All assumptions are that one of the priorities will be Serbia’s integration into the EU, while the policy towards Kosovo, unfortunately, will remain the same as it has been until now, unchanged. Captive in the shackles of the Greater Serbia narrative… If they asked me, I would do what is best for the citizens of Serbia, and that is, of course, for the new government to recognize Kosovo’s independence and start a new era of normalization of good neighborly relations, based on mutual respect and cooperation in all areas, which would bring benefits, within the framework of Europe, to the citizens of Serbia and Kosovo.
By Radomir DIMIĆ
A radical change has taken place in Serbia. In a peaceful, non-violent and elegant manner, an authoritarian and nationalist regime has left the stage. Vučić’s last authoritarian act was when he declared the winners as winners, although there were still no election results before he said this. The condition for achieving such a victory was that a completely empty list was presented against Vučić, mainly with names unknown to the public, without any programmatic axis, except for the demand that Vučić go home or to prison.
The price of this will be felt now, when the seizure of power begins. For Vučić, of course, it will be easier to hand over power to them than it would be to take power from them. Because now all those people must be found for all the ministries and administrations, and they must show what their power really means. Judging by the positions of the winners so far, their priority is not membership in the European Union, although it cannot be said that this is the final position, because there are also other voices that would eventually bring Serbia into the family of EU states. However, this will not be easy at all, because Serbia, as a candidate country, has the lowest percentage of support for the European Union. Precisely for this reason, the EU, as many people believe, has seriously embarrassed itself in Serbia, by supporting Vučić until the end.
When it comes to the relationship of the new winners towards Kosovo, one should not expect these relations to change, which means that negotiations with the EU will not go smoothly, because Serbia must determine during the negotiations which countries it borders. And this means recognizing Kosovo. A little more optimism that something can change, expressed the holder of the Student List, professor doctor Ilija Srdanović, a cardiac surgeon at the Faculty of Medicine in Novi Sad, who immediately after the victory warned of the continuation of the normalization of relations with Pristina. While academician Radomir Sajčić stated that Kosovo, according to the Constitution, is an integral and inalienable part of Serbia.
As for the new government, there are indications that it will be temporary, transitional, and that after a year, at most a year and a half, it will organize new elections, in which a normal government will be created. A serious candidate for prime minister is Mr. Sosic, who was the governor of the National Bank, which makes some sense for a transitional government.
This is very reminiscent of the old habits of real socialism, when the government dealt with the economy, while behind the scenes there was the Politburo, or rather the party, which managed the real political issues, although it is unlikely that anyone would lead the students from the outside. Otherwise, Vučić saw himself as so great that he could not understand that five or six million Serbs would be enough to overthrow him, but believed that to end his power a conspiracy of the whole world was needed. Now that the Serbian autocrat has ended his authoritarian rule, there are indications that the deputies of the Serbian Progressive Party will begin to split. While some others think that Vučić is preparing to go to prison, to sacrifice himself for Serbia and then, perhaps one day, to triumphantly emerge from prison and return to the throne.
He will probably not be able to lead the party then, due to a possible lustration, but until then he is probably counting on the dissolution of the Student Movement, which is held together only by opposition to Vučić. At the very least, it is possible that Vučić will end up in prison, and he will not strongly oppose this. Let us recall the situation after the fall of Milošević, Đinđić and Kostunica.
It is considered that Kostunica ordered the assassination of Djindjic, because with the departure of Milosevic, what held them together disappeared. This time, of course, there will be no assassination, which is good.
The first two pillars of the old regime that need to be cleaned up in Serbia are the media and the intelligence services. This needs to be done quickly and there will be problems, because the axe will be used instead of the scalpel, so, as has happened now in Hungary, some people will suffer who should not have suffered, as some analysts estimate, such as Professor Puhovski in Zagreb. They will remove a large number of journalists who are a disgrace to their profession. The media landscape in Serbia is the most primitive in Europe, but this will cause a new conflict. Just as there have already been incidents with television stations most loyal to Vučić, when groups of citizens forcibly entered their premises, incidents in which the regime’s fingers are involved, in order to blame the Student List for this.
