I snapped a hurried shot of these advertising boards from a tram I was travelling on in New Belgrade the other day. The black sign with the white text simply says ‘BE’ in Serbian. Anyone have any idea what it’s for? You can also see from the photo that summer has moved over for winter to take centre stage. It’s cold. Brrrr. At least the city’s turned the heating on!
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Here’s a shot of a barbeque (rostilj in Serbian) I went to over the weekend at a friend’s house. Although it was probably the last outside barbeque of the summer, rostilj is a Serbian speciality and is available to eat in restaurants and fast food places all year round. The sausage shaped items at the back are cevapcici – a delicious combination of minced pork and beef. They are best served with finely chopped raw onion and washed down with a bottle or two of ice cold Serbian beer.
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28-year-old Toulouse football supporter Brice Taton died this morning in a Belgrade hospital. Brice was critically injured on 17 September while sitting with other Toulouse fans in a cafe in central Belgrade when a group of some 30 hooligans/cowards attacked them unprovoked. This incident, along with a series of other attacks on foreigners over the last 2 weeks, has shocked Belgrade and her citizens.
No words can describe how terrible this is. This young man came to Belgrade, a city which has been recently gaining a reputation for being a safe, friendly and welcoming city, to support the team he loved, to spend time with his friends and enjoy himself, but he died at the hands of cowards who need numbers and weapons to carry out their pointless violence.
The police arrested and detained a number of young men and intended to charge them with attempted murder. Now they’ll be facing charges of murder and I hope they receive adequate sentences for their involvement in the death of this visitor to Belgrade.
You may be thinking, “what’s the big deal? Football violence and tourist attacks happen all the time in other countries.” Yes. It does. But it does not happen in Belgrade. Foreigners who have made Belgrade their home go on and on how it is one of the safest places they’ve ever lived. That’s why it is so shocking for us who live here. I’ve never felt threatened in Belgrade – I can’t say the same for the time when I lived in the UK.
The people of Belgrade need to denounce the violence that has taken place on our streets over the last 2 weeks. There are hundreds of condolence comments on Serbian news websites, but Belgraders need to go out and show the world that we will not allow thugs and hooligans to threaten our amazingly safe city. And you know what, I think they will.
The Serbian Ministry of Human Rights has called on citizens to light candles and lay flowers tomorrow, Wednesday 30 September, at 11.30am at Trg Republike (Republic Square).
Also, a Protest Walk Against Violence (in Serbian) will take place on Thursday 1 October at 5pm. Already 700 people have confirmed their participation. The walk will begin at Plato and will then move long Vasina street to Trg Republike, then along Knez Mihailova, ending at the Monument of Gratitude to France in Kalemegdan Park.
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This is Resavska ulica on a sunny afternoon in Belgrade. You may recognise it from this photo I took a few months back when it was in the middle of being dug up and renovated. The street reopened to cars and trams two weeks ago (if memory serves me right). It’s much better now with cars restricted to parking only on the left hand side of the street, leaving space for cafes to put tables and chairs out front (a bit further down and behind the camera) and there is plenty of room for pedestrians, too.
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The second attempt to hold a LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered) pride march in Belgrade has failed. It was announced this morning that it has been cancelled due to security fears. The police and the state can’t guarantee the safety of Serbian citizens marching for tolerance, understanding and an end to discrimination.
Far right nationalist organisations and football hooligans have been threatening violence against the participants of the march, which was supposed to take place tomorrow, 20 September, in central Belgrade. The threats were serious: earlier in the week French football fans were beaten in downtown Belgrade while drinking coffee, with 1 Frenchman rushed to intensive care. Graffiti stating “death to faggots” (everyone seems to forget about the lesbians) and “we’re waiting for you” had appeared all over Belgrade these last weeks.
The march had been seen as a test for Serbia with world organisations, governments and Serbian celebrities calling for tolerance for and understanding of the LGBT community in Belgrade who face serious discrimination. The cancellation of the march, following a meeting between the organisers and the Serbian prime minister this morning, has shown that violent nationalists and hooligans are stronger than the entire Serbian police force.
In hindsight, maybe in face of such violence, it’s best that the march was cancelled. I wouldn’t want to see a repeat of the sickening violence that happened during the first Pride attempt in 2001. But then I can’t be happy that intolerance and threats of violence have stopped a section of Serbian society from having its voice heard.
I love living in Belgrade and Serbia, but I’m sad today because back home in the UK sexual orientation was not an issue. I hung out with gay, lesbian, bisexual and straight people. It did not matter to me who they fell in love with (or had one night stands with) and it did not mater to them. We valued each other’s personalities, common interests and the ability to have fun together. I wish the same for LGBT people in Serbia.
This was more than just a gay pride march. This was a chance to say no to violence and fear and yes to human rights. Tomorrow was a chance for Serbia to move forward.
It took a step back.
We’re all the same deep down.
Stop violence, stop nationalism, stop intolerance.
What do you think of the cancellation? Was it the right thing to do? Please let us know by leaving a comment.
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