The clip has already become an internet meme. In the survey, journalist N1 asks the citizen if he knows what holiday is today. "Railwaymen's holiday?" the man asks. No, says the reporter, but Serbian Unity Day, freedom and the flag.
"Since when?" the man asks. From three days ago. "Very interesting, great," says the gentleman ironically.
It was in 2020 when, in the middle of the pandemic, Serbia got a new holiday. And with it the Republika Srpska.
"Today we proudly mark a day that reminds us of what unites us - unity, freedom and our tricolor," announced President Aleksandar Vučić on his favorite network, Instagram.
"Let this day inspire us to preserve unity, be proud of our roots and pass on the values of freedom and unity to the generations to come."
But what is most important for the Serbian future? Exspo, one would say, given that President Vučić is welcoming the holiday in Osaka, Japan, where the real, big Expo is being held. A smaller, specialized Expo, the mezimche of the Serbian authorities that will occupy Belgrade in 2027, will also be announced there.
An audience with Emperor Naruhito will then be held at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo.
Gadžin han and the second day
By the way, September 15 is celebrated in memory of the breakthrough of the Thessaloniki front. That holiday was jointly introduced by Vučić and Milorad Dodik.
Futile flagging
In Serbia, a celebration in Gadžino Han was shyly announced as the "central manifestation".
But, since Vučić is in Japan, and holidays seem to have a sliding character, the real central manifestation will be pompously announced military parade "Strength of Unity" scheduled for Saturday (September 20) in Belgrade.
As in 2014, when the last military parade was held in such a large number - ostensibly on the occasion of 100 years since the beginning of the First World War and 70 years since the liberation of Belgrade. However, the date then was October 16, because then Russian President Vladimir Putin found six and a half hours to stop by Belgrade.
This time the parade should be faster, stronger and better. Military planes and helicopters will be flying over Belgrade for days, heavy armored vehicles and tanks are preparing for parades and parades on the New Belgrade boulevard.
There will be, allegedly, ten thousand soldiers, which Vučić announced as the biggest parade ever. That parade, he said, has nothing to do with daily events in Serbia.
"It is an expression of our desire to mark a national holiday and show how much the army has progressed. So that people can see what we invested money in and how much stronger Serbia is than yesterday. So that people can see that they can feel safe," the president said earlier.
He responded to criticism that some "anarcho-liberal left-wing circles" are trying to overthrow the army and all institutions. "First they attacked the Serbian Orthodox Church, and now they want to overthrow the army," he said.
What is being celebrated?
Petar Bošković, military commentator and member of the presidency of the Serbia Center Party (SRCE), previously told "Vreme" that in the midst of "the most difficult situation in the country since the bombing in 1999" it is not the time for any military parade.
Because the parade serves to celebrate something, magnify it, to show something, and "we neither have anything to celebrate, nor do we have a reason why we parade." "The reason for Serbian unity at a time when Serbia is more divided than ever before is absurd," adds Bošković.
Bošković reminded that about 15.000 people left the army in previous years.
"When he can't send the army to the land security zone, he decides that after ten months of madness and so many beaten citizens, he will make a parade with the tortured army, which I don't feel sorry for anymore. It's such a waste of resources and people that it's abnormal," says Bošković.
On Saturday, it will be seen how many people will be attracted to the military parade, whether they will be brought there by command or if there will be citizens who oppose the authorities, and then "undesirable" chanting and disciplining of the people.
There is no doubt that the parade spectacle will be intended primarily for those in front of the so-called "small screens" that should be overshadowed by the pretended strength of the army. The army has traditionally had a good reputation among Serbs, so now part of that should go to Vučić, who calls himself commander-in-chief anyway, after polls show that his popularity has wavered.
After that, it will remain to calculate the guild and to call for tenders for asphalting streets that are not normally intended for tank tracks. And it is known who wins the tenders.
