UNMIK ON AIR
29 April 2003
Djindjic after effects
(Luan Qorraj)
Hello and welcome to
UNMIK ON AIR with Martin Redi and Sputnik Kilambi
In one way or the
other, the murder last month of Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic has
affected not just Serbia but the entire region. Dubbed the “man of reform”, Djindjic was committed to
transforming Serbian society, still struggling to set itself free of the
Milosevic legacy. Djindjic was also the
one who made it possible for Milosevic to be sent to The Hague and for both the
West pro-European Serbs, he was the man of choice to put an end to an era of
wars and internal turmoil.
Officially, a criminal
clan known as “the Zemun group” killed Zoran Djindjic – Zemun began as a
criminal gang in the early 80s – their clout reached an all time high during
the 90s when their activities were often in accordance with the policy of the
Milosevic regime. Rumors have also connected the group to political
assassinations committed during that period – the theory is that Zemun members
were recruited to do the regime’s dirty work in exchange for police turning a
blind eye to their actions.
Other groups blamed for
involvement in the murder include the infamous “red berets “ a special
antiterrorist unit within the Yugoslav army and the notorious “Frenki’s units”
– a paramilitary unit led by Franky Simantovic, accused of committing some of
the most horrific war crimes during the breakup of Yugoslavia.
Over 2000 people were
arrested during the clampdown after the Djindjic assassination. Some suspects were shot dead with the police
claiming they were resisting arrest.
Human rights groups also expressed concern at violations committed under
the cover of state of emergency rules imposed after the murder.
And not everybody is
happy with official explanations about the murder and with the investigation
itself.
Leading human rights
activist, Sonja Biserko of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia’s,
for example, says the police may have arrested some of the people involved, but
the entire background is still far from being known.
Sonja Biserko: His murder is of the utmost importance in the
history of Serbia. It is very important to look at the murder from a broader
context since it is not enough just to know who were the direct murderers,
which has been the case up to now, but the entire background should be revealed
and that is more important.
Given the fact that
emotions were running high after the murder, adds Biserko, it was easy for the
government to announce a state of emergency throughout Serbia. Still, one thing remains unclear - if all
the names of the executioners of the crime are known, where are the names of
the people who ordered it, she asks. Moreover, despite the fact that the
streets were cleared of “ordinary”
criminals and that up to 72 percent of Serbs today say that they feel safer
then ever, the real danger has not been removed. The surgery undertaken by the
Serbian government, she stresses, took care of the body of the beast, but left
its head untouched.
Sonja Biserko: The government has made an
enormous cut but that cut wasn’t radical enough since the addresses of the real
crime are high up in the army, in the financial-economic elite, which has up to
now remained untouched. It is invisible – and they, the people in the
background remain unknown. So, since the beginning this has been a horizontal
not a vertical fight against crime.
Another negative
development that has remained unnoticed, she adds, is the restructuring of the
“patriotic front”. Old hard- liners who were sidelined after the fall of
Milosevic have started teaming up again.
Sonja Biserko: The society has stagnated for
the past 15 years, I could even say that it has gone backwards and the decay
that lasted for 15 years, especially the moral decay, is in any case an
excellent basis for the creation of a wider front which does not want those
changes to happen.
So what will the final verdict be? Will the murder of the
Serbian PM be the last kick of a dying mule or will the beast whose body has
been destroyed resurrect itself through another “Zemun group” or another Franky
Simantovic? According to Sonja Biserko this is where the international
community needs to be vigilant - the truth behind Djindjic’s assassination is
also in their interest.
Sonja Biserko: It mostly depends on how much
the international community wishes to engage – and it seems that that it does
want to stabilize Serbia. Amongst other things, the funeral of Zoran Djindjic
has shown that the entire world and the region is worried about what is
happening in Serbia so it has a lot of interest in stabilizing it. It is
obvious that Serbia, as it is currently, is pulling the entire region
downwards.
Sonia Biserko of the Helsinki Committee for human rights in
Serbia talking to UNMIK on air. Thanks
for listening.