Serbia’s political establishment continues to treat Kosovo’s independence as a political taboo, according to Daniel Bochsler, an expert on Serbian politics, who has also discussed the positions within the student movement that defeated Aleksandar Vučić’s party in the parliamentary elections.
In an interview with the Swiss media outlet Watson, Bochsler, who has been studying Serbian politics for more than 20 years, said it was extremely difficult to find a political party in Serbia willing to speak openly in favour of Kosovo’s independence.
Commenting on the relationship between the student movement and Serbian nationalists, Bochsler noted that during the protests, some participants were seen carrying flags with inscriptions and symbols portraying Kosovo as part of Serbia.
However, he said the student movement had managed to keep a significant number of strongly nationalist candidates off its electoral list.
According to Bochsler, this was achieved through a veto mechanism used by student councils at universities and faculties when selecting candidates.
“The Kosovo issue is a political taboo in Serbia. You will not find a party in Serbia where someone openly speaks about the independence of Kosovo,” Bochsler stated.
He added that the veto mechanism had worked relatively well within the student movement, preventing many nationalist candidates from being included on the electoral list.
Ultimately, Bochsler said, the candidates who most clearly represented both political extremes within the movement were excluded from the list.
Nevertheless, it remains unclear what position Serbia’s new government will take towards Kosovo, as the student movement comprises groups with different ideological convictions.
