|
January
8, 2004
Nothing Radical
Behind
the Serbian Election
by Nebojsa Malic
On
the last Sunday in 2003, Serbian voters sent a message of
protest and rage to both their domestic tyrants and their
foreign backers, giving the largest number of votes (but not
a majority) to the Radical Party. The result was predictable,
and indeed predicted by some observers, yet still came as
a shock to the legions of professional fussers mired in wishful
thinking.
Most
commentary, from government as well as media and pundits,
can be reduced to East German poet Berthold Brecht's onetime comment
that it would be easier for the government to "dissolve the
People and elect another."
For
the amount of media noise it has attracted, the December 28
vote will make surprisingly little difference. Serbia will
still get a government with far too much power over people's
lives, whoever ends up in charge of it, while the Empire will
applaud democracy but continue to reserve the "right" to demand
absolute obedience nonetheless.
Solana:
Elect a New People, Instead
One
important thing to note about this election is its apparent
propriety: i.e. there were no objections to the conduct of
the polls, and no allegations of theft or irregularities.
As much as that is ever possible, the election was fair. But
the world's masters aren't interested in processes, only desirable
results. Thus outside pressure began on other Serbian parties
to form a coalition government at the first news of a Radical
victory.
Washington's
spokesman thus taunted
the safely imprisoned Milosevic, commended the Serbian devotion
to the forms of democratic religion, and
then rattled off a list of demands for whichever government
is put together in Belgrade. Clearly, they were only interested
in obedience. European Union's foreign policy commissar Javier
Solana, on the other hand, may have been motivated by
ideological zeal:
"I
appeal to all democratic forces to work together to ensure
that a new government based on a clear and strong European
reform agenda can be formed rapidly."
Unfortunately
for ForPolCom Solana and other advocates of a "neo-DOS," the
past three years of just such a regime have created bad blood
not only among the people, but among the quisling politicians
as well. After heading just such a coalition, only to be discarded
and humiliated by its svengali, leader of the Serbian
Democrats (DSS) Vojislav Kostunica is reluctant to repeat
the experience. Modern Serbia being what it is, however, everything
is possible.
Media
Coverage: Fear and Hysteria
Western
media faithfully echoed the official positions in Brussels
and Washington, often with more zeal. The prevalent themes
in reports from Serbia were the absolute disdain for Milosevic,
Seselj and their parties, and the "need" for a united government
of "reformers" to keep the "forces of darkness" (Times
of London) away from government.
Another
big theme was Slobodan Milosevic, who won a parliamentary
seat despite his imprisonment. Thus the Associated Press announced
"Milosevic seeking a comeback," and many others mentioned
his candidacy in addition to seething over the Radicals' triumph.
Reuters's
analyst actually believed the Radical upset was not sufficient
to throw out the "reformers." France-Presse, on the other
hand, noted how the results were frustrating
to both Brussels and Washington.
A
Guardian reporter
explained the results by the "attraction of the nationalist
'Greater Serbian' project." An editorial
in that paper actually mentioned the "militant nationalism
that has never been far from the dark heart of Serbian politics."
The
Economist's analysis
reflected nothing so much as a frustration with the Serbian
people, who dared to displease the Eurocrats.
American
papers were a bit more circumspect, preferring to express
their preferences through the subterfuge of editorial guidance.
Thus the NY Times published
grim predictions of a pro-Western analyst comparing Serbia
to 1933 Germany, while The Christian Science Monitor carried
similarly plaintive
assessments by Belgrade intellectuals committed to post-national
globalism.
Even
local US papers such as The Charleston Post thought
it somehow appropriate to opine
on Serbia's rejection of "stable democracy."
Perhaps
the most straightforward was the editorial in Japan's Asahi
Shimbun, which may also have been a shrewd
analysis of the real Imperial agenda:
"The
reconstruction of a country and its democratization are not
easy. But unless they are carried out, the rationale for intervention
will be called into question. Failure in Serbia will not be
tolerated."
Adventures
in Social Engineering
Failure
of what, precisely? As it turns out, many in the Empire and
some in Serbia itself see it as an experiment in social engineering,
an attempt to turn a traditional nation into a post-modern
post-society. The Empire thus failed to support the Dossie
government because it was no longer able to pursue the agenda
of de-Serbing the Serbs through the introduction of "multi-culturalism,"
"democracy," "free market" and "tolerance," all concepts with
exact opposite meanings in reality.
