Chronicle of a fiasco

Anything can be said about Ćaciland. A lot of it has already been told, filmed or seen on the spot. From the beginning of its existence until today - almost a month later - it has gone through several stages. From the time when relatively young people who "just want to learn" gathered in the park, through the filling of the battle ranks with some veterans of paramilitary formations and auxiliary extras, to the big protest on March 15, when only boys with hoods and phantoms remained in Ćaciland, announcing themselves with cannon shots at the demonstrators. Therefore, Ćaciland became a phenomenon in itself, which, according to newspaper columns, psychologists have already started to deal with. The term "čaci", which originated from satire, has established itself on both sides of the fence. The first used him for ridicule, and the others are trying to rehabilitate him in order to justify themselves and their interests - of course, they did not succeed.

photo: marko dragoslavić / fonet

MORNING

In the evening of March 6, Pionirski Park was occupied by a group of young people who allegedly wanted to study. Under the working name "students 2.0" they came to present their demands. Students, it turns out, mostly aren't. Of the five recited demands, four are no longer remembered by anyone, probably not even themselves. Only the first remained - "we want to study and return to the faculties" - which was brought by the medical student Miloš Pavlović from the pro-regime media to Pionirski Park.

Although he did not graduate from the Academy of Young Leaders, Pavlović has made a name for himself as the first among equals with his performances at meetings of the Serbian Progressive Party and guest appearances on obscure shows. As he said, he doesn't like to be called "cousins", but considering that from the start he was one of the few who wanted to talk in front of the cameras, he also got a new title - "King of Ćaciland".

The original idea behind the installation of students 2.0 in Pioneer Park was to create a counterweight to the students who have been blocking Serbia for months. That is why it is not surprising that their appearance was immediately accompanied by a large number of television cameras and reporters - from pro-regime media to the national service - who were there to hear and convey what the "other" students had to say. Thus, on the second day of the camping, the student Pavlović gave a statement to the journalist of "Vremena", even though, as he admitted, he had not heard of our weekly before.

It was clear from the first day that the students "who want to learn" are just another badly staged regime play. Starting with identical heaters and tents, students running away from the cameras, over the unskilled answers from which the faculties allegedly come, and finally the very concept of Ćaciland - conceived as a counter rally to the blockades. Everything instantly turned into a fiasco.

The students in the blockade in each city were greeted with cheers and tons of food served to them by the citizens. In order for the creators of Ćaciland to create the impression that students 2.0 are also accepted by the people, performances followed with "concerned citizens" bringing food. Thus, during the reception at the Presidency of Serbia, student Pavlović said that "a grandmother brought him a leather jacket" because "it was cold and raining", and Vučić replied with pies.

photo: Marko Đoković

In order to differentiate themselves from the students in the blockade, who, as the government says, are rich, students 2.0, "do not roast pigs and do not have rolex watches", so they have a "street of students without rolexes" in the park. And in order to express their patriotism in relation to "those who do not want to study but block and thus slow down the growth of Serbia", they also held demonstrations with flags and singing the national anthem. If it was just about the musicality, they would be forgiven, but a good part of them didn't even know the lyrics, so everything turned into another marketing disaster. Evidence that daily wages were received for engagement in Pionirski Park surfaced immediately. How much someone would get depended on the group in which they would stay, the placement of a mediator who is in charge of bringing people, the task, as well as the days spent in the camp. Members and activists of the ruling party were recognized among the recruiters, who later distinguished themselves in "defending" the SNS stands at the Kalenić Market and Zvezdara. N1 television reporter Mladen Savatović documented how the recruitment process for camping works.

Many journalists tried their hand at visualizing the camp from the inside. Nemanja Šarović was even arrested. The film "Chameleon" - a documentary of infiltrated students of the Faculty of Dramatic Arts who stayed in Ćaciland for several days - provided a credible representation of the situation inside the camp.

photo: marija janković

AFTERNOON

The era of students "who just want to learn" did not last long. Soon, new tents began to spring up in the park, this time military tents. They were mounted by alleged veterans of the Red Berets, a paramilitary formation that commits all kinds of crimes, including the assassination of Prime Minister Zoran Đinđić. To make everything more symbolic, they marched into the park on the anniversary of the murder. They were led by Živojin Ivanović (called Žika Crnogorac) and Goran Radosavljević Guri, the first commander of the Gendarmerie. If the public has forgotten the wartime "merits" of Zika Crnogorac, they will surely be remembered after the performance in Ćaciland. He became viral overnight, when, as can be seen in the video, he attacked one of the young men who was arguing with the boys with a stick over the fence.

Although he did not stay longer, Dragan Vasiljković, better known as Captain Dragan, also visited the camp. Actor Branislav Lečić was also visiting, who gave a motivational speech to the crowd, and former handball player Nedeljko Jovanović also expressed his support.

To increase the number of people and show public support for the rally, the creators of Ćaciland brought to the park SNS officials employed along party lines in state enterprises, as well as those dependent on social assistance. The former, when they completed the task and returned from Ćaciland, were generally greeted with a barrage of eggs in their places. For example - in Obrenovac.

photo: marija janković

In the meantime, the Pioneer Park was surrounded by a metal fence, the Gendarmerie created a cordon, and one morning tractors appeared around the park. As farmers have been protesting together with students for months, it was necessary to draw another parallel with real student protests. Not this one either copycat the move had no success. Moreover, he additionally revolted the public, already outraged by Ćacilanda. Thus, in the days before the protest, the sidewalk around Ćaciland became a kind of attraction in Belgrade. Throws, arguments and insults came from both sides. Although there were threats from the "audience", the veterans of the Red Berets stood out in them, or at least those who played them.

