DISCORSO DI MIRJANA MARKOVIC
ALLA ASSEMBLEA DELLA SINISTRA UNIVERSITARIA, Belgrado 10 marzo 1999
YUGOSLAV LEFT LEADER: ALL PEOPLE IN YUGOSLAVIA SHOULD LIVE TOGETHER
President of the Yugoslav Left (JUL) party Directorate Mira Markovic
told a
University Left gathering on Wednesday that the JUL believed that
co-existence of different peoples in Yugoslavia was not only necessary
but
was also the best possible way of life.
Markovic began her address to the gathering titled "Dignified
Resistance"
that was attended by more than 2,500 Yugoslav university students, by
citing
great Spanish poet Miguel de Unamuno, "You may win, but you may not
convince".
Following is the official translation of Markovic's address.
"Our country was in such a difficult situation only before the Second
World
War. Comparisons with these times can be heard everywhere in Yugoslavia
today.
Then, as today, Yugoslavia and Serbia in it, were the greatest obstacles
for
the greatest power of that time, in its insane crusade against the
world.
Even then, the demented personality of the head of the Third Reich
singled
out those that interfered with the happiness of the world - Jews,
Gypsies,
Serbs, all Slavs, Communists... Even then was humanity whipped in the
world
fold by a rude and inferior creator of an order which should have been
fashioned under the command from one centre and according to the vision
from
that same centre. Even then for the sake of progress of humanity a
bloody
flag was carried in whose name hundreds of thousands of people were
killed
because that centre estimated in advance that they would be detrimental
to
the new order.
These are some of similarities. Understandably, there are also big
differences between those two times. This is only logical - history does
not
repeat itself.
The biggest difference is that the then monstrous vision of the world
from
the 30's of this century and its insane creator were opposed by a great
deal
of humanity, progressive and educated people from the entire world. That
opposition was of a heroic, planetary and victorious nature. Fascism was
defeated militarily, politically and morally. In 1999, the violence that
threatens the humanity in a similar way is opposed by almost nobody. At
least
not through organized, massive and joint effort.
Then again, the idea of placing the world under the control of a single
will
this time has a highly hypocritical and treacherous face. Because, it
takes
advantage of another idea - a magnificent idea of the world State and
unavoidable process of globalization of life on the planet, seeking to
present itself as that very idea, as that process, as its original
promoter,
announcing a new life - humane and modern.
Mondialism and globalization are the processes which any educated man
from
1999 has to support. But, inter-connection of contemporary world does
not
imply only coexistence of all nations and people but their life in the
world
community on a footing of equality. That idea excludes any possibility
for
the big and developed nations to command over the small and
underdeveloped
ones, particularly excluding violence as a form of retaliation against
those
who refuse to obey the command.
However, that violence in the present-day world became the order of the
day.
At this moment, most brutal threats are issued to anyone who chooses to
be
disobedient and more often than not those threats are realized. However,
one
can hardly say that the biggest bully at the end of the 20th century is
great. Because, if he were truly great, his adversaries would be his
equals,
also great ones. So far the biggest bully used violence only against
those
hundred times smaller and weaker than himself. The United States of
America
called to order Panama, Cuba, Salvador, Nicaragua, Haiti, Afghanistan,
Sudan,
Somalia and Iraq. So far it did not attack Liechtenstein and San Marino,
Nepal and Bhutan, although it is possible that for quite some time now
there
are human rights violations, the reforms are not carried out and there
is no
democracy there.
That fact does not cast the shadow on their moral. It is not in the
shadow,
their moral is in the dark. What is in the shadow is their power. Why is
it
that they do not test their strength on a stronger adversary than
Somalia
where at the time when the US bombers headed for its sands, hundreds of
children starved.
In that crusade against the world, human rights are used as the first
excuse.
Those living in that country today ruthlessly killed all native,
indigenous
population when they first came there, only to fly today over the world
carrying bombs ready to use them against any State which they feel is
small
and weak enough to be accused, without any problems, of human rights
violations.
