, and various sources — including his partner, Branka Prpa — offer differing interpretations of how much that contact benefited the papers, and how much it represented a risk to Ćuruvija himself.

Greatest Achievements

Founding Dnevni telegraf — the first privately owned daily newspaper in Serbia in more than 50 years Founding the magazine Evropljanin, bringing together respected journalistic names Building a profile as an editor who wrote openly about sensitive political topics at a time of strict state control over the media Contributing to the development of independent journalism in Serbia during the 1990sThe final years of his life were marked by open conflict with the authorities. In the autumn of 1998, his relations with Mira Marković deteriorated as coverage of the escalating situation in Kosovo intensified. Dnevni telegraf was banned by special decree on October 14, 1998. A new Law on Public Information was soon adopted, under which Ćuruvija and his company were fined 2.4 million dinars in October 1998. In November of that year, the Montenegrin company "DT," under which the papers had continued to be published after DT-pres's assets were seized, was fined an additional 1.2 million dinars. In March 1999, Ćuruvija, together with two other journalists, was sentenced to five months in prison for allegedly disturbing the public, and the appeal process was still underway at the time of his death.

Private Life

At the time of his death, Slavko Ćuruvija was in a common-law relationship with historian Branka Prpa, who was present at the moment of the killing. Details of his private life that have not been publicly confirmed by reliable sources are not included here.

Tragic Death

Slavko Ćuruvija was killed on April 11, 1999, on Orthodox Easter that year, in front of the building where he lived in central Belgrade, on Svetogorska Street. He was killed by two masked attackers, who shot him in the back 17 times. The murder took place during the NATO bombing of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, at a time when other media outlets were also publishing pieces branding Ćuruvija a traitor.The investigation into the murder continued for decades. In 2014, Serbian authorities arrested several suspects, former members of the State Security Department. In a first-instance verdict in 2021, the Special Department of the Higher Court in Belgrade sentenced four former state security officers to a combined 100 years in prison. However, in February 2024, the Court of Appeal in Belgrade overturned the first-instance verdict and finally acquitted all four defendants, on the grounds that the first-instance court had exceeded the scope of the indictment. The Slavko Ćuruvija Foundation described the decision as shocking, noting that more than two and a half decades on, no one has been finally convicted for this murder.

Trivia

Dnevni telegraf was the first privately owned daily newspaper in Serbia in more than five decades. He was killed on Orthodox Easter in 1999, during the NATO bombing of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. A few days before the murder, the newspaper Politika ekspres published a piece branding Ćuruvija a traitor, and on the eve of the murder, a piece titled "Ćuruvija Welcomed the Bombs" was read on television. He was one of the few journalists to have direct access to Slobodan Milošević during his 1987 visit to Kosovo Polje, a moment considered a turning point in Milošević's rise to power.

Awards and Recognition

There is no reliably confirmed information about official awards or honors Slavko Ćuruvija received during his lifetime. His legacy and work have, however, been posthumously commemorated through the founding of a foundation bearing his name, which advocates for media freedom and for shedding light on the circumstances of his murder.

Legacy and Influence

The murder of Slavko Ćuruvija drew strong international condemnation and became one of the best-known symbols of the persecution of independent media in Serbia during the 1990s. The Slavko Ćuruvija Foundation, established in his honor, today works to protect media freedom and monitor the safety of journalists in Serbia, preserving in this way the memory of his work and his struggle.

Biography — Frequently Asked Questions

Who was Slavko Ćuruvija? Slavko Ćuruvija was a Serbian journalist, editor, and publisher, founder of the newspapers Dnevni telegraf and Evropljanin, killed in 1999 in Belgrade.When and where was Slavko Ćuruvija born? He was born on August 9, 1949, in Zagreb.When and how was Slavko Ćuruvija killed? He was killed on April 11, 1999, on Orthodox Easter, in front of the building where he lived in central Belgrade. The killers shot him in the back 17 times.Why was Slavko Ćuruvija killed? The murder has been linked to his critical writing about Slobodan Milošević's government, including his coverage of the conflict in Kosovo, although those who ordered it and the exact motive have never been finally established.Which newspapers did Slavko Ćuruvija found? He founded Nedeljni telegraf, Dnevni telegraf — the first privately owned daily newspaper in Serbia in more than 50 years — and the magazine Evropljanin.Was anyone convicted for the murder of Slavko Ćuruvija? Four former state security officers were convicted at first instance in 2021, but the Court of Appeal in Belgrade overturned that verdict in 2024 and finally acquitted all of them.What was Dnevni telegraf? Dnevni telegraf was the first privately owned daily newspaper in Serbia in more than half a century, founded by Ćuruvija in 1996.Who was Branka Prpa? Branka Prpa is a historian who was in a common-law relationship with Slavko Ćuruvija and who was present at the moment of his murder.What is the Slavko Ćuruvija Foundation? It is an organization founded in his honor that works to protect media freedom and the safety of journalists in Serbia.Why is the murder of Slavko Ćuruvija significant for the history of media in Serbia? The murder is regarded as a symbol of the persecution of independent media during Slobodan Milošević's rule and as one of the best-known unsolved crimes against journalists in Serbia.

Conclusion

Slavko Ćuruvija is remembered as a journalist and publisher who built the first private media outlets in Serbia after decades of state monopoly over the press. His professional path, from a contributor at Borba to founder of Dnevni telegraf and Evropljanin, reflects the broader struggle for media freedom in Serbia in the 1990s. The murder of Slavko Ćuruvija in 1999, still legally unresolved in terms of accountability, remains recorded as one of the most severe attacks on press freedom in recent Serbian history.