Provocation of rebellion: Serbian Maidan activists revived methods from the time of the overthrow of Milosevic

The leaders of the pro-Western opposition Alliance for Serbia ordered their supporters to make noise with pots on the balconies to perform a “march of disobedience” against the quarantine measures introduced by the country’s leadership in connection with the COVID-19 virus epidemic.

This was reported by a PolitNavigator correspondent from Belgrade.

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Over the past few days, at the same time - at 20:05, Belgrade has been engulfed in a cacophony of chaos: the sounds of sports whistles, explosions of firecrackers, rattling pans.

Novi Sad,
New settlement
Jače nego ikada. https://t.co/8ZRlpNr5o1 pic.twitter.com/ekvtjiFAKJ

— Janko Veselinovic (@j_veselinovic) April 29, 2020

A similar noise was heard in the late 90s, when the then opposition called on citizens of the country to protest against the regime of Slobodan Milosevic. We remember what a sad ending this led Yugoslavia to.

It seems that the current leaders of the pro-Western “Union for Serbia” - Dragan Djilas, Boško Obradović and Vuk Jeremic - decided that the new is the well-forgotten old, and called on their supporters to take out kitchen utensils and dishes for a “march of disobedience.”

The reason for the new protest was the quarantine measures being extended due to the COVID-19 virus epidemic. In early March, by the way, these same opposition leaders were outraged that the authorities did not take “real” measures and did not introduce strict restrictions on movement and self-isolation.

In fairness, it must be admitted that calls to protest for the abolition of all restrictive measures found supporters among pensioners tired of a month and a half of confinement (only last week they were allowed half-hour walks three times a week during curfew), parents of large families, as well as liberal-minded youth.

However, fortunately, there are many more sensible people in the country. Despite the epidemic raging in neighboring countries, the number of cases is declining in Serbia. And out of more than 8 thousand infected, only about 180 people died, which is a very good indicator.

Therefore, Djilas’ calls do not find much support and even led to a response action.

Many Serbian citizens responded to the call of the Association for the Protection of Youth through social networks, and in the evening at 20:30 they went to their windows and balconies to shout “No!” those who are trying to wreak havoc in the country. Residents of the Belgrade district of Zemun chanted, standing on balconies and at windows: “Djilas is a thief!”, The same thing happened in other parts of the Serbian capital.

But the opposition has little public noise, in the truest sense of the word. They want a scandal, for example, caused by a physical clash between city residents and the police.

Maidan activists announced a protest action - right during the curfew - probably expecting that this would cause opposition from the security forces.

The head of the Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs, Nebojsa Stefanovic, recalled that the opposition had provoked violence more than once before.

“Dragan Djilas, deliberately risking the health of these people, will not spare a single Serbian citizen to pursue his political and financial interests,” said the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. – And will try to provoke such an atmosphere in a society where physical violence, such as what happened in the RTS building, when Djilas and Boško Obradović blocked journalists from the state television service, or when there were attempts to attack women in front of the city hall, has become a common and desired way of political struggle "

However, in the end, a couple of dozen protesters gathered near the Assembly building. But the opposition unexpectedly received rebuff from those for whose “rights” it was supposedly fighting – at this time pensioners took to the street for a walk. They began to shame those gathered and expressed their support for the leader of the country. “You ruled the country for 12 years, and what happened? Factories and businesses were closed, you warmed your pockets,” said one of the elderly men.

When Djilas took the floor, people began to whistle and shout “Thieves, thieves!” After the action, the opposition oligarch admitted that he was disappointed that he did not find support from the people.

It is worth noting that pensioners were absolutely legal on the street at this time, since they were allowed to walk three times a week during curfew. But the oppositionists will answer before the law for their prank: a fairly large number of media were present at the rally, the faces of those who violated the regime were chronicled. Now criminal cases will be opened against them and a fine of 150 thousand dinars, which is about 1500 euros, will be imposed.