A senior official of Serbia’s opposition Party of Freedom and Justice (SSP), Branko Miljuš, has accused the government of using political pressure and censorship against artists and cultural institutions that it cannot control.
Miljuš criticized Culture Minister Nikola Selaković for remaining silent over what he described as the deepest crisis in the history of the Belgrade International Theatre Festival (BITEF), while highlighting government funding for the third Festival of Film and Television NAFFIT.
“BITEF was not held last year, while this year, due to political pressure and censorship, Italian, Portuguese, Lebanese, Argentine and Slovenian artists withdrew their productions, leaving only two works on the festival programme,” Miljuš said, according to the SSP.
He argued that the government’s approach demonstrated what he called systematic repression of independent artistic expression.
Miljuš also accused the authorities of maintaining “blacklists” of actors and directors considered politically undesirable, while claiming that state-owned Telekom Srbija provides substantial financial support to artists who openly support President Aleksandar Vučić.
He said Serbia’s cultural sector needed to be separated from political propaganda and called for what he described as the dismantling of the ruling SNS-led system.
“Ending the abuse of culture for propaganda purposes requires dismantling the progressive regime and establishing a system that guarantees artists freedom of creation and stable funding regardless of who is in power,” Miljuš said.
His remarks come amid growing political tensions surrounding Serbia’s cultural institutions, with opposition parties and independent artists increasingly accusing the authorities of political interference in the arts.
