The violence which followed after the football match between Serbian and Albanian national teams in Euro 2016 qualifier reflects full nonsense we live in, whereas all paradoxes from this region are coming to the surface, argues journalist Zivojin Rakocievic.
Following the incidents in Belgrade a wave of rampage spread all over Serbia, where victims have become citizens whose property has been destroyed by hooligans only because of someone’s name. A journalist from Kosovo Zivojin Rakocevic says that Serbia never had more loyal citizens than Gorani community, but after everything they survived in Kosovo and Metohija they now live in fear and have become victims of violence in Serbian proper, too.
“No one should live like that. What is anyone’s rationale to set on fire a bakery where he bought a bread yesterday? And there is one more and most painful fact. Serbia never had more loyal citizens than Gorani community, and they have been brought on the verge of existence in Kosovo and Metohija due to that loyalty. Their shops in Kosovo have been torched (after 1999), whilst now after everything, there are some who come up with idea to set on fire their shops in Serbia proper,” Rakocevic said and added that it is about paradox, which public frequently fails to realize.
“A friend of mine called me and said:In Dragas (Kosovo) I have to say that I am not a Serb, in Belgrade I have to say that I am not Albanian, the only way ahead of me is to run from here, as far as possible,” Rakocevic said.
He reflected on the postponement of the visit of Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama, which was due to take place on 22 October and which has been postponed for 10 November, and said that it is good that the visit is postponed in order to reduce tensions.
“There is no difference in the policy of Tirana and Pristina, when it comes to Belgrade. That is a principle of ‘connected elements’, the very same politics, politics which, for decades now, treats every concession of Serbs, or a democratic process, as a sort of Serbian weakness and comes with new requests. Those requests are causing destabilization and distrust. An average person says ‘what else do you want’, look at destroyed towns, ethnically cleansed settlements, society, institutions, economy and concludes ‘we are the ones who are losers’…everything looks like that we are on the verge of a catastrophe,” concluded Rakocevic.
