July 12th

Today we had another lecture at the Belgrade Lady, this time conducted by Professor Ioannis Livanis, our resident EU expert.  He gave us a crash course in EU history, how it functions, its role in the world, and what its interaction with the Balkans is like.  Slovenia is already a member state, and Croatia will become one in 2013.  Serbia's future is uncertain, hinging on its ability to prosecute remaining war criminals, and whether Croatia will even let them in.  What we took from Ioannis' lecture was that the EU plays a vital role in financial development and trade regulation, but its growing amount of member states has increased the number of voices and slowed its effectiveness on deciding important issues.  However, Serbia, and other countries, want to join, as it lends credibility to international perception of a state's democracy and political system, with the granting of trade benefits and access to the EU budget as well.

We were also lucky enough to meet with two members of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia.  Both men were from the Democratic Party, the party currently in power.  One MP, Dejan Nikolic, is the chair of the Trade and Tourism Committee (we mentioned we were staying at the Hotel Slavija, and he immediately apologized), and is also on the Environmental Protection Committee.  The other was Milan Vuckovic, a member of the friendship group to the US.  Both were young (the party has 10 members around 30 years old).  Both were involved in youth political movements against the Milosevic regime.  They described the Serbian government as "exotic."  Politics aren't personalized, so voters choose a party to vote for, and the party then sends members it chooses, a system the Democrats are trying to change.  Another goal of this party is full membership of the EU.  They also have elections coming up next year, with the key issues being familiar, including rising unemployment and educational reform, as well as decreasing industrial production.  They both expressed their appreciation for the US, with Vuckovic saying that he wanted America to be the leader of the world (something I doubt he would repeat on television).  We got down to the nitty-gritty asking questions about Kosovo and Bosnia.  They said their party's position, as is that of most Serbian parties, is that Kosovo is unrecognized as independent and is a part of Serbia.  They respect Bosnia's sovereignty, but stated that the creation of new countries, especially in this region, is not always the answer, and the solution has to be smarter than that.  It was a very informative and enjoyable meeting.

We returned to the Belgrade Lady for another meeting, this time with the interesting CANVAS organization (Centre for Applied Nonviolent Action and Strategies).    The organization grew out of the Otpor! movement, the non-violent youth led movement that was instrumental in the overthrow of the Milosevic regime in 2000.  The organization used humor, independent media, and non-violent protests and civil disobedience in the cities to achieve their goals, working alongside with other anti-Milosevic actors such as opposition politicians.  In the years after the regime fell, Otpor evolved into an independent NGO called CANVAS that would spread the ability to overthrow governments, first across Eastern Europe, then throughout the world.  They are contacted by groups first, and then put on workshops in which they help brainstorm tools for change.  Every revolution is different, and CANVAS can only help with the ideas, it is up to the revolutionaries to customize and adapt for their own particular country.  CANVAS is willing to work with anyone of any ideology, as long as their revolution is non-violent.  They do not accept government grants, preferring to remain private in order to maintain independence.  Success stories of their influence can be seen in Georgia, Ukraine, and especially in the recent Egyptian revolution, which adopted the Otpor! Symbol of the clenched fist.

That night, a some of our group walked to the old fortress, the Kalemegdan, where MTV was hosting a big international party. Good times were had by all.