Once known for its colorful spirit and industry, Vranje is now experiencing a mass exodus of residents. Poverty, low wages and poor working conditions have taken their toll, while the city remains trapped in a maelstrom of political and economic problems. While sausages and dried meat are offered to guests, many residents of Vranje barely make ends meet
For someone who comes for the first time Vranje we can often hear that he experienced a kind of shock. One of such examples is i Belgrade woman Natalija Petrović, who recently visited the city in the south of Serbia for the first time.
"It took me a while to understand that 'I'm in Vranje' means exactly the same as 'I'm in Vranje' and that you'll get a 'white' look if you try to correct them." The bakery is 'peeeeekaaraa', so it kind of drags on, cases are avoided in a wide arc, and if they say to you: 'Whoever has a jackdaw on his head, vika si vu iš', you must ask for a translation - because their sayings are precisely correct and full wisdom," says Natalija.
He especially emphasizes the hospitality of the people of Vranje.
"Rarely where have I seen people welcome each other as warmly as in Vranje." Everything is brought out of the fridge to the table, the sardines are defrosted, the dry meat is chopped, there is always smoked paprika, brandy, barbecue, there is a little bit of everything. Although it is clear to you that the hosts worked hard to prepare such a table, it is always nice at the table, and you will easily come to the conclusion that they are eager for those people who left Vranje a long time ago and are crying out for companionship and conversation. With that, anger goes hand in hand if you don't come to visit at least one more time, regardless of how much time you really have and whether you're only there for a specific reason."
If it is difficult to live in Vranje, it is enough to look around honestly and with wide-open eyes for between 15 and 30 seconds, she adds.
"It can be seen from the unfinished facades, in the houses, from the people and their mood, on the street, everywhere... No one will ask you more than once, during just one short meeting, 'how much does it cost'?" One would think that only mathematicians and financial experts live there, but in fact, poverty remains the point of convergence of many families and the way generations grow up - the DNA code, which does not change even if later in life an enviable business success is achieved," she states.
However, there are also special things that are close to her heart.
"When all that is taken into account, it is surprising where the people in Vranje got such pure and sincere souls, preserved, where they nurtured this helpfulness, joy and cordiality in their difficult everyday life all these years. You will unmistakably feel that through the music and lyrics
old songs from Vranje or if you walk to the house-museum of Bora Stanković in the city center. "As far as I'm concerned, Vranje is the most beautiful in the summer - all the smells, tastes and excitement are at their peak, so I suggest you visit it then," Natalija concludes.
Sacrificing the voting machine
Those who, on the other hand, live and earn in Vranje, do not have nice words about the quality of life, the standard and the purchasing power of the citizens. And to make matters worse, the biggest companies are among the main culprits.
Namely, the companies that were the symbols of this city, "Jumko" and "Simpo", turned out to be the biggest stone around the neck of this city, taking into account the astronomical debts, mostly to local companies and the municipality itself for taxes. These figures are measured in billions of dinars. And no one knows how this will be resolved.
The workers of those companies were turned into voting machinery back in the nineties. They were used by all governments, especially the current one, led by the Serbian Progressive Party.
The editor-in-chief of the InfoVranjska portal Mihajlo Stojković reminds that the slogan "Jumko is with Vucic" was not invented by progressives, but that it was used for Slobodan Milošević in the nineties at rallies organized by the government.
"For the sake of the voting machinery, the entire South of Serbia is suffering from 'Jumko' and 'Simpo'." We pay taxes to keep those two companies alive," Stojković points out.
"The Paradox of Living"
According to him, the most terrible thing is that BAT (British American Tobacco), the company that does the best business in this city, annually pays the state a sum of money equivalent to 10-12 of the City of Vranje's budget through excise taxes on cigarettes.
"It comes to the conclusion that we feed Belgrade, and at the same time we are one of the poorest cities in Serbia. That is the paradox of living in Vranje," Stojković emphasizes.
According to unofficial data, the City of Vranje does not receive a single percent of the total budget of the Republic of Serbia, so it is easy to draw a conclusion about the state of the local economy.
He adds that the current situation with support for the ruling party is very interesting, although Vranje is considered a large progressive stronghold.
"According to the claims of the president of the SNS City Committee in Vranje, they have 12.000 members." And the sports hall can fit 5.000 people. Despite this, several dozen buses from other cities arrive at each meeting. So where are those 12.000 members", asked Stojković.
