Human Rights: Hostage To the State's Regression - Helsinki ...

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Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia the republican Prime Minister cabinet and the cabinet of the City Secretary for Culture, the Foreign Ministry competent officials ordered the festival organizers to take the film off the program. That decision was indeed a throwback to the bleak times of the Socialist Republic of Yugoslavia when creative people were imprisoned for books, films and art works deemed “controversial” and their works were hid from the public eye. The pertinent note of the Embassy of the Popular Republic of China, which inter alia spelled out that “the film should be scrapped from the festival program due to good bilateral relations between Serbia and China” was read to the shocked audience in a movie-house. City Secretary for Culture, Darijan Mihailović, then went on to explain that republican institutions, competent bodies on the level of the city of Belgrade, as well as the festival organizers reached that decision because “the highest state interests implied that it would not be wise to make a diplomatic scandal and offend a friendly country, the UN Security Council permanent member and the factor with a major impact on our foreign relations.” Then the true cause of the film-banning, a rare occurrence even in Serbia, came to the fore. Namely that at stake was something more important, even momentous, and not just plain misunderstanding was subsequently confirmed by Vladeta Jankovic, an adviser to Prime Minister Kostunica and Dragan Kojadinovic, Culture Minister. While visibly transported Janković like a visionary linked the authorities unpopular move to the future of status of Kosovo by maintaining that “showing of that film, despite a polite appeal through diplomatic channels, would impair our efforts to solve the Kosovo problem in the desired way” 1 , while Minister Kojadinović for days on end reiterated that “there are many bilateral, Chinese-Serb co-operation agreements and provisions which must be honored.” 2 When part of the cultural public protested against such a bizarre way of conducting the foreign policy through movie houses programs, in a true twist of destiny, the Chinese film was finally screened in the two Belgrade cinemas. However, the whole film-related muddle morphed in fact in the most clear metaphor of distortion of set of values reigning in the cultural public scene, and as such resulting from balance of powers in the political sphere. At play is obviously not a mechanical adoption of criteria from other spheres, but rather an ongoing interaction between the political and cultural scene. Namely some artists by their actions shape the social reality, while some politicians, as evidenced by their attempts during the requested film banning phenomenon, act as if they were commissars trying to tailor the cultural policy. The foregoing is indicated by highly damaging stands of some cultural “officials.” 2006. 1 B92, “Banned film would be screened the day after tomorrow”, 30 November 2 Idem Human Rights: Hostage To the State's Regression Even without the Chinese film scandal, it was obvious that in the course of 2006 the Culture Ministry was bereft of any strategy or well-designed cultural policy. Apart from the initiative that the top 100 artists be granted national pensions, which by the way sowed an additional seed of discord in the midst of that rivalry-charged profession, the Ministry did not give off other signs of life or existence. This did not come as a surprise in view of the fact that the outgoing Minister Dragan Kojadinović found himself in that position quite accidentally. Namely he became the only choice for that position after a prolonged and entrenched party war over other, highly valued ministerial positions during the formation of Vojislav Kostunica cabinet. By and large during all that long jockeying for power someone remembered, in a gesture of unexpected mercy, that Vuk Draskovic's party should be accorded that leastcoveted political chair. Aside from emptiness which his work exuded, Kojadinović shall be remembered for his racism-charged statements about “Shiptar hordes.... whose fellow-nationals are not fit to take part in renovation of the Serb sacred monastery Hilandar.” 3 Kojadinović, at the very start of his mandate, opted for the wait- andsee strategy, namely decided to first “observe the state of cultural institutions and various spheres of cultural life, after which, according to his agenda, “national cultural councils headed by prominent individuals and public figures, tasked with creation of cultural strategy, would be set up. And thirdly, Kojadinovic planned the founding of commissions or task forces composed of philosophers, psychologists, sociologists and other experts from various social spheres to be entrusted with the primary task “of devising the national code of conduct”. Hence the trinity of analysis-strategy-code was laid as the foundations of cultural policy, which was only implemented at the very end of Kojadinovic's mandate, due to its factual-unsustainability. True cultural policy could be reduced to the provision of fund for artists able to create worthy works of art. The rest are just empty stories or words tantamount to a timewasting exercise. Due to inertia or passivity of the Serb Culture Ministry in 2006, other films shared the fate of ill-starred “Summer Palace”, despite assurances of the political establishment about Serb society essential transformation in the post-5 October. In fact the reality demonstrated that the Serb society was still tottering under the burden of old problems. Thus the film „Grbavica” of a young Bosnian woman director, Jasmila Žbanić, an emotionally charged story about a 3 At night of 3 March a big fire broke out in Hilandar monastery. In the aftermath of that fire, Minister of Culture, Dragan Kojadinović, at the opening of Hilandar-themed photo exhibition in Zrenjanin, stated that Hilandar should be renovated exclusively by those of Orthodox faith: “Shiptari hordes can reach any time Belgrade, and that is exactly their intention. Perhaps that fire in Hilandar was not an accident, for this fire from Kosovo may spread to Macedonia, and threatens also Greece and ...the whole Europe.” 54 55
Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia women raped by the Serb soldiers during the war, caused the resurgence of the proverbial Serb ill-will when at play were war-themed films, or films with themes unpleasant for this milieu. First the circles of nationalism-minded purists were bothered by the fact that a heroine, a Bosnian woman, survivor of torture, was played by the Serb actress, Mirjana Karanović, then there was much criticism of the film's theme, namely the rape, and finally a group of political extremists tried to interrupt the Belgrade's first night of that film. Just when the screening of “Grbavica” was about to start, notorious Svetlana Petrušić, author of documentary “Kill, Convert, Drive Out”, portraying the suffering of Serbs during the war, appeared on the Sava Centre stage and tried to address those in attendance. But fortunately her intent, after vocal protests from the present, was prevented by security staff. But even before that incident, which caused the guests from Sarajevo to leave the Serb capital in an embittered mood, a group of people donning T-shirts with images of the Hague Tribunal fugitives Ratko Mladic and Rdovan Karadzic paraded along the Save Centre hall, and once they entered the auditorium, insulted the present, booed the actors and started chanting- “Serbia! Serbia!”. After the post-screening bows of the film director to the audience, and her words that she hoped that her film “would close the circle, for the first pages of its script were written in Belgrade”, a true smear campaign against Jasmila Žbanić was launched. That campaign was spearheaded by writer Radomir Smiljanić, who after introduction of sanctions against the FRY, in his capacity of president of organization Bela ruža, staged blockade of Danube to prevent the passing of foreign ships. At the time, and some people do remember, that action of Radomir Smiljanić and Milić of Mačva, the painter, was blessed and backed by the Serb Orthodox Church and Paatriarch Pavle, as immportalized by photographs. Therefore the writer Smiljanic now used his connections in some circles to effect a showdown with the film director Zbanic, who, according to him, “was bent on initiating a lynch against the Serb people.” Smiljanic also announced that he would file criminal charges against Jasmila Zbanic for her alleged, racist statments. Shortly after the Berlin Film Festival screening of “Grbavica” and Jasmila Žbanić words that in Bosnia and Herzegovina 20,000 women had been raped, all of which preceded Belgrade's first night of that film, some Belgrade media openly engaged in the campaign of ridicule of the film director's assertions. Despite the fact that Bosnian rapes were qualified as war crimes for the first time by an international court, that is the Hague Tribunal, the Belgrade cynical press media commentaries noted that: “the Serbian forces, even if they had wanted to, would not have been able to rape so many women...though politically motivated allegations about even one raped woman, suffice to proclaim such a policy a criminal one. Some media not stop at the open demonization of Jasmila Žbanić, but even resorted to openly branding Mirjana Human Rights: Hostage To the State's Regression Karanović, the actress playing the lead role in “Grbavica”, “a Muslim bitch” and “a Muslim whore”. In line with the tacit social consesus that crimes committed by the Serb side be hushed up, the line wholeheartedly encouraged by the political elite, “Grbavica” was not shown in the Serb cinemas, thus sharing the fate of a bevy of Bosniak and Croat war-themed films. Since the widely applauded scene of massacre of Bosniaks during prayer (film “Spasitelj” directed by Predrag Antonijevic) it became clear that war films were something more than sheer cinematic diversion. There is a world-wide tradition of the film audience cheering on the film heroes, but it bears underscoring that for the local, Serb audience, films portraying the recent war were like stripped off patches of reality. Therefore that applause was humiliating for the whole nation to whom the audience belonged. But only the screening of a Bosnian film “Grbavica” demonstrated the true nature of the recent war, and indicated that only few creators were ready and able to scrutinize it from close proximity, to try to understand its true contents and course, and to help define that conflict also by giving it a more precise name, in view of the fact that adjectives “homeland”, “defense”, “aggressor's”, “liberation” war were only of operational nature. Many film creators encountered difficulties in their attempt to translate to the big screen part of the war terror. Many of them despite well-prepared scripts about destroyed families, loves and friendships, and well-chosen cast failed in that intent. But the foregoing does not apply to few, most audacious, including, obviously Jasmila Žbanić. However let us now touch on some films shot in Serbia in the year 2006. Though it is crystal-clear that this society has problems with acceptance of facts relating to the 90's- a genuine socio-psychological problem almost without paragon in recent history- just a brief glance at the 2006 Serb film production indicates that the very film creators have by and large shunned such themes. Aside from the Serb actors performances in Rajko Grlicdirected “Karaula,” a story about preparations for the conflict, which opened wide doors to the war, rather than about the tragic disintegration of Yugoslavia, only two of ten feature films, superficially touch on the war themes. Action of “Žurke,” film by Aleksandar Davić, takes place in a weekend villa in Fruška Gora Mountain, out the outset of war. The film portrays desperate, drug- and drinks-infused attempts of a group of youngsters to dispel their fear of imminent mobilization, against the backdrop of a looming war. Davic's film portrays moral decadence in which Serbia was engulfed at the outset of war, and deals with the root-causes of imminent, tragic conflict. On the other hand „Sutra ujutro” directed by Oleg Novković, speaks about the man who in 1991 left Belgrade for Canada, to later return to his birthplace for a three day-wedding ceremony. The film above all portrays grave consequences of the war, namely the traumas experienced by many people. Added to that there is a film “Sinovci” directed by Sinisa Kovačević. That film perfectly fits 56 57
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