The Antilithium rebellion is rolling through Serbia and approaching Belgrade. The big summer final is scheduled for August 10 at 19 p.m. at Terazije. All citizens of all political persuasions are invited to gather and show the rulers that the devil has played a joke, that the people tell them that they will not allow them to poison our fertile land, clear rivers and the future of our children.
The official organizer of the protest is the environmental movement Eco Guard, the logistics for holding the meeting was taken over by the Association of Environmental Organizations of Serbia.
It is officially insisted that this protest gathering does not aim to overthrow the government - neither presidential, parliamentary, local, nor any other - but that its only aspiration is to put an end to lithium mining in Serbia once and for all. Rio Tinto is expelled from the country, so that the citizens can peacefully return to their homes, to their daily jobs, to continue as before in the golden age of Serbia and Serbia.
According to the principle, the king's king's, and the people of the Jadra valley.
Conflict in the announcement
Stunned by the success of two years ago, when the government of Ana Brnbić, at the behest of Aleksandar Vučić, under the pressure of mass protests, formally put the "Jadar" project ad act, environmental rebels of all factions are convinced that they can repeat that success now - despite the fact that Vučić this time, regarding Serbian lithium, he promised to Šolc and Mercedes and the European Union; despite the fact that the president is pushing the implementation of the "Jadar" project with the help of the complete party-state-media machinery at his disposal, and the president is not even used to talking to dissenters, let alone defeats.
Judging by the previous statements of both sides, there will be no withdrawal. Some environmental activists announce a road blockade on Saturday and warn their antlithium-minded fellow citizens not to bring children and pets to the protest this time, suspecting that law and order authorities, unlike a few years ago, will not tolerate traffic stops this time.
This apprehension is supported by statements coming from the top of the state and from the Minister of Internal Affairs, Ivica Dačić, by name, that they will prevent any kind of violence, and according to the letter of the law, road blockades could be interpreted as a form of violence.
There is, of course, ready to be used against whomever is needed, and the preventive and threatening charge of attempting to overthrow the constitutional order, for which a multi-year legal sentence threatens. Well, let the citizens see for themselves whether there are so many environmentalists who are ready to go to prison for their ideals.
Thus, this wave of "green" protests, step by step, reached the point of balance, that is, the question: do the people still trust their beloved president, or not?
The question can be rephrased like this: are the people still sufficiently afraid of their president and his kabadahs, or not?
Why is the government orchestrating the conflict?
Of course, in the December and June elections, the dismembered and mutually quarreling opposition parties are waiting for their opportunity to return to the summer political scene in the lithium clash. Party activity is usually limited to giving statements that are broadcast by media that are not controlled by the government and guest appearances in their studios.
As at the beginning of the protests against the violence after the murder of those mighty children on May 3 and 4, 2023 (is it possible that barely more than 15 months have passed since that tragedy!?) the opposition leaders stand aside and watch in which direction will these mass protests across Serbia develop.
These protests were brought into the dimension of political hardcore by the government under the command of Aleksandar Vučić, who was determined to push the "Jadar" project as soon as possible for several reasons: as a pro-Russian autocrat who declares his love for the Chinese and steals elections, he does not stand very well in the so-called the international (Western) community, and in Kosovo he completely turned his tail, there is nothing left to trade there, and in Mile Dodik, his pajtos in the all-Serbian world, for now, however, he would not choose; by promising to allow "white gold" to be extracted from Serbian chert, necessary for the production of batteries, he returned himself to the European political salons, even Solz came to his feet to support him; with EXPO 2027, lithium mining is another outstanding opportunity for lucrative businesses under the grain.
All in all, lithium is a trump card that he can't just give up at this point.
Game of Fears
That is why Vučić is doing now, what he has been doing for years: he puts his own crowned head in the game as a stake, because he, around whom a cult of personality has been carefully built for a whole decade, is the biggest progressive political capital. Just as he gave his name to the local elections in Surdulica, so now the conflict "for and against lithium" in pinks and informers is presented as a conflict "for and against Vučić". The president of the country is counting on his personal outstanding rating, which, despite all the thefts and embezzlements, was really confirmed in the last two election cycles.
The paranoid vocabulary worthy of the "Balkan spy" with which this "attack" on him is presented is common: those who organize protests against lithium want to overthrow Vučić and do dirty work for some foreign services, in order not to stop the development of Serbia, said Vučić himself . But, he promises, the opposition will not be able to come to power without elections "with axes, sticks, or anything else".
And then a thousand more times, so that no one accidentally misses it. There are two goals of these protests, said Vučić: one is the overthrow of Vučić, in order to somehow get hold of power, and the other is to support foreign powers that do not want Serbia to develop. People have to understand that, exclaimed the president who started talking about himself in the third person.
Convinced that, as before, everything will go well for him if he throws himself into the game, Vučić thus single-handedly sharpened the whole lithium story about people's fear of some biblical poisoning into a political struggle "for and against him". He reckons that this rebellion will also backfire, that no one will dare to go against the power of the state, which he has started to rattle loudly.
Although it can be guessed, it is still unknown which fear will prevail: that of apocalyptic pollution, or of state and perhaps para-state retaliation if Vučić gets the upper hand.
The first serious showdown is scheduled for Saturday at Terazije.