However, the stage was not yet finished.

photo: marija janković

ECLIPSE

Ćaciland showed its true face (and purpose) on the night before the big student protest. The previous line-up was emptied, and some new guys started arriving in the park.

On March 15, the stage was finally ready.

In the morning hours of the protest day, a larger group of masked men was noticed hanging around the entrance to the garage under Pionirski Park. From the plateau in front of the Assembly, it could be seen that there were figures in the park with hoods and masks over their faces. It will turn out that among them was Petar Panić Pana, Vučić's godfather and former Sešelj bully. However, since they probably couldn't gather enough guys, the public also identified officials of the ruling party as acting in this film and acting as hooligans.

On the day of the protest, even some regime media journalists who previously had free entry could not access the park. In the morning, the police released a team of foreign journalists, but with a warning not to stray from the cordon. The cameraman, who misinterpreted the looks of those present inside the camp and thought they were in the mood to make a statement, was kicked and barely resisted an attempt to snatch his camera. The police responded and removed the attackers.

FON students in the blockade announced on IX that their chameleons (intruded students who pretended to be students in Pionirski Park) saw hecklers (automatic rifles) and rubber bullets in one of the tents before the protest on March 15. In addition to uniformed policemen, mainly Gendarmerie, who secured Ćaciland with a living wall, "Vremena" sources claim that plainclothes policemen were also present in the park itself. As they say, the weapon was probably a police weapon.

Police, students, military veterans and bikers ensured that the protest was peaceful. Ćaciland could only be approached from the plateau near the National Assembly - the other streets around the park were closed, in order to avoid incidents. In the evening, the provocations intensified and then culminated with cannon shots from the direction of the park. A loud sound rang out from all sides, and eyewitnesses say that it seemed to come mostly from the direction of Dragoslav Jovanović Street. What was the idea behind the cannon strikes cannot be known for sure. Many talk about an attempt to provoke riots in order to give the police a reason to attack peaceful demonstrators. However, those provocations failed because the student guards, according to an earlier agreement, took off their yellow vests and marked the end of the protest.

When the student protest ended in Slavija, several hundred people remained on the plateau in front of the Assembly. Those in front of the fence, the team from Ćaciland behind it, and in the middle – demolished tractors and the Gendarmerie. Most of the street lighting was turned off, so the parliament plateau remained in semi-darkness.

photo: jovana kulačević / tanjug

THE DAY AFTER

After metastasizing during the March 15 protests, Ćaciland never returned to its original form. The battered tractors were removed a few days later, the Gendarmerie withdrew, but the fence remained and tons of debris behind it. Videos and photos taken in the park immediately after the 2.0 student retreat show ruined camping gear (new), discarded food and trash.

In the central part of the park, larger tents remained, the fence is still there, a dozen mobile toilets and a handful of 2.0 students visible from a distance, who still live in the park. However, tactics seem to have changed. Given that Pionirski Park looked like anything but a student camp for days, the creators decided to spruce it up a bit with an accessory that really resembles a student camp. Thus, "Patology" by Miloš Pavlović is no longer the only book that can be found in Ćaciland. Bookshelves are placed in one of the tents - the 2.0 students call it the reading room - and they also hold press conferences in it.

As the student Pavlović did not become famous (but did become viral) in his speeches to the public, now there are several more representatives among the 2.0 students who come forward to speak. Whether the current group sleeps in Pionirski Park is unknown, but the fact is that the creators of Ćaciland have relatively managed to overcome the original problem of finding extras who at least look like students. Today, students 2.0 want to prove themselves even more, so they have an art section, organize knowledge quizzes, are present on social networks, and Vučić also visited them. And brought dumbbells.

Representatives of the 2.0 students invited the rector of Belgrade University Đokić (he has long been a victim of attacks by the regime and its tabloids), as well as several university professors, for an interview. They did not respond, but Ćaciland was visited once again by the professor of the Faculty of Medicine, Valentina Blagojević - who had previously spoken at SNS support meetings.

The creators of Ćaciland did change their tactics in presenting to the public. As the pathos of the student Pavlović caused a flood of transfer of blame, outrage and contempt, a certain amount of seriousness is noticeable in the new campaign. Some new faces are much better at the microphone. However, a month later, it is already clear to everyone that it is nothing but a big farce, which can only convince the already convinced.

Like all previous counter rallies, this one exposed the differences between the "supporters" of the ruling party. In the park, there were also groups of people dependent on state aid (long ago equated with party aid), who cannot say no and who have traditionally been exploited for political purposes. On the other hand, it is difficult to find any justification for those who, at the time of the deep social crisis that is shaking Serbia, willingly agreed to stay in Ćaciland for a daily wage, seeing in it only a way to earn money.

Jargonically called the Kingdom of Ćaciland still exists in Pionirski Park, and when it is no longer there, it will take a long time to forget that such a thing could have existed in the heart of Belgrade, right next to the monument, the observation tower from Kajmakčalan.