Deputies who started doing their job

This text was written on Tuesday evening, we cannot know what will happen the next day, the day before "Vreme" is on the newsstands. The opposition listened to the critics and called on citizens to block the judicial building in Novi Sad on Wednesday. We will see if and in what number the citizens will respond to this call, but also if someone will become a new political prisoner.

Mainly, led by republican MPs Borislav Novaković (NPS), Nebojš Novaković (DS), Ana Oreg (PSG) and Marinik Tepić (SSP), provincial MPs Radivoj Jovović (PSG) and Guto Grubački (ZLF), and some city councilors, the oppositionists are blocked the front and alternative entrances to the Novi Sad court and prosecution building on Tuesday at 7.30:XNUMX a.m. So, at the time when the employees arrive at work. Later, some from Belgrade joined the opponents from Novi Sad. During the previous night, information about the blockade leaked to the police, so their "robocaps" were already in the building. At the same time, "info" was leaked to the opposition that the police found out about the action, but that they were not prepared for any major action that would entail the complete impossibility of the blockade.

A certain police chief initially tried to talk "reasonably" with the deputies, asking them to free the entrance and find some other, more "legitimate" way to send a message to the citizens and express their political anger. They replied that they were only doing their parliamentary work, that they were representing the interests of the citizens, that this institution was politically blocked anyway, and that they were only stating the current situation. Only you, police officers, do your job, and we will do ours!

Then the policemen in full military gear came out of the building, and the crowding began for several hours. Some policemen were zealous, they pushed the MPs heartily and beat them on the legs a bit, and some were visibly benevolent. It is clear to them what kind of stupid situations the progressive regime puts them in and how it abuses them. They know some things better than us, for sure.

The opposition called on the policemen to take off their helmets and put away their "anti-terrorist" equipment, or at least to return to the building, protect it from the inside and not create an unnecessary circus and commotion. At times the situation was on the verge of a more serious incident. One photo attracted a lot of public attention: a grandmother from the local "Bravo" movement kept the baton and ballistic shield of a policeman who went to the toilet. Another curiosity: some lawyers who went to the court for the hearings stayed in front of the court, as a sign of support for the MPs - they brought them water from a nearby tobacconist. It was too much for us, one will say. Anyway, the blockade was successful!

In their statements to the media, the opposition members emphasized the absolutely absurd and worrying situation, the injustice screaming to the heavens: while those who expressed their anger over the fact that 14 people lost their lives are in custody (unfortunately, one of the injured, twenty-four-year-old Anja, also died in the meantime) Radonjić from Paraćin, so the number of victims increased) due to the unprofessional, highly corrupt, and variously veiled reconstruction of the Railway Station in In Novi Sad, none of those responsible for this terrible crime has been detained or named so far. Of course, those who were sent by SNS to destroy the Novi Sad City Hall are also at large. Admittedly, they weren't the only ones doing it, there were revolted kids there too. The latter will answer, as things stand.

At the meeting on November 5, as well as at later protest rallies, citizens expressed their anger not only because of the tragedy, but also because of the way the government "managed" this horrible event, using lies that were quickly exposed. It is not really an exaggeration to say that the regime's spins from November 1, when the canopy fell, until today, say that the "Vučići" people are only interested in this event as something that can threaten their political rating, and that should be prevented at all costs.

They are aware that their voters are also shocked by the fact that, through secret contracts which, according to the rules, mean a lot of cash in the pockets of individuals and the party, 65 million euros were spent so that some "experts" from the SNS list of cooperative companies arranged the architectural masterpiece of Imre Farkaš ( opened in 1964) so ​​it kills people. Not only did the canopy fall, but - according to the architects and builders - the statics of the entire building are threatened, so that it will either have to be demolished or its serious reconstruction will take a long time and cost godfather. And maybe the building itself will collapse if it snows heavily, they express fear.