Vučić also did this from an unknown location, warning that if the police do not react, they will organize themselves and know how to defend themselves. In addition to the cleaning up of the propaganda and poisonous, anti-student and anti-people media, for which responsibility and the revocation of work licenses are required, as well as the resignation of the general director of RTS, which has indeed happened, there are certainly many other criminal offenses.
Like what happened, especially when it comes to violent groups that hid behind the police and beat up students and citizens who took to the streets. Hitler had this in the 30s. Those people who beat up, hit people with vehicles, broke jaws and mistreated people for two years, if there is justice, they will be the first to face it.
Then the question will be asked whether the investigations will reach Vučić or not, who, according to Time magazine, is said to have been persuaded at the last moment by representatives of European governments to abandon a violent coup after his electoral defeat.
Thus, he was literally forced to give up a bloody massacre, then pretending to have accepted defeat with dignity and declared victory to the winners. However, despite everything, he will not leave Serbia. Perhaps he will choose to stay in prison for a short time, so that the new regime will be ashamed, and perhaps in this way he will mobilize even more of his supporters to return to the new elections. While he presents himself as someone who has heroically sacrificed himself for Serbia.
But all of this is highly unlikely to happen. However, one should not forget the very real possibility that the new government may not even be formed, if Vučić decides not to have his deputies verify their mandates when the new Parliament is convened to be constituted.
Because, according to the Constitution of Serbia, the constitution of the Assembly requires the verification of the mandates of two-thirds of the deputies, namely 167 deputies, while the Student List has won 140 mandates and it depends on the deputies of the SNS whether the new Parliament will be constituted at all. In any case, Serbia was truly on the brink of its grave. The bleeding has stopped, but the healing will take a long time. The question is what would have happened if the result had been closer and if Vučić had so calmly accepted the transfer of power. And if the international community had not restrained the enraged Max. Because the fact is that on election day, late in the afternoon, large police forces blocked the center of Belgrade.
And everything warned that a major clash and riots were coming, which could be the beginning of a civil war. That’s when a phone call followed and a warning from someone not to play with fire.
It is possible that there was also some kind of “deal”, namely that Vučić agreed to be forgiven for some of the most important affairs, in which the West knew he was involved. And then came the sudden calm admission of defeat, behind which someone else is probably behind it. Wasn’t Slobodan Milošević also unprepared to admit defeat, until Yeltsin sent the head of diplomacy, who told him that he had to admit defeat? Only now, in this case, the call did not come from Moscow, and whether it came from Brussels or Washington, this is not known. But it is known that the uncrowned Serbian king, Aleksandar Vučić, left behind the third most corrupt country in Europe, a destroyed rule of law, as well as ruined education, health and sports.
The consequences are serious and the situation will not be cured overnight. To begin with, it is necessary for Serbia to recover politically and institutionally and to rehabilitate itself in Europe. First of all, through improving relations in the Region, namely normalizing relations with its immediate neighbors.
Because Vučić has quarreled with everyone in Europe. While now contact has been established between the Croatian Prime Minister and the leaders of the Student List. The victory of the Student Movement in Serbia has delighted not only a large number of people in Europe, but also in our entire Region.
However, despite everything, there is no doubt that the policy that the “new” Belgrade will pursue towards Russia, China, the USA and the EU will also be under careful observation. And all assumptions are that one of the priorities will be the integration of Serbia into the EU, while the policy towards Kosovo, unfortunately, will remain the same as before, unchanged. Enslaved in the shackles of the Greater Serbia narrative. With the claim that Kosovo is still an integral part of the Republic of Serbia, not yet understanding that Kosovo has been a sovereign, independent and separate state for 18 years now and that it has its own path.
Therefore, no revision of the Brussels Agreement, neither of the Ohrid Agreement nor of the Franco-German Agreement, can question, revert to the past or endanger the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the state of Kosovo. Instead, if asked, I would do what is best for the citizens of Serbia, and that is, of course, for the new government to recognize the independence of Kosovo and to start a new era of normalization of good neighborly relations, based on mutual respect and cooperation in all areas, which would bring benefits, within the framework of Europe, to the citizens of Serbia and Kosovo.