Progressive government
As the main things that marked the period of SNS rule from 2016 (before that SPS was in power), the editor of the "InfoVranjske" portal sees the closure of the weekly "Vranjske" in 2017, the departure of the companies "Geox" and "Spilit", as and "demographic massacre", because Vranje has lost 10.000 inhabitants since the previous census.
On the example of the "Vranjska" weekly, one can see the scenario of the SNS rule and their attitude towards absolutely everyone who does not think the same as them. The newspaper was shut down after 23 years of publication and more than 1.000 printed issues, after Tax and other inspections stayed in the editorial office of this local weekly for many weeks.
"The Serbian Progressive Party showed that it wants to rule this city." Although they were extinguished by the editor Vukašin Obradović, those pressures were simply not sustainable. That's how they showed us in 2017, in the first year of their reign, what they wanted their media and the whole city to look like," he emphasizes.
In addition, the rule of the progressives in this city was marked by the companies "Geox" and "Spilit", which were announced as big investments, only to be suddenly closed after several years of operation, and 1.200 workers lost their jobs. Despite President Vučić's loud promises, the number of workers from these companies who managed to get new jobs is much smaller than promised.
The decline of the city
One of the most significant things that happened in the previous decade was certainly the mass departure of residents.
"When the New Year holidays are over, the city remains half-empty." And it is felt at every step. And on the accounts in cafes and stores, literally everywhere," says Stojković.
That trend, in his opinion, will continue, and there is almost no hope that the situation will improve.
Speaking about poverty, he cites the example that the City of Vranje is the seat of the Pčinj district, and that the residents of Vladičina Han receive higher salaries, and almost equal to their neighbors from the much smaller Surdulica.
The salaries of the residents of Vranje were and remain far below the national average, and a large number of residents barely "make ends meet".
"In most cases, salaries are around the minimum, that is, around 50.000 dinars." Many bars are closed. Coffee in cafes is from 130 to 170 dinars. In most restaurants, coffee and coke cost from 300 to 400 dinars," he says.
Although some things are more affordable, the citizens of this city pay the same prices for gasoline, electricity and other things that make up everyday life, which have "gone to heaven". How they manage to survive, only they know, if you take into account that the pensions of the largest number of pensioners are from 20.000 to 40.000 dinars, so the previous increases in the last few years mean almost nothing to them.
"I will give an example of how alarming the situation is." The City of Vranje became the owner of five percent of the company 'Jumko', a former textile giant, in the name of debt, and then the same City of Vranje again allows the company to borrow from it. So, the debts are forgiven again for the sake of maintaining the semblance of social peace and the continuation of the operation of that company, which is in huge losses," explains Stojković.
The situation is similar with "Simp", which also operates with big problems and huge debts, while the workers receive salaries that are at the level of minimum wages in Serbia.
"Poverty is at every step, and anyone who comes to this city can see that. This is reflected in the people on the streets, as well as in the buildings that were built in the second half of the 20th century and are still not finished. "There are many houses that were built on two or three floors, and which are still in red brick and which have not yet been renovated," concludes Stojković.
Most citizens sit on two chairs
Zoran Radulović, a journalist without current employment, in the past winner of several prestigious awards in this profession, including the NUNS Award for Investigative Journalism, assesses that the voting body in the south of Serbia is opportunistic, and that it measures who it will side with in the current political situation .
"The largest and most persistent group of voters in Vranje, and in the entire south of Serbia, is made up of opportunists, regardless of their declarative commitment to the left, right or liberalism. It has been like this here since time immemorial, not only since the introduction of the multi-party system. Mass protests therefore cause confusion and nervousness, because it is still not known for sure who will be the winner - Vučić or the students. Recently, more and more people in personal contact have the need to tell me: 'I have never voted for SNS, but...' So, most of them sit on two chairs, collect information, weigh and wait for the right moment to publicly stick to the side they are on something will happen," says Radulović.
He does not think that enough people turn out for protests in this city.
"I saw more of the world at the protests in Babušnica, where less than 5.000 people live." That says enough about my city, which, according to the last census, has more than 74.000 inhabitants. I have no insight into what exactly is going on behind the scenes, as the local media coverage is absolutely disastrous. "Maybe I'm wrong, but it seems to me that there is currently no clear idea of what and how to do it, nor is there a visible broad and organized coalition that could provide support to students here," assesses the interlocutor of "Vremena".