photo: nenad mihajlović / tanjug

PARALLEL PROCESSES

The Higher Public Prosecutor's Office in Novi Sad, in cooperation with the Police Department in Novi Sad, conducts the so-called pre-investigation procedure, supposedly devotedly searching for those responsible for the tragedy at the train station. But in complete secrecy. From time to time, he just comes out with a statement and bluntly states that a certain number of characters have been questioned, and that this case is their priority above all other priorities. The first problem pointed out by legal experts: the hearing is taking place like on a factory line, the obvious aim is to show the public how the Prosecution is working at full speed by throwing out the numbers of the sixty or seventy who gave evidence. Like when Vučić talks about Serbia's economic successes, flaunting numbers without context.

Another problem is the already mentioned absolute secrecy of the procedure: it is clear that it cannot be completely transparent at this stage, but the public also has an interest in finding out at least basic information about what is happening during it. It is clear that the proceedings are not public, in the sense that we can sit in the hall and listen to what was said (admittedly, journalists from "Informer" and the rest of the regime's menagerie can do that), but it must not be completely out of the public eye either. The public would have to know who was questioned, under what circumstances, what was the subject of the expert examination and how far it has come. Thirdly, is it possible that none of the possible suspects were detained, if for no other reason than because of the possibility of influencing the witnesses, which is more than real here?

The fourth problem is perhaps bigger than the previous ones. Novi Sad, no matter how swollen it is, is still a small city, so information is coming from the police and the prosecutor's office that the proceedings are being formally or informally managed by a special progressive team that arrived from Belgrade. Their goal is not, of course, to get justice for the victims and guilt for those responsible, but to carry out the proceedings in such a way that no additional political damage is caused to the SNS, that all deposits of corrupt actions are not revealed and that those close to and important to that party are protected people. Hence the great mystery. According to how much the matter will be forgotten and suppressed by other events and quasi-events, it will be assessed whether someone will be "victimized". Maybe some painter, say the cynics. Or just gravity, as we said.

There is no justice, but there is as much injustice as you want. Those who should be in custody are at liberty, and those who should be with their families are languishing in prison on Klisa. What is worth for Jupiter, is not worth for an ox.

Some citizens and politicians who protested on November 5 criticized the detention, although - again according to the lawyer - there is no basis for it. Goran Ješić pushed away an unidentified person who was abusing a young man in front of television cameras. We still don't know if that person is really a policeman. Ješić certainly could not influence the witnesses. And they were interrogated in the meantime, so it is not clear why he is in custody. Other reasons may be that they will repeat the crime or that they will flee the country. Bullshit! Can you imagine Ješić walking around Novi Sad and pushing the policemen away? Or how is he running away? Why would you do that? In the end, when one of the unidentified identified himself with a police badge, Ješić became very cooperative. It was seen by millions on the screens. It was not without reason that he thought that the hooded men who abused the kid were part of the SNS criminal squads. Misha Bachulov, a city councilor, is also in custody, because he spilled a cistern of "Zrenjanin water" in front of the City Hall. Allegedly, this caused a general danger, i.e. could cause an enormous infection. It was also announced by the unfortunate "Batut" institute. The fact that sewage is leaking at every corner in Novi Sad, and there are faecal lakes in the country - nothing to anyone! Now, can we imagine Bachulov going around the city and emptying the cisterns again? Or run away somewhere despite his family? And why on earth would you run?

A child who was abused on camera by plainclothes policemen, without identification, also without any basis, is also in custody. He was dragged by the bushes as the most hardened criminal because he protected the girl from bullies. This detainee is a student of the Academy of Arts in Novi Sad. His name is Relja Stanojević.

photo: Zoran Mrđa / Fonet

WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING IN NOVI SAD APROPO "CANOPIES"

Last Friday, the action "14 minutes of standing, 14 days later, for the 14 dead" was held in Novi Sad. At the invitation of associations and opposition parties, citizens stood from 11.52:12,06 (that's when the canopy at the Railway Station fell, and the luck in the accident is that it didn't happen a little earlier, because the number of victims would have multiplied due to such a timetable) until 15:XNUMX. Traffic was partially stopped, and even those from the civil service came out and stood in front of their offices. Fear is not really all-powerful and all-holding. In the days after the tragedy, theater performances began with the reading of the names of the dead. In the meantime, we found out that Anja also passed away, for whose life the doctors fought unsuccessfully. Therefore, a similar action will be held next Friday, when citizens will stand for XNUMX minutes.

