Photo: Printscreen Sputnik Srbija
August 2024.
As part of the program Regional Initiative to Combat Disinformation “Western Balkans Anti-Disinformation Hub: Exposing Malign Influences through Watchdog Journalism”, we present you a new monthly analyses of fake news and disinformation narratives.
How the abolition of the rights of Serbs became – a European value
Since 2009, the citizens’ association “Napredni Klub” has actively published the Report on the Rights of the Serbian People in the region each year. As the Club points out, interest in the political rights of one’s people is Serbia’s democratic right and obligation. This report analyzes the state of the Serbian minority in neighbouring countries, “of which there are almost two million.”
The director of the association, Čedomir Antić, tells Sputnik that this “is not a nationalist document or a national program,” but rather a report based on publicly available documents, constitutions, and laws, as well as information provided by official institutions or transmitted by the media. The reports often include comparisons of the fair national treatment of minorities in Serbia and the non-respect of the rights of Serbs in the region.
Antić believes that the influence of foreign powers is a reason for this phenomenon, especially during the creation of national states in the territory of the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s. He asserts that the Federal Republic of Germany and its protector, the United States of America, along with other European allies, have worked to “dispute the rights of the Serbian people.” Such anti-Western narratives are widespread, and it has become common for all topics to be permeated by alleged Western hostility towards Serbia. While it is undisputed that the Serbian people face difficulties in the region, sensationalist headlines and searching for a culprit in the West will not improve the status of the Serbs.
On Sputnik, one can often read various disinformation narratives regarding the political situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and this instance is no exception. The text mentions that the situation in Bosnia has been “radicalized by the decision of the USA and its allies to accelerate the process of repealing the Dayton Agreement and completely dispossessing Republika Srpska.” It is also noted that the goal of the USA and NATO countries is to “strip the Serbian people of their constitutional status, abolish the autonomy of Srpska, and carry out the assimilation of the population.”
Antić believes that Bosnia and Herzegovina is the only country where the rights of one people are completely contested, and that institutions and courts in Bosnia lack legitimacy. “Foreigners are passing laws for which they have no permission based on any provisions of the Dayton Agreement, and the goal is for Serbs to lose all their rights.” No one disputes that the political system in Bosnia and Herzegovina is one of the most complicated in Europe, but equal representation of ethnic minorities is its most important characteristic. Furthermore, all significant decisions in Bosnia and Herzegovina are made by consensus or qualified majority, so it can be concluded that the voice of the Serbian people is very important. Although Mr. Antić points out the illegitimacy of the Constitutional Court due to the potential over-voting of Serbs, Croats, Bosniaks, and foreigners, it is important to note that the Constitution allows every constituent nation the right to prevent being over-voted if a decision directly interferes with its vital national interests.
When it comes to Croatia, Sputnik states that the “zero problem” in the Balkans is the relationship between Serbs and Croats. “In Croatia, the policy of assimilation of Serbs has continued, who, although they have broad legal rights on paper, are subjected to systematic disenfranchisement and hate campaigns.” Of course, the relationship between Serbia and Croatia is still burdened by the legacy of war, and there are many open questions, the most pressing of which is the position of the Croatian minority in Serbia. However, assimilation is not one of those problems. With Croatia’s entry into the EU, this issue has become even more topical, as evidenced by Croatia’s influence on the European Commission’s Report on Serbia for 2018, which includes amendments highlighting the lack of progress in protecting the rights of national minorities in Serbia.
The director of the association, Antić, goes on to discuss the status of Serbs in Montenegro, Slovenia, North Macedonia, and Albania. He believes that Serbs in North Macedonia do not have the same rights as other national minorities, while Macedonians in Serbia enjoy full rights as a national minority. Antić reminds us that his Report on the Rights of the Serbian people does not call for national mobilization, “but urges the Republic of Serbia, as the motherland, to place the issue of the rights of the Serbian people at the center of its attention, build appropriate institutions, and start doing what other countries do for themselves.” If Republika Srpska were to establish new institutions, such action would be considered a direct violation of the Dayton Agreement. Additionally, according to Dayton, Bosnia and Herzegovina is composed of two entities, so it is incorrect to refer to Republika Srpska as a state. Such narratives only encourage new divisions in the already polarized asymmetrical confederation that is Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Author: Nataša Stanojević
