"In order to earn the support of the citizens of Belgrade again, we have to do our homework: fight for better election conditions, motivate them to go to the polls and vote against the pest government. We have to do all this under unequal conditions in order to restore trust in democracy and the democratic institutions of this country after the elections."
At the moment I am writing this text, the government has announced that it is abandoning its intention to hold repeated elections in Belgrade on April 28, but new elections are scheduled for June 2, 2024. According to the legal deadlines, that is the last date when they can be held. This is undoubtedly another in a series of victories of the opposition and a clear indication that the usurper of power no longer has the capacity to dictate moves solely in accordance with his interests. The elections held on December 17 last year showed that the citizens of Belgrade do not want the current regime in power. Even in stolen elections, the opposition had more votes than the ruling coalition. By simply going to the website of the Republic Election Commission, it can be determined that for the residents of the capital of Serbia, progressives and socialists are a thing of the past and that the time has come for other people and other politics in the capital. But that change will not happen by itself; it is reached by struggle.
ACTION PLAN
The regime was caught stealing votes because we actively participated in the elections, had our controllers at all polling stations, activists on the ground (mobile teams) and support from citizens. Then, by putting pressure on institutions and a strong campaign towards international partners, we led to the fact that even election theft was not enough for the progressives and socialists to re-establish power in Belgrade. Despite the fact that we forced the government to withdraw and in some way acknowledge the election manipulations, and repeat the elections in Belgrade, we are aware that they will not give up their manners, i.e. dishonest way of political struggle and that they will do everything to retain power in the repeated elections. That's why we have to wait for the upcoming elections and win again. The citizens have shown us that they support the unification of the opposition, that they want change in Belgrade and Serbia, and we are ready to justify that trust with an even stronger fight.
With post-election activities, we exposed the regime and state institutions that directly worked in favor of the ruling parties, exhausting all the legal mechanisms of this state, even though we knew in advance that our appeals would not lead to results. But with that, we showed the domestic and international public that judicial, police and bureaucratic institutions are directly at the service of the SNS and SPS.
In order to earn the support of the people of Belgrade again, we have to do our homework: fight for better election conditions, motivate them to go to the polls and vote against the pest government. We have to do all this under unequal conditions in order to restore trust in democracy and the democratic institutions of this country after the elections.
I will not reveal hot water - all political actors already know all the methods of political campaigns from direct communication with voters on the ground to media and internet campaigns. What citizens should know is that the opposition will not back down in the face of violence. We will have to organize mobile teams that are trained to act in all situations, controllers that will know how to recognize electoral irregularities at polling stations and react accordingly. Legal teams have already shown they know how to operate in real time and they need to be up to the task again.
The opposition showed and proved its strength in the last elections. Let's not forget that this is the best result of the pro-EU opposition bloc since the Serbian Progressive Party has been in power. It is clear that we have come a long way, so I believe that now we should not waste energy and resources on mass gatherings. I would also stop the practice of indoor events where we mostly address ourselves and party activists. Every meter of the city should be covered. We need as many mini-events as possible, where the focus is on direct communication with citizens, ideally one-on-one. It is important to pay special attention to suburban municipalities where there is room for our better results. Our programs and messages are more difficult to reach the people who live there due to the unavailability of the national TV frequency where our voice can be heard.
The united opposition supported the demands of ProGlas on the improvement of election conditions, and this will be the platform on which we will insist. The key requirements, which will lead to somewhat fair elections, are the opening and revision of the voter list, the implementation of all recommendations from the ODIHR Report and the holding of all local and city elections at the same time.
CHOOSING A SPECIFIC POLICY
Scheduling the election for June 2 leaves enough time for all demands to be implemented. The pressure has borne fruit and now we need to continue in that direction. SNS and SPS will not sit idly by: they have proven to be very creative when it comes to election machinations. Mala Krsna is a demonstrative exercise and an indication that voter migration will not stop. We must be vigilant. We will have an answer to every attempt to overturn the will of citizens. We will check every week how many new registrations of residence are in the territory of Belgrade. The movement of free citizens, immediately after the report on television N1 about the registration of residence of people who do not live in Belgrade in the territory of the municipality of Voždovac, submitted a request to the Ministry of the Interior for access to information of public importance in order to have an insight into how many new residents there are in this municipality as of January 1 in 2024. We will do this for each municipality and the request will reach each police station. If the institutions remain silent, that is also the answer. All violations of the law remain recorded and the misconception is that they will go unpunished.
The government does this because it does not believe in the rule of law. They are not for European values and do not understand the core of democracy, which is free and fair elections. It can be seen from their words and actions. SNS and SPS are only declaratively in favor of joining the European Union. The first negotiation chapters were opened ten years ago, and today we are further away from the EU than at the beginning. All relevant data show that we have regressed in all fields when it comes to democracy, media freedom, free and fair elections.
Because of all the above, the next elections are about choosing a specific policy. In vain, the government tries to transfer it to the terrain of nationalism and thereby cover up the negligence and inability to run the capital. Belgrade must become a capital where true values are cultivated and where everyone is free regardless of their ethnic, religious, sexual or any other affiliation. It is important to become a transparent city, to know who, how and why spends our money. I invite the citizens to join us in this fight, each according to their capabilities. There is a lot of work, but we know how to reach the goal.
The author is the president of the Belgrade Committee of the Movement of Free Citizens
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