SERBIA: Srebrenica genocide recognition & more – 16th July 2024

Dobar dan from Keswick Village! This is the Rorshok Serbia Update from the 16th of July twenty twenty-four. A quick summary of what's going down in Serbia.

On Wednesday the 10th, anti-war activists in Belgrade held an annual commemoration of the Srebrenica massacre victims. At the event, Women in Black, a peace campaign group, called on the government to proclaim the 11th of July a Srebrenica Genocide Remembrance Day, while the attendees held banners saying “Solidarity” and “Accountability”. One Women in Black member said that recognizing the massacre as genocide and establishing a remembrance day means respect for the victims.

The Srebrenica massacre took place in nineteen ninty-five in the Bosnian town of Srebrenica, and was led by the Serbo-Bosnian army. It resulted in the deaths of more than 8,000 Bosnian men and boys. Serbia, however, does not recognize the mass killing as a genocide, despite the UN’s decision to establish a Srebrenica Genocide Remembrance Day. The government has since launched a visual PR campaign titled “We are not a genocidal nation”.

Moving on, on Thursday the 11th, the Constitutional Court in Serbia overturned the government’s decision from twenty twenty-two to halt the lithium mining Jadar project in Serbia, led by Rio Tinto, an Australian-based mining giant. The Court said that the government’s decision was unconstitutional. In twenty twenty-two, the Serbian government announced the end of the Jadar project after months of environmental protests and public disapproval.

During the session on Thursday, several hundred citizens gathered in front of the Constitutional Court building to protest the Jadar project due to its potential harm to the environment. The activists said that the lithium mining in the western Jadar region of Serbia would cause irreversible damage to the water and land in the area. Aside from the environmental damage, activists believe that the financial gain for Serbia from the project will be small, due to Rio Tinto’s poor image, caused by their shady business practices that range from mining without a permit to human rights violations that include forcing labor upon its employees whilst severely underpaying them.

In some news on the economy, the government announced a series of draft laws they had sent to the Parliament, that would result in more than one billion dollars of new debt. Currently, the country has eight draft laws about the state loans that are financing various projects. Additionally, the public debt amounted to nearly forty billion dollars at the end of May, which is around fifty percent of the country’s GDP. The new loans focus on projects in fields like energy, environmental protection, construction of urban infrastructure, and road repair.

On Thursday the 11th, the National Bank, or NBS, lowered its benchmark interest rate to six percent. This decrease is the first one since July twenty twenty-three. In a statement, NBS said that the decline in inflation allowed them to ease monetary policy by trimming the key policy rate. They also said that they expect a further drop in prices of imported goods and services.

When it comes to wages, the State Statistical Office, or RZS, noted that Serbia experienced a high increase, with the average salary jumping from around 400 dollars in twenty twelve, to nearly 900 dollars in twenty twenty-four. However, economists say that the rise in inflation curbed the rise in wages. Mihailo Gajic, an economist from the Libek NGO, said that although the workers are paid more than double in twenty twenty-four than in twenty twelve, the quality of life has only slightly improved. RZS pointed out that some citizens cannot afford basic necessities, as the cost of a minimum consumer basket is around 500 dollars, and the minimum wage in Serbia is around 400 dollars.

Now for some news about energy. On Wednesday the 10th, five ministers and twenty academic institutions and state companies signed a memorandum of understanding on nuclear energy development. The signing was part of a panel that aims to kickstart a public debate on the use of nuclear energy. Serbia is currently following the ban on the construction of nuclear power plants, which Yugoslavia imposed in nineteen eighty-nine after the Chernobyl catastrophe. Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic, the minister of mining and energy, said that the topic of energy supply is a matter of national security, referring to Serbia’s dependency on the import of crude oil and natural gas, mainly from Russia. Due to pressures from the EU to distance itself from Russia, Serbia, an EU candidate country, is looking into becoming more independent in the energy field.

Speaking of the EU, their Commission published the results of their annual European Innovation Scoreboard, ranking European countries based on their innovativeness. Out of thirty-nine countries in Europe, Serbia scored 29th, with an overall innovation index of sixty-nine, which is five points more than last year. First on the list was Switzerland with around 150 points, followed by Denmark and Sweden with over 140 points. Countries with the lowest points were Moldova with around twenty points, followed by Ukraine and Bosnia and Herzegovina with around thirty points.

When it comes to Serbia, the European Commission noted that the country excelled in the area of company investments aimed at innovating its products. However, they did point out that Serbia was stagnant in the fields of environment, air pollutant emissions, and the efficient use of resources with minimal waste.

On that note about the environment, the Serbian Hydrometeorological Service issued a warning on Monday the 15th about an intense heatwave spanning across the country. Over the next two weeks, the meteorologists warned about high temperatures reaching up to forty degrees Celsius, or 104 degrees Fahrenheit. And doctors warned that the heat paired with humidity could affect healthy people as well as those with health conditions, and they advised citizens to avoid sun exposure for prolonged periods of time.

The ongoing heatwave is also impacting power consumption in the country, due to an increased use of AC in households. The state power company noted a consumption increase averaging twenty percent compared to the same period last year.

Let’s move on to human rights. On Monday the 15th, the Ministry for Human and Minority Rights and the Council of Europe office in Belgrade held a panel discussion about the implementation of measures aimed at combating discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Tomislav Zigmanov, the representative for this ministry, said that Serbia made noticeable progress in the area of ​​anti-discrimination policy and the fight against hate speech and hate crimes against members of the LGBTQ+ community. Zigmanov noted that the country has worked on supporting transgender people, with the Republican Health Insurance Fund including drugs for establishing the appropriate hormonal status of trans people in the list of prescription drugs. However, Zigmanov said that Serbia has a long way to go when it comes to the inclusion of LGBTQ+ citizens, adding that it needs to work on adopting the Law on Same-Sex Unions and legal regulations regarding gender identity and the position of intersex people.

In other news, Serbia voz, the state-owned railway company, announced on Wednesday the 10th that the ticket prices in Serbia’s domestic railway traffic will increase by up to forty percent this September. They noted that the ticket price increase is the result of the growth in prices of energy sources and spare train parts over the past three years. However, Serbia voz also announced a ten percent discount for all passengers who purchase their tickets online or through the app.

Now for some news about cultural events in the country, starting on the 20th and until the 26th of July, the cities of Palic, Subotica, and Belgrade will hold the annual European Film Festival. In its 31st edition, the festival will feature 140 movies across seventeen selections. It will also include numerous activities the visitors can participate in, ranging from film critic workshops to panel discussions. Additionally, the festival program will include an exhibition of portrait caricatures and book promotions. For more information, check out the link in the show notes!

Speaking of exhibitions, Belgrade City Museum’s Salon Gallery is holding an exhibition showcasing the artwork of Andy Warhol, a famous pop-art artist. It’s called All the Colors of Warhol and features forty privately-owned Warhol pieces, some of which include Shot Marilyns, Campbell’s soup cans, Space Fruit, and Flowers, among others. This exhibition will end on the 30th of July.

Aaand that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us!

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