The grotesque arrogance of progressives
He reminds that the SPS ruled the city for a quarter of a century, and in that, in the role of minority partners, it was helped by the local committees of all relevant political parties in Serbia.
"Since 2016, SNS has taken the lead here, of course, in cooperation with the socialists." In my opinion, essentially, a similar policy, a similar style of governance and behavior is at work all the time - populism, party abuse of public resources and disavowal of procedures. The difference is only in finesse and intensity. All the flaws of the SPS government were expanded and strengthened by the progressives. There were periods when it was possible to breathe, but in recent years it has become increasingly difficult. The arrogance of advanced officials is grotesque, and this trait is characteristic of people who are insecure about themselves and their knowledge, which is necessary for the performance of complicated public functions. This is what sets progressives apart, what makes them significantly different from other local politicians," explains Radulović.
And he sees the closure of the weekly "Vranjska" as the best example of the attitude of the local government towards all those who do not think like SNS.
"The best example of the attitude of progressives towards dissidents, especially towards professional journalists and the media, is the fate of 'Vranje', where I spent a large part of my journalistic career. That newspaper was shut down in 2017, and it was one of the most recognizable city brands, not only media, and not only in Serbia. In 23 years of existence, it has never been easy and pleasant there. All that newsroom survived and went over the top. Not the progressives. They estimated that this local media is their most serious political enemy that should be destroyed. And they succeeded in that," said Radulović.
To the question: what is it like to be a journalist in Vranje, without depending on SNS, and not being part of their propaganda machine, he answers:
"In the middle of 2015, I founded a company, launched a portal and started applying to idiotic competitions for co-financing media projects. My city granted me funds for the first time in 2018 – a whole hundred thousand, gross. If you take it, you'll regret it, if you don't, you'll regret it again. That's how progressives work. It sounds banal, but the local government did not want to send me parliamentary material in electronic form, although I went to the authorities twice to protest about it. And, in 2017, they stopped inviting me to party events. Then, in 2018, the head of the Communal Police identified me on the street and rushed me, forbidding me to photograph a progressive political rally in the city center. Then I had enough of everything".
He says that professional journalism in the south of Serbia is only possible with constant donor support, which does not guarantee either personal safety or property security.
"On the contrary, you will become a target," continues Radulović. "We know what happened to our colleague Milan Jovanović. Journalists in small communities therefore have two options: either to comply with the demands of the authorities or to, sooner or later, give up everything. I gave up, five years ago, for the second time in my life. I hope, again only temporarily".
"The Empire of the Poor"
Speaking about the purchasing power of the people of Vranje, he quotes Zoran Kostić Canet from Partibrejkers and assesses that it is the "Empire of the poor".
"I'm not a big believer in 'random' statistics, but one of them just can't be ignored." According to the 2002 census, the city of Vranje had 88.000 inhabitants, and today there are even 14.000 less. Moreover, stories are circulating in the bazaar that the real situation is even worse: in the ruling structures, it seems, there is a fear of losing the status of a city because Vranje is missing 30.000 souls. And that tells you everything about purchasing power and standard. "Decades ago, everyone ran away from here without regard," states Radulović.
He points out that no one knows anything about the events in the factories in Vranje, because - no one reports on it.
"For the purposes of this conversation, I took a look at APR, at the financial reports of the former giants, 'Simp' and 'Jumka'. Both companies regularly make huge losses. The net loss of 'Simp' for 2022 is 737, and for 2023, 762 million dinars. The same is true of 'Jumko', which three years ago sank by 368 million dinars, and the following year almost twice as much - 678 million dinars. There are no indicators for last year yet, but I'm afraid the situation is even worse," says Radulović.
As for the promises, before they took over the local government, it was the progressives who said that they would save the aforementioned factories. The result is visible. All of this actually hides a large political investment that all citizens pay for.
"When we know that about three thousand people work in 'Simp' and 'Jumko', to which we must also add employees in the public sector, so when we multiply all that by at least three (family members), we arrive at a figure of about 15 thousand people who are directly exposed to the influence and pressure of the authorities. Therefore, on the day of any elections, SNS leads here with, say, 15.000 to zero, which, according to the average recorded turnout, gives it the status of the strongest party in the local parliament," concludes Radulović.
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