My International Human Rights Day experience

Monday was International Human Rights Day; it was also the day that the final status of Kosovo was to be decided. Obviously, these talks failed (and everyone knew they were a failure before it was officially announced on December 10th). There was some speculation (and tension in the air) as to whether or not Kosovo would unilaterally declare independence on December 10th.

I woke up on Monday, and took the bus to class. When I arrived at the main square (where my bus drops me off so I can walk to class), I saw a small group of people gathered. Several were holding up signs; I had no doubts that it was Kosovo related -- I made sure to keep a hundred foot distance between me and this group. This was when I reminded myself that today could be a very eventful, interesting day and to make sure I keep the little US flag that sometimes seems to be tattooed to my head under wraps. (Somehow people here always know I am a foreigner without me even opening my mouth; it's like they have some sort of foreigner-radar. The US citizen part is less obvious and not always the first country guessed.)

WiB decided to mark International Human Rights Day by having a street performance at 6:30 pm in the main square of the city (Trg Republike). Our theme for the event was "We are not going back -- Stop Clericalisation!" The idea was to promote secularism through the coalition WiB belongs to (Coalition for a Secular State). So, WiB and other members (and organizations) of the coalition organized the events.

The street performance included a choir singing a locally written song that fit with the theme (the song talked about not going back). The choir would sing the song through and then stop for a portion of the performance and then sing it through again; this sequence continued six times before the performance ended with one last performance of the song. During the breaks (between the songs), an activist wearing a mask to represent various political figures and church officials came forward to be handed (by another activist) one of the printouts (the Manifest on Secularism that was written by the Coalition). They would then discard the pamphlet, by throwing it on the ground, ripping it up, or destroying it in some manner. There were six different masks; three represented specific politicians and church officials and three represented politicians and church officials in general. Each time the masked figure would come forward to receive a pamphlet two activists walked up behind them holding up a large sing displaying different phrases. Before I continue recounting the events that occurred that evening I will give a little background on why there is a need for a coalition of this sort in Serbia.

First, the Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC) is growing in its power here within Serbia. There isn't a strong presence of other churches within Serbia; there aren't very many Protestant churches in Belgrade. There is becoming more and more interference of the SOC into governmental affairs. They are trying to put their values into legislation. For instance, a law has been passed in which children in Serbian schools are to take a religious education or civil education course; the religious education course only teaches about the SOC and their values. Another reason WiB is concerned about this is the patriarchal structure of the SOC; they are calling for women to go back to traditional roles (housewife, mother) and urging them to complete their duty and bear more Serbian children. Many of the statements they make publicly and values they teach infringe on human rights (particularly women's rights). Also, the SOC has a murky past; certain SOC officials blessed the paramilitary and military soldiers before they would go to commit atrocities and war crimes during the recent conflicts. There is a strong connection between the SOC and nationalism within Serbia (and nationalism within Serbia has proven to be a dangerous thing).

Back to Monday's event
As previously mentioned the street performance was to begin at 6:30 pm. I was in the office on Monday sitting on the computer working on proofreading when I was informed that the animated discussion in the next room was a discussion about safety issues for the night. Apparently, a Serbian white supremist group (which is how they referred to themselves but they are essentially a fascist and nationalist group) had posted on their website when and where the WiB demonstration would occur and were calling for all of their members to show up to counter-demonstrate. We would have a police escort from the WiB office (as usual) and the police would also be present at the demonstration since we had a permit.

A little after six o'clock, we left the office as a group carrying our signs, megaphone, and other needed materials for the demonstration. We were escorted by about twenty-five policemen; there were ten or twelve of us (we would be met by the others at the square). It seemed a bit overdone to me (I was thinking, do we really need a two to one ratio?) However, when we arrived at the square and met the other activists (and the choir members) I was in for a big surprise. After taking one look around, I was very grateful that all of the police officers were there; I actually didn't even need to look -- I could just listen to all of the chanting and yelling.

Even more police officers were at the square waiting to help out (at least another 25). Our group of activists (30-60 of us; I admit to being really bad at numerical estimates of large groups) was surrounded by police officers. They formed a half circle around us (the choir was set up with their backs to the large statue in the square and the other activist were holding up signs while standing on both sides of the choir), leaving us some space for our performance. There were probably 20 or 30 police officers forming standing two or three feet apart from one another (in the half circle formation).