In that heroic undertaking, they are joined by some developed countries
who
owe their development to several centuries old exploitation of human
labour
and human lives in vastly populated colonies of the world at large.
A small Serbian nation and Serb State, one of the oldest European
States,
have an impeccable history. They have never been conquerors, they waged
wars
only to defend themselves. For a long time now, the Serbs live in their
State
along with members of many minorities from neighbouring and other
European
States. Since the Second World War until the present day, those
minorities
have been treated equally in any respect with the members of the
majority
people. That has been known all over the world, and more than that, it
has
often served as an inspiration for many multinational and multiethnic
countries.
The allegations that the interests and rights of minorities in Serbia
are not
respected are untrue. These allegations are used by those who invented
them
as an excuse to bring pressures and use violence against disobedient
Serbia.
However, the Serb people have learned a lot from history - its own and
other
people's, just for being one of the most developed Slav peoples and one
of
the oldest European peoples. The Serbs are not going to end up as the
Indians
two centuries ago, nor will they make themselves European Kurds or
assume the
role of new Jews without a big battle.
Having said the battle, I mean all forms of resistance - wise,
dignified,
convincing, great, enlightening, all-embracing, contemporary,
traditional,
instantaneous, long-standing, sensible and senseless...
We are an old and small nation. Our long historic life made it possible
for
us to learn from our own life and the lives of others. The size of our
nation
has taught us that small nations have to be wise and that only big ones
can
afford to be stupid.
I hope that by combining those two advantages - experience and wisdom -
we
shall be able to avoid that fate of Indians, Blacks, Kurds and Jews, but
also
some developed European peoples who are pretending not so see that
instead of
globalization we are having colonisation.
However, unfortunately, it is not only the Serb people that are the
victim of
illusion that this is globalization and good will. The Albanian people
in
Serbia, perhaps even in Albania, are also the victim. Today they are the
instrument of pressure against Serbia. Today they are not counting the
price
in human lives of Albanians in Kosovo who will be used as this
instrument.
They indeed naively believe that the goal of American policy is welfare
of
Albanians. Tomorrow, that policy will totally forget that these people
ever
existed on this planet and it will hardly remember that they were ever
in the
focus of its attention.
Albanians in Yugoslavia, wherever they live, are the citizens of
Yugoslavia
for the Yugoslav Left. We do not see them as a minority. Yugoslavia is a
multiethnic and multinational country and is equally a homeland to all
living
in it. There are a lot of Albanians in the Yugoslav left. They and all
other
Albanians know that the Albanians in Yugoslavia, as well as Hungarians
in
Yugoslavia, the Muslims in Yugoslavia, the Turks in Yugoslavia - are
ours.
The fact that they are "ours" means that they are not allies of enemies
of
Yugoslavia outside Yugoslavia, regardless of what nation they belong to.
In the Yugoslav left we believe that common life of different peoples in
Yugoslavia is not only a necessary, but a nice form of life. It may well
soon
happen that a Balkan community of peoples be established along
multiethnic
and multinational principles. The Balkan community of peoples is the
only
reliable, contemporary and human way of life for the Balkan peoples to
say
farewell to arms, hate and tensions.
Nine months before the third millennium, humanity has enough knowledge
to see
that in the epoch before us, it, humanity, can survive and develop only
if it
lives in the world without frontiers, in which all peoples first become
equal
and in which all people should continue to be equal.
May happiness follow human resistance towards tyranny.