"The United Opposition of Novi Sad invites the people of Novi Sad to stop for 11.52 minutes on Friday at 15:XNUMX, I hope. For pupils to leave the classrooms, students from the amphitheater, for workers to stop their machines, for drivers to get out of their vehicles. Fifteen minutes to create a thunderous silence", Miloš Tubić from the NDSS called on the citizens on behalf of the opposition. We will write about whether this action was as successful as the previous one, but - whatever it is - the fact is that Novi Sad is terribly upset and affected by the tragedy. The authorities will need a lot of energy and money to do so, at least in the capital of Vojvodina. It is to be hoped that the above-mentioned thinkers from social networks will not unknowingly and recklessly help them in this.

How sensitive the matter is is shown by the propulsive news from the event on Sunday, when, at the invitation of the student organizations "Stav" and "Sviće", citizens blocked the intersection of Bulevar oslobodenja and Bulevar Jaša Tomić, in front of the "scene of the crime", that is, the Railway Station, from 12 until 18 p.m. At this gathering - let's say the reason was the cold, but certainly also the violence in front of the City Hall, which was clearly produced to a good extent by the progressive government - there was not nearly as many people as gathered at this place on November 5. However, the intersection was blocked for six hours, actress Jelena Stupljanin and singer and columnist Marcelo gave speeches. The symbol of the rally is a picture of a dove (by the way, the dove is on the city's coat of arms) crying and bleeding in front of the Railway Station. Peaceful and dignified, with banners and drawn bloody fists all around.

photo: Zoran Mrđa / Fonet

However, somehow the main news from the meeting turned out to be that a certain person appeared at the meeting with a flag that said EUjdan. It introduced some confusion and turbulence, because the organizers did not want the flags to draw attention to the meaning of, as they say, the commemorative gathering. We will not go into the reasons of the bearer of the flag, but it is a fact that in the past the regime used such mechanisms to make protest rallies meaningless. For example, unidentified people with various "Chetnik" markings appeared at the head of the column of citizens. Thus, a message was sent to the West that right-wing extremists, Russophiles, are behind the protests. Now it turned out that the organizers, the students, are some kind of Putinophiles because they asked for the flag to be removed.

We should not forget the old news from November 8. Blockade of the Varadin bridge. Then the citizens, as a form of civil disobedience, blocked this bridge for six hours, in order to repeat the demands of November 5: the resignation of the mayor of Novi Sad, Milan Đurić, and the Prime Minister of Serbia, Miloš Vučević, the prosecution of all those responsible, as well as the removal of the secrecy mark from the contract on the reconstruction of the Railway stations.

The gathering was accompanied by events that reminded us of Chile during the period of General Pinochet's rule. At the Petrovaradin station, unidentified thugs put female students of the Faculty of Philosophy into some kind of black car without license plates and took them in an unknown direction. For a long time it was not known what happened to them. Also, the truck that was supposed to block the bridge and that had the sound system on it, was promptly taken out of traffic and sent for an extraordinary technical inspection. After being released from custody, Goran Ješić and Miša Bačulov were returned to custody.

The common characteristic of all these gatherings are bloody fists drawn on the streets, fences and buildings, fists that have become a symbol of resistance to the progressive regime, a kind of new fist. They send the message that this regime's hands are bloody, and that it is difficult to wash the hands of human blood. Admittedly, the regime has long been accustomed to its bloody hands, it has not even tried to wash them since the beginning of the nineties. After each rally, massive teams of City Cleanliness quickly arrive at the venue. They remove symbols and inscriptions. So the next day, after the protest, they kept the bridge closed for a long time for cleaning. All in all, November days are hot in Novi Sad, and there will be more, it seems.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON

But Novi Sad did not become a kind of political and media capital of Serbia just because of the tragedy at the train station and the events that followed it. In it, in parallel, a very cruel, no longer only underground, but also public conflict is taking place within the Serbian Progressive Party, within its political and criminal parts, if they can even be viewed as separate entities.

