The Managing Board of the Radio and Television of Serbia (RTS) apologized Monday to citizens of Serbia and neighboring countries for having been offended and subject to slander and content constituting hate speech in programs broadcast by RTS and Radio Television Belgrade (RTB) in the nineties of last century, a release on the website of the media house said on the same day.

The RTS Managing Board noted that during the nineties, RTB and RTS programs had been abused in order to discredit the political opposition in Serbia and its leaders and as part of the propaganda of the then non-democratic regime.

During the events in the nineties, the RTB and RTS on a number of occasions hurt the feelings, moral integrity and dignity of Serbia's citizens, humanistically oriented intellectuals, members of political opposition, criticism-oriented journalists, some minorities in Serbia, the minority religious communities in Serbia, as well as of the country's neighboring nations and states, the release says.

The newly appointed RTS Managing Board said that during its five-year term, it would do its best to use the programs of the Serbian public service to convey the principles of the rule of law, social justice, democracy, human and minority rights and freedom and commitment to European principles and values.