Serbia Center MP Slobodan Petrović asked the defense minister a question in the Parliament on Thursday Bratislava Gašić Is it true that they are in Serbian Army overcommands of officers and non-commissioned officers who support protests on social networks, like posts that support them or participate in them together with family members have begun.
Two "Vremena" sources, from Belgrade and Novi Sad, confirmed this information, because people from their units were suddenly reassigned "as needed by the service", to the 4th brigade in Vranje and the 2nd in Kraljevo.
Under attack from the VBA
"Overnight, two senior officers from my unit received a decision on reassignment, who did not hide their support for the protests and published it on their Facebook profiles. These are young, capable people, who have freed themselves from fear and think for themselves. I would not be surprised if they submitted a request to leave the military service. The Military Security Agency (VBA) acquired a sophisticated program and now monitors social networks more than it deals with crime in the army and counterintelligence protection, which "It's their main job. They also monitor the posts of their family members," says the major from Belgrade.
When asked why he was not "recommended", considering that he himself participates in protests, as well as members of his family, and is also active on social networks, he explains that they need him at the place where he works, it is very "sensitive" and it is difficult to find a replacement overnight.
"They already tried to demote me once, transfer me to a worse job, just for those reasons, but now they're fed up, they can't find a replacement. And if they do that to me, they know I'll leave the army. I can easily find another job, I have three children and I don't want them to feel the trauma of my high command again, which they experienced when they were little. And now imagine that I go to Bujanovac, to some imaginary formation place and see my family once a year 15 or a month".
He also indicates that this is a way for the VBA to intimidate the elders to "get over" the protest and stop "liking" posts on social networks. "They didn't call me, but my younger colleagues did, blackmailing them with pre-orders and preventing them from advancing. Most gave in, but some didn't, and what happened to them happened."
"Observation" at protest rallies
An officer from Novi Sad, a participant in the protest, also says that he will leave the army if he is given a command in Vranje or Kraljevo.
"I've settled down here and I think I'll wait for my retirement. I have nothing against a command post in, for example, Sremska Mitrovica, Bačka Topola or Sombor, that's part of the military call, I can travel every day. And my VES (military registration specialty) is completely unnecessary down there. I would have been, in my prime, an unemployed man. That's why I didn't enroll in the Military Academy and become an officer. And Vučić constantly complains about the lack of personnel in Vojvodina and that the 1st brigade is not filled, which is true".
That officer also confirms that a senior officer from his unit was told that he would go to the south of Serbia, even though he was a professional who always received "excellent" grades. The formal reason is "need for service", but the actual Facebook posts.
"On November 1st, I was at a commemorative gathering, I recognized 'colleagues' from the VBA who were observing us, probably filming us. Once I even called and ironically congratulated him for coming privately, not officially, to honor the victims of the fall of the canopy. He ran away with his head regardless."
Military personnel are persecuted for participating in protests, while on the other hand, officers who go to SNS gatherings and rallies in support of Vučić are rewarded, such as Brigadier General Mihail Zogović, who went to represent the Serbian Army in Vienna.