For
example, according to The Independent's Belgrade correspondent,
Serbs have a "misunderstanding" of market economy: "they think
selling off state-owned companies to Western ones is a betrayal
of the national interest." Well, that's because it is. Not
to mention a violation of basic property rights, since the
state came to "own" those companies by confiscating assets
of its subjects, whether the actual enterprises or the money
needed to build them. Between selling stolen assets for pennies
on the dollar, taxing the people harder than ever, and incurring
more foreign debt, it's a wonder the Dossies lived to be thrown
out of government. Many Serb rulers weren't as lucky.
From
the same perspective comes perhaps the worst
and stupidest analysis of the Serbian political situation
by a scholar at the "Centre for the Study of Global Governance,"
at the London School of Economics and Political Science. One
Denisa Kostovicova bemoans the Serbs' stubborn refusal to
destroy their society and culture and embark on a massive
project to remake themselves into Eurodrones. Invoking the
idiotic thesis by some post-German that "a nation's defeat
may trigger its democratic rebirth," she argues that the NATO
bombing and the October coup were a way of liberating and
emancipating the Serbs from themselves.
To
support her argument, Kostovicova quotes an essay
by Slobodan Antonic, published in February 2003, supposedly
criticizing Serbia's "missionary intelligence" that is,
Kostovicova's "true democrats." Only trouble is, while Antonic
is criticizing the "missionaries" for excessive zeal, he actually
shares their values: devotion to State, hatred of society
and nation as backward and barbaric, a commitment to social
engineering. So, even those who subscribe to the multi-cultism
of the globalist Left but without sufficient hatred and militant
zeal risk being branded "nationalists." One is tempted to
think being a nationalist might not be so bad, if it means
being opposed to these lunatics.
Serbophobes
Unleashed
Not
surprisingly, Serbia's choices provided an opportunity for
professional Serb-haters to ply their trade, seeking perhaps
to reawaken the hysteria of the 1990s. Marcus Tanner, writing
in The Independent and reprinted by the Toronto
Star, seemed torn between denigrating the object of
his hatred and making it look menacing enough, so he did both.
In Tanner's view, Serbia is a "furious old cat, hissing away
through toothless jaws," which also left "western strategy
in the Balkans in ruins."
To
Jeffrey T.
Kuhner of the Washington Times, Vojislav Seselj
is the Hitler Reborn, and the Radicals are Nazis. He dares
condemn Serbia for harboring "imperial dreams of national
expansion," (!) and openly advocates the immediate independence
of Kosovo. Kuhner also calls for Washington to approach Croatia's
new "neo-conservative" government (that is by no
means a compliment except in Kuhner's eyes but if the
shoe fits
) to establish an alliance as a "deterrent against
Serbian expansionism."
What
surprises is a lack of similar screeds by partisans of Bosnian
Muslims, or Kosovo Albanians (where is Veton
Surroi when the International Herald Tribune needs
him?).
Epilogue
In
truth, Empire has little to fear, though its agents in Serbia
may have some reason for hysteria, as their years of acting
with impunity may well be over for now. The Radicals are not
strong enough to form a government, but will have just enough
clout to make those who want to kowtow to the Empire walk
very carefully. Together with Milosevic's Socialists, they
have just enough votes to block major legislative endeavors.
Given the sort of state-expanding laws the Serbian parliament
(and others, for that matter) is in the habit of passing,
that won't be a bad thing at all.
It
is Christmas season in Serbia right now, since the Serbian
Orthodox Church adheres to the old Julian calendar.
That means a new government won't be formed before next week
at the earliest. The parliament should meet before the end
of the month. In all likelihood, Vojislav Kostunica and his
DSS will get to put together a minority government, but their
chances of success are slim. Everyone knows that whoever becomes
the next Prime Minister will face the same bleak reality of
vassalage under constant Imperial extortion, and constant
security threats, external and internal. Coping with this
requires vision
and leadership, which are in very short supply.
As
for the people of Serbia, they may not fully understand the
principles of liberty just yet, but they have instinctively
rejected a form of tyranny that had pestered them for three
years. Now they only need to heed the words of C.S.
Lewis: "those who torment us for our own good will torment
us without end, for they do so with the approval of their
own conscience."
Stopping
the torment altogether now that would be a good New Year's
resolution.
–
Nebojsa Malic
|
comments
on this article?
|
|
|
Please Support Antiwar.com
Send
contributions to
Antiwar.com
1017 El Camino Real #306
Redwood City, CA 94063
or
Contribute Via our Secure Server
Credit Card Donation Form
Your
contributions are now tax-deductible
|