May the Left, Yugoslav and any other in the world, persist in its
historic
struggle for a more humane world. (Tanjug, Belgrade, March 10)
(diffuso sulla lista STOP NATO: ¡NO PASARAN! - HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.COM)
--------- COORDINAMENTO ROMANO PER LA JUGOSLAVIA -----------
RIMSKI SAVEZ ZA JUGOSLAVIJU
e-mail: crj@... - URL: http://marx2001.org/crj
http://www.egroups.com/group/crj-mailinglist/
------------------------------------------------------------
ALLA ASSEMBLEA DELLA SINISTRA UNIVERSITARIA, Belgrado 10 marzo 1999
YUGOSLAV LEFT LEADER: ALL PEOPLE IN YUGOSLAVIA SHOULD LIVE TOGETHER
President of the Yugoslav Left (JUL) party Directorate Mira Markovic
told a
University Left gathering on Wednesday that the JUL believed that
co-existence of different peoples in Yugoslavia was not only necessary
but
was also the best possible way of life.
Markovic began her address to the gathering titled "Dignified
Resistance"
that was attended by more than 2,500 Yugoslav university students, by
citing
great Spanish poet Miguel de Unamuno, "You may win, but you may not
convince".
Following is the official translation of Markovic's address.
"Our country was in such a difficult situation only before the Second
World
War. Comparisons with these times can be heard everywhere in Yugoslavia
today.
Then, as today, Yugoslavia and Serbia in it, were the greatest obstacles
for
the greatest power of that time, in its insane crusade against the
world.
Even then, the demented personality of the head of the Third Reich
singled
out those that interfered with the happiness of the world - Jews,
Gypsies,
Serbs, all Slavs, Communists... Even then was humanity whipped in the
world
fold by a rude and inferior creator of an order which should have been
fashioned under the command from one centre and according to the vision
from
that same centre. Even then for the sake of progress of humanity a
bloody
flag was carried in whose name hundreds of thousands of people were
killed
because that centre estimated in advance that they would be detrimental
to
the new order.
These are some of similarities. Understandably, there are also big
differences between those two times. This is only logical - history does
not
repeat itself.
The biggest difference is that the then monstrous vision of the world
from
the 30's of this century and its insane creator were opposed by a great
deal
of humanity, progressive and educated people from the entire world. That
opposition was of a heroic, planetary and victorious nature. Fascism was
defeated militarily, politically and morally. In 1999, the violence that
threatens the humanity in a similar way is opposed by almost nobody. At
least
not through organized, massive and joint effort.
Then again, the idea of placing the world under the control of a single
will
this time has a highly hypocritical and treacherous face. Because, it
takes
advantage of another idea - a magnificent idea of the world State and
unavoidable process of globalization of life on the planet, seeking to
present itself as that very idea, as that process, as its original
promoter,
announcing a new life - humane and modern.
Mondialism and globalization are the processes which any educated man
from
1999 has to support. But, inter-connection of contemporary world does
not
imply only coexistence of all nations and people but their life in the
world
community on a footing of equality. That idea excludes any possibility
for
the big and developed nations to command over the small and
underdeveloped
ones, particularly excluding violence as a form of retaliation against
those
who refuse to obey the command.
However, that violence in the present-day world became the order of the
day.
At this moment, most brutal threats are issued to anyone who chooses to
be
disobedient and more often than not those threats are realized. However,
one
can hardly say that the biggest bully at the end of the 20th century is
great. Because, if he were truly great, his adversaries would be his
equals,
also great ones. So far the biggest bully used violence only against
those
hundred times smaller and weaker than himself. The United States of
America
called to order Panama, Cuba, Salvador, Nicaragua, Haiti, Afghanistan,
Sudan,
Somalia and Iraq. So far it did not attack Liechtenstein and San Marino,
Nepal and Bhutan, although it is possible that for quite some time now
there
are human rights violations, the reforms are not carried out and there
is no
democracy there.
That fact does not cast the shadow on their moral. It is not in the
shadow,
their moral is in the dark. What is in the shadow is their power. Why is
it
that they do not test their strength on a stronger adversary than
Somalia
where at the time when the US bombers headed for its sands, hundreds of
children starved.
In that crusade against the world, human rights are used as the first
excuse.
Those living in that country today ruthlessly killed all native,
indigenous
population when they first came there, only to fly today over the world
carrying bombs ready to use them against any State which they feel is
small
and weak enough to be accused, without any problems, of human rights
violations.
