Effects of the "Operation Pozarevac"

Forty-eight hours have passed since the revoking of the rally of the united democratic forces in Pozarevac. Fifty activists and journalists were arrested, and the entire town was blocked in a manner that has been seen in Serbia though never with such intensity, but the effects of what the government and opposition have achieved with this action is still being summarized.
It seems that the regime has strengthened its position by arresting and blocking without any consequences, and was not threatened in a single point of its authority. That of course is a short-term gain, while in the middle and especially the long run the future of the regime is very dismal. The mobilization of democratic forces will become stronger, and ordinary people will want more and more to participate in some form of action against the regime because they have finally seen the true face of the regime: violence, repression and terror.
Even those who stood by the regime out of opportunist and conformist notions will oppose the illegitimate authority - at first shyly and then with increasing mass and strength. The best example is Judge Papovic from Pozarevac, who first refused to accuse the arrested "Otpor" activists of attempted murder, and then resigned because the penal council, prosecutor and police overturned his ruling. An avalanche of resignations and dismissals in the Pozarevac judiciary followed, which shows the fading tendency of this regime.
On the other side the democratic forces showed their weak sides. As much as the government was in panic and chaos on Tuesday the opposition was incapable of making quicker and more responsible decisions. Vuk Draskovic was the one to blame since ego he refused to hold a rally in Belgrade, because of his vain regarding the Ravna Gora celebration.
After the other leaders of the opposition did "him the favor" and postponed the announced rally for Monday, Vuk (who was calling from the Montenegrin seaside) would not accept, but sent an ultimatum saying that he would not join them in Belgrade unless they went with him on Ravna Gora on Saturday.
An hour later he agreed, but the feeling remains that Vuk is behaving like the sultan of the opposition. He is according to popularity and numbers, and no opposition action can be imagined without him, but it's not all smooth with him, because there is a lot of persuading and pressures in convincing him to act.
The opposition is thus blocked from swift action, and every mess of the regime will only hasten decisions, and most of them (in any case) depend on the activists in the field. The democratic forces are capable of as much as they can accomplish. The presidents can (anyway) only pose and make decisions that are predictable and logical to all.
The strength of the activists in the field is shown by express rallies in Kragujevac and Cacak (last night) and the forming of the crisis committees of the democratic forces for solidarity aid for victims of repression, suggested by "Otpor". If the leaders decide to continue applying pressure or early elections with a series of rallies, it will be give in to local opposition activists. Until then the regime has finally shown what kind of resolution it wants for the crisis in Serbia. By avoiding a peaceful ending it is only speeding up its departure, but also the price. Like a gambler, "va bank" the regime is playing all or nothing. "All" is retaining illegitimate power at any cost, and "nothing" is (in the best-case scenario) a one-way ticket to the Hague.

Free Serbia Webteam

Source: Free Serbia

---

Back to Archive | Back to Kosov@ Crisis