On the Telegram channel Rybar, a comic strip titled “What Srebrenica is Hiding” was published, in which the authors interpret the aggression against Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as the genocide in Srebrenica, from a pro-Russian perspective. Under this title, the main villain is Alija Izetbegović due to his involvement in the Young Muslim Movement.
Whenever a politician gets fed up or his position becomes shaky, they are quick to throw a bone to the people, diverting attention away from crime, corruption, incompetence, and other issues. When such tactics affect real-life situations, like the one in Srebrenica, as Amina Begić says, this is what it looks like:
“We have taxi drivers in Srebrenica who literally burned people alive! We have neighbors who greet us with a smile, but they participated in the genocide. They celebrate the genocide. They deny the genocide. And we live with these people every day. So it’s pretty clear that, although the individuals who committed the genocide are responsible, some people still support the entire idea behind the genocide. In my opinion, these people are also guilty. Moreover, they are the ones who continue to propagate the idea that killing people, exterminating people, is perfectly fine. I believe that these people are even more responsible because they are teaching their children, teaching the new generations this whole concept, which is, of course, very wrong. It’s horrifying.”
https://www.slobodnaevropa.org/a/perspektiva-mladi-srebrenica-riding/32785489.html
Then children celebrate criminals and accept violence. Dejana, Oliver, Hristina, and Balša from Belgrade shared their thoughts on this topic.
“They should not be celebrated. We have over 300 murals dedicated to Ratko Mladić in Belgrade. We don’t need to glorify such people.”
https://www.slobodnaevropa.org/a/perspektiva-specijal-da-sam-ja-neko/32244747.html
“Why the sudden rise in violence? I’m not saying it wasn’t present before, but now we see violence being promoted at every turn. We have extremely violent board games, video games. Chaos. Even on TV, in reality shows, it’s completely normal to fight and smash a bottle over someone’s head. If that doesn’t happen, there’s no fun, no viewership! How can that be normal? What can we expect then? Children watch this, what lesson can they learn from it? They are children; they learn, and it becomes the most normal thing for them. They even brag about it. They record themselves, they record each other, and make it popular. They build their status in society based on that.”
https://www.slobodnaevropa.org/a/32914444.html
“And then, simply, you start to hate everything that isn’t identical to you, and, ultimately, we can say goodbye to democracy. Because that’s actually what is happening. It’s not a toxic influence from the outside, but this right-wing extremism, or fascism, which is often presented as patriotism, eats away at communities from the inside. This is the metastasis that occurs when the culture of hatred is nurtured in the Balkans, although not only in the Balkans.”
https://www.slobodnaevropa.org/a/perspektiva-beograd-region/33038786.html
“Those who committed these crimes are still walking around peacefully in the streets throughout Serbia, enjoying privileges, and in the end, being celebrated as heroes. So, the reality has been completely reversed when it comes to Serbia and the RS. These are still regimes that, among other things, survive and feed on hatred.”
https://www.slobodnaevropa.org/a/perspektiva-tv-mladi-srebrenica-yihr-bih/32795268.html
The logic of a single truth, interpreted by the leader, is not exclusive to Serbia. There are other governments, in Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, and even Croatia, that place people into ethnic camps where they are only allowed to think as the leader dictates. Jovana from Banja Luka and Milica from Belgrade share their views:
“People do not see others as individuals. Neither skin color, nor gender, nor nationality defines us. That is one of the biggest problems. As long as that is the case, there will always be division, whether it’s based on nationality, religion, skin color, or anything else. Hatred of others will not strengthen one’s love towards their own.”
https://www.slobodnaevropa.org/a/perspektiva-banjaluka-seksizam-svakodnevnica/32894611.html
“We have only one truth here in Serbia. And that’s the way it is. If we want to learn a bit more, we may discover some other or third truth, and so on. Then we can form a broader understanding of what actually happened. But I think, and you can see if you are even slightly informed, that it’s all one-sided, one-dimensional.”
https://www.slobodnaevropa.org/a/perspektiva-mladi-sff/32648804.html
Adhering to the logic presented in the Russian comics, one could write a text titled “What the Nazi Camps Are Hiding”, with the main villain being the Jews because they were successful in the economies of Germany and Austria!? By that logic, the Palestinians are to blame for the suffering of civilians in Gaza because they didn’t deal with Hamas and Hezbollah!? By that logic, Pavelić is not to blame for the killing of Serbs in Jasenovac, but the Serbs are to blame for being of the wrong religion!?
Denying a crime, even in comics, prolongs the crime. We must remember that a crime knocking on a neighbor’s door may eventually come knocking on our own.
