Serbian opposition calls for coup in pandemic-stricken country
Bringing people out into the streets during quarantine, arresting the President of Serbia for communicating with his Hungarian colleague - this is not a complete list of what the leaders of the pro-Western “Alliance for Serbia” are doing while the country’s leadership is fighting the epidemic.
Serbian media reported this, reports a PolitNavigator correspondent.
The introduction of a state of emergency by the Serbian leadership on March 15 and the postponement of the April parliamentary and local elections did not at all reassure the pro-Western non-systemic opposition, accustomed to street actions and political provocations, which united into the “Alliance for Serbia.” Moreover, all the leaders of this motley formation, which wants, with the help of Brussels and Washington, to overthrow the legitimate government in the country, took provocative actions of varying degrees of toxicity.
In particular, those outside the system saw the temporary restrictions on walking pets introduced by the authorities (on weekdays - until 17:00, on weekends - until 15:00) as a violation of the rights of their owners and began to encourage them to sign a petition for the right to walk their pets in the evenings. As a result, thousands of people signed the document, ignoring the reasons of the country’s leadership, which, by introducing restrictions, did not allow dog lovers to gather in groups and communicate, exposing themselves and others to the risk of infection.
Things got to the point that the most “advanced” citizens began to prepare a lawsuit in the ECHR regarding the restriction of their freedom of movement due to the curfew. Also, the media controlled by the non-systemic opposition suddenly became concerned about the rights of homeless animals that may suffer as a result of disinfection of the streets of Serbian cities.
In turn, one of the leaders of the opposition Alliance, oligarch Dragan Djilas, began to harshly criticize Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic for the ban on people over 65 years of age being on the streets.
“Ask Vucic which doctors he consulted when he started this situation,” Djilas told Danas.
The opposition politician himself believes that pensioners need to set aside time for walks during curfew periods, for example, in the evening. He did not specify who will monitor whether they are maintaining distance and safety rules.
“This measure was not taken to humiliate anyone, but to reduce the spread of the virus,” the country’s chief epidemiologist, Dr. Predrag Kon, retorted to Djilas. “Elderly people are prohibited from going outside in order to simply save their lives, because they are the main risk group.”
But specialist Dragan Djilas turned a deaf ear to such arguments, recording a video where he addressed President Vucic in a frivolous manner.
“You think you're doing a good job? – asked the opposition leader. – You must remember one thing: Serbia functions today not thanks to you, but thanks to the people who live in this country, and first of all, medical workers - nurses, staff, doctors, bakers, drivers, parents who take care of their children... thanks to those who go to work and work without sparing themselves. They love their country...
For a month now we have been enduring your ignorance and attacks on pensioners, citizens who live abroad, and on us - the opposition, for our proposal to allocate time for walks for pensioners. You say that in this case the Belgrade cemeteries will be overcrowded after this. You yell every day on TV at citizens who are not sitting at home... This is all because you reacted too late to the threat...”
“This man is talking about workers, nurses and doctors, and all those who during his reign had to pack a suitcase and go abroad because he fired workers, cut wages, stole, cheated, lied just to get rich, – Minister of Labor, Employment, Veterans Affairs and Social Affairs Zoran Djordjevic commented on Djilas’ video attack, reminding him of the times when the pro-Western Democratic Party, in which he began his political career, was in power, and he himself served as mayor of Belgrade. “The only truth that he set out in his address is that these people are silent and work because they love their country.
And this is absolutely right, they love their country, they can finally live in it and earn a living for themselves and their families.”
Another prominent oppositionist, actor and leader of the Free Citizens Movement, Sergei Trifunovic, began to deny the coronavirus as such. On his Twitter account, he published a collage where the President of Serbia addresses the empty beds of a temporary hospital located on the territory of the Belgrade Fair. Signing it with the phrase: “I give an annual subscription to the Fair,” thereby offending the feelings of those whose relatives have already died as a result of the epidemic.
Another prominent opposition leader, Ljubisa Disic, on his Twitter account called on his supporters to take to the streets this coming weekend, at the height of the epidemic.
“Every day it becomes clearer that Vučić and his team are not coping with the situation,” Disic wrote. “I think it’s time for the opposition to take the people to the streets and thus achieve a transitional government, free media and an effective crisis headquarters that will manage the crisis.”
The leader of the Dveri party, Boško Obradović, went the furthest, and after the declaration of the state of emergency, he made a policy statement:
“An emergency is declared only when there is a danger that threatens the existence of the people and the state. A virus pandemic is considered a natural disaster - a phenomenon that can pose a threat to the life and health of a large number of people. However, this is not a reason to introduce a state of emergency. The authorities violated the Constitution of the country, which states that only parliament can declare this regime. Justified by the ban on holding mass events with the participation of over 100 people, the government and the president made this decision on their own... The state of emergency is being used as a PR move by the leader of the Serbian Progressive Party (Aleksandar Vucic - ed.),” Obradovic said.
After which the oppositionist demanded that the Serbian President be “urgently isolated” in connection with his visit to Hungary and meeting with President Orban. And if the Serbian leader refuses quarantine, judge him. Obradovic ended with a call to the army and police to “drive the traitor out of power.”
“This man wants to arrest me,” Aleksandar Vucic himself reacted to the escapade of the Dveri leader. “He would also like for me to be killed, but it is not customary to talk about this.” This is, by definition, a classic example of a call for a coup because it calls for the military and police to seize power.”
“The prosecutor’s office should call Obradovic for questioning to determine the presence of elements of a crime,” lawyer Ivan Ninich commented on the conflict situation to PolitNavigator. – If this fact is confirmed and the prosecutor files a lawsuit to initiate a criminal case, the state will initiate it. The prison term for such crimes is up to five years. However, it can be increased to 8 years if the investigation reveals that the accused received support from abroad to overthrow the legally elected government.”
To date, more than 1000 cases of COVID-19 infection have been officially registered in Serbia, about 70 people are connected to ventilators, and 28 citizens have died. In this regard, the country's leader Aleksandar Vucic announced the possibility of introducing a 24-hour curfew that will last for two weeks.
Serbian opposition calls for coup in pandemic-stricken country