Another 25-35 police officers were surrounding the group of people demonstrating against us(this was a much tighter circle with the police officers being shoulder to shoulder). It was hard to estimate how many anti-demonstrators were there, but if I had to make an estimate I would say at least fifty. They were all much younger than I thought they would be; every single one I saw was male (Of course, I couldn't see them all very well since they were surrounded by the police and we were surrounded by the police so there may have been some females present. We were at least 30 feet away from them with the two police barriers/chains, and I admit to not making a big effort to get any closer to them). They were very loud. They were louder than we were and we had a massive sound system for our performance; we had a lot of trouble being heard over them. For the first time since my arrival I was truly grateful to not understand the language. A few of the other activists filled me in on some of the things they were yelling, but spared me most of the details. They sang extremely nationalistic songs (songs that were song during the wars), yelled at us, called us traitors, and chanted out the names of one of their heroes, a man who is wanted for war crimes at the Hague. Some of the people walking by would join them in yelling at us (although they would not join in the actual formation -- they would stand off to the side and yell their own individual slurs and threats). At one point, I heard one person yelling about the United States; I didn't ask anyone what exactly was said.

It was frustrating to try to be heard over them, to feel that we had to compete with them for the public attention (and the media's) so our message would be the one that was driven home to those passing by rather than theirs. I didn't really fear for my physical safety while were there (which was surprising), but I did feel some fear for the future of this country and what is to come. I felt stupid for my naivete over how bad the situation here is and my continued optimism that everything I had been reading in WiB's books (about their past experiences and accounts of the current situation) and the things Rachel had said were a passing phase. It re-emphasized to me the importance of what WiB is doing and the need for continued efforts to move the common people in a different direction.

When the performance was over, we waited as even more police officers arrived so we could be escorted back to the office (to then disperse to our various destinations). There was a discussion as to whether the police officers should escort us back to the office or to the Center for Cultural Decontamination (where almost all of us where heading for a gathering of solidarity for some journalists). It was decided the police would escort us to the office and we could either walk or catch a taxi to the Center from there (this was mainly decided since the police said they wouldn't be able to escort us to the Center). They brought in police officers in riot gear. I commented that it looked like Star Wars (for some reason the white helmets that seem to be a universal part of the riot police uniform always remind me of Star Wars and the Stormtroopers) and the activist next to me told me to get used to it. I think there was a language miscommunication somewhere along the line here so I then decided it was best to keep my thoughts and interpretations to myself, but my next thought was, "Welcome to Star Wars, Katie." The police officers then formed two shoulder to shoulder lines (one on each side with us in the middle) and walked with us to the office. They took us down a few back streets to get us out of the crowded area quicker; they cleared out the underground walkway/bypass (or at least for the most part) and there was a lot of walkie-talkie action. When we arrived at the office, about ten of them waited until everyone had gotten a taxi (or left via foot for the Center for Cultural Decontamination).

I then headed to the Center for Cultural Decontamination (CCD) via taxi with some other activists to listen to a panel session (several WiB activists were a speakers) to demonstrate solidarity with journalists (from a radio station) that were kicked out of a nearby town by the police. We were expressing our solidarity and concern for freedom of speech (The journalists kicked out were a part of an independent radio station and did not cooperate with the government in their content. Although there are other independent radio stations, newspapers, and journalists, I was told this group is notorious for being the most honest and for being the most critical of the government.) There were about a hundred people (or more) there for the panel and to show their support. Obviously, I didn't understand any of it but I got some abbreviated translations of each panelists speeches. What I did understand was that each panelist expressed fear at the current state of things, saying the situation was bad; several said the last year has been very bad. At the end of the panel session, little black buttons were handed out to everyone that said "I am not afraid!" Everyone put their buttons on and then we went intermingled and chatted while munching on the provided snacks (and drinking the beverages). I later left with some other WiB activists to get a bus back to the main square (and then to grab my bus home from there). It was a long day. I got back to my apartment around 11:00 pm to find the mess that was my apartment (since I was still in the unpacking/moving in/organizing stage).

And that was my International Human Rights Day experience.