In that heroic undertaking, they are joined by some developed countries
who
owe their development to several centuries old exploitation of human
labour
and human lives in vastly populated colonies of the world at large.
A small Serbian nation and Serb State, one of the oldest European
States,
have an impeccable history. They have never been conquerors, they waged
wars
only to defend themselves. For a long time now, the Serbs live in their
State
along with members of many minorities from neighbouring and other
European
States. Since the Second World War until the present day, those
minorities
have been treated equally in any respect with the members of the
majority
people. That has been known all over the world, and more than that, it
has
often served as an inspiration for many multinational and multiethnic
countries.
The allegations that the interests and rights of minorities in Serbia
are not
respected are untrue. These allegations are used by those who invented
them
as an excuse to bring pressures and use violence against disobedient
Serbia.
However, the Serb people have learned a lot from history - its own and
other
people's, just for being one of the most developed Slav peoples and one
of
the oldest European peoples. The Serbs are not going to end up as the
Indians
two centuries ago, nor will they make themselves European Kurds or
assume the
role of new Jews without a big battle.
Having said the battle, I mean all forms of resistance - wise,
dignified,
convincing, great, enlightening, all-embracing, contemporary,
traditional,
instantaneous, long-standing, sensible and senseless...
We are an old and small nation. Our long historic life made it possible
for
us to learn from our own life and the lives of others. The size of our
nation
has taught us that small nations have to be wise and that only big ones
can
afford to be stupid.
I hope that by combining those two advantages - experience and wisdom -
we
shall be able to avoid that fate of Indians, Blacks, Kurds and Jews, but
also
some developed European peoples who are pretending not so see that
instead of
globalization we are having colonisation.
However, unfortunately, it is not only the Serb people that are the
victim of
illusion that this is globalization and good will. The Albanian people
in
Serbia, perhaps even in Albania, are also the victim. Today they are the
instrument of pressure against Serbia. Today they are not counting the
price
in human lives of Albanians in Kosovo who will be used as this
instrument.
They indeed naively believe that the goal of American policy is welfare
of
Albanians. Tomorrow, that policy will totally forget that these people
ever
existed on this planet and it will hardly remember that they were ever
in the
focus of its attention.
Albanians in Yugoslavia, wherever they live, are the citizens of
Yugoslavia
for the Yugoslav Left. We do not see them as a minority. Yugoslavia is a
multiethnic and multinational country and is equally a homeland to all
living
in it. There are a lot of Albanians in the Yugoslav left. They and all
other
Albanians know that the Albanians in Yugoslavia, as well as Hungarians
in
Yugoslavia, the Muslims in Yugoslavia, the Turks in Yugoslavia - are
ours.
The fact that they are "ours" means that they are not allies of enemies
of
Yugoslavia outside Yugoslavia, regardless of what nation they belong to.
In the Yugoslav left we believe that common life of different peoples in
Yugoslavia is not only a necessary, but a nice form of life. It may well
soon
happen that a Balkan community of peoples be established along
multiethnic
and multinational principles. The Balkan community of peoples is the
only
reliable, contemporary and human way of life for the Balkan peoples to
say
farewell to arms, hate and tensions.
Nine months before the third millennium, humanity has enough knowledge
to see
that in the epoch before us, it, humanity, can survive and develop only
if it
lives in the world without frontiers, in which all peoples first become
equal
and in which all people should continue to be equal.
May happiness follow human resistance towards tyranny.
May the Left, Yugoslav and any other in the world, persist in its
historic
struggle for a more humane world. (Tanjug, Belgrade, March 10)
(diffuso sulla lista STOP NATO: ¡NO PASARAN! - HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.COM)
--------- COORDINAMENTO ROMANO PER LA JUGOSLAVIA -----------
RIMSKI SAVEZ ZA JUGOSLAVIJU
e-mail: crj@... - URL: http://marx2001.org/crj
http://www.egroups.com/group/crj-mailinglist/
------------------------------------------------------------