As for the political, we have already written about it, so let's just briefly repeat it. There was a long-lasting conflict between groups led on one side by the old radical fox Igor Mirović, until recently the Prime Minister of Vojvodina, and on the other by the quasi-boss and quasi-leader of the SNS, Miloš Vučević. If the well-informed are to be believed, he is just Andrej Vučić's toy, his surrogate. Alexander could not really put his brother as prime minister, maybe such a thing will happen in the future.

As expected, Mirović turned out to be the loser. However, it is somewhat unexpected that Mirović's cadres were very harshly and quickly removed from their positions, some of them went through real torture. The calculation was, as it happens, about the control of money and influence, but it also included those institutions where there is not much money. I guess every dinar is important for crocodiles. We should make room for more loyal and obedient staff, those from the bottom of the bucket. As a consequence of that conflict, ultranationalist Nikola Pejaković Kolja was imported from Belgrade, that is, Republika Srpska, to the position of Drama director of the Serbian National Theater, and Aja Jung to the position of Ballet director. Both staunch progressive loyalists. The appointments caused a great revolt in Novi Sad, even among those who have been silent all these years about all the wrongdoings of the authoritarian system.

But it seems that much more serious things are simmering in the background, in the deep darkness of the regime's basements, where a huge hunt is going on. Novi Sad is the "golden hen" of progressives, a well thought-out project from which millions and millions of euros are extracted for the party and prominent individuals. Citizens pay for it through incredibly high prices of everything, from real estate to the so-called consumer goods. Through the destroyed infrastructure. And human victims.

Immediately after the tragedy, Vučić announced that he would deal with crime and drug dealers in Novi Sad. I guess it was a way to immediately divert attention from the tragedy. At the same time, he was referring to a man who until recently was highly trusted by the Serbian Progressive Party.

In question is the controversial businessman Goran Kovačević from Goranac, who directly and indirectly received lucrative jobs from the state. According to the testimony of opposition member Borislav Novaković, the Goranac obtained as many as 19.000 safe, i.e. bought and blackmailed, votes for the progressives in the elections in Novi Sad and the surrounding area. More than the "famous", also - to put it mildly - controversial Marko Bosanc Bosket. Some claimed that the Goranac overplayed his game and would play the role of the "Novi Sad Belivuk", but that did not happen, at least for now. Despite the president's firm promise to reward, the Goranian screwed him up and slipped far away. It was probably an agreement, and the Prosecutor's Office, of course, did not think that such a thing could happen, and order this person to be detained. Maybe we will find out somehow how this tangle will end, and it is more realistic that all this will be covered by "snow and sedge".

It's no secret that Luka Bojović, a former member of the Serbian Volunteer Guard and a close associate of Željko Ražnatović Arkan, stepped onto the Novi Sad basement scene, which is rocked by great players Veselinović and Andrej Vučić, as a big Hollywood star. This led to new tectonics in Novi Sad's underground corridors, whose statics are threatened. Allegedly, freight forwarding and other lucrative businesses are taken over there, and some very successful and powerful companies.

The following can be heard in well-informed pubs: Bojović has a "big mission", Novi Sad will only finance it. He needs, with the help of secret state structures, including the remnants of the "red berets", to create a superstructure that will have the task of dealing with the Veselinović-Radoičić clan at a certain moment, to which the party and crime-crippled state security services cannot do anything. And the West demands that these be removed. Only Luka Bojović can do that. Now, maybe this is all bullshit and nonsense, but we're not sure that anyone who is even remotely informed would bet on it.