The mistreatment of Croatian singer Severina Vučković and her four-hour detention at the border is the latest in a series of incidents showing that Serbia is taking on the “disgraceful role” it played in the region during the 1990s, said Aleksandra Jerkov, a member of the Executive Board of the Regional Academy for Democracy Development.
Regarding Vučković’s statement that Serbian police detained her at the border and questioned her about her views on the genocide in Srebrenica, Operation Storm, and lithium mining in Serbia, Jerkov said it was an “assault on freedom of speech and a message to Serbian citizens, particularly those of Croatian descent, that there are rules in Serbia and the regime decides what is permitted and what is not.”
Jerkov criticized Aleksandar Vucic’s regime for drawing a clear line that tolerates nothing but the level of 1990s wartime politics and the “culture” of Baja Mali Kninxha. She further noted that as long as the autocratic regime is in power, Serbia will remain a lonely province and an isolated island in the Balkans, with high walls against anything Western and European.
She praised Severina Vučković as “a woman who courageously fights against chauvinism, advocates confronting the past, and builds connections between countries in the region through her art and activism.”
Jerkov added that Vučković has been a target for many years of those who thrive on division, cultivate hatred, and benefit from it. She mentioned that the Serbian Orthodox Church has long campaigned against Vučković, recently due to her political views, particularly those on the Srebrenica genocide and support for Montenegro, which have been attacked by regime-controlled media in Serbia.
She emphasized that the current threat to Vučković’s right to work because of her opinions, which the regime dislikes, shows that Serbia is led by people who do not recognize international court decisions, reintroduce verbal criminal offenses, and will mercilessly punish anyone politically unsuitable for any reason.
Today, Severina told Croatian portal 24 sata that she will not return to Serbia while Vucic is in power, whom she labeled as the “greatest ustasha for Serbs” who “expelled hundreds of thousands of Serbs from the country due to his politics and economy,” while the rest now struggle with lithium poisoning.
She declared that she loves Serbia where 100,000 Serbs are protesting for environmental protection to preserve their land and added that “the one currently leading Serbia will not divert attention from the problems faced by Serbs in Serbia by mistreating her.”
Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dačić confirmed that border police detained Severina based on “verbal offense” lists but also warned that he will seek their annulment.
