reclaiming spaces: urban transformations

Video documentation of the protests

http://www.youtube.com/pravonanaseljetv

Three months before the opening of the Universiade, Belgrade’s City Secretariat for Inspections decided to destroy the Roma slum settlement located right next to the athlete’s village “Belleville”. On April the 3rd 2009 all of a sudden a couple of bulldozers showed up at the settlement and demolished 40 houses. As the demolition was carried out without any prior notice to the residents, the people did not even have time to save their belongings from being buried under the ruins. A few of them were practically rescued from their houses in the very moment when the bulldozers were demolishing them.

The residents of the community say that the demolitions began during a surprise invasion beginning at six in the morning led by heavy police presence and special forces. Police brutality resulted in an emergency evacuation of two women from the community. Peoples’ entire belongings were left behind in the ruins. A part of the community is now spending the night in front of the City Council. They are without warm clothes, blankets, food, and medicine (many people had to leave them behind). Residents say that during the day unidentified youth on motorcycles were provoking and instilling fear in the community.

In the meantime, no alternative housing has been secured by the city government, nor is anyone taking care of these needs. Belgrade’s Major Djilas announced that it is “necessary that they be removed from that area so that we can build a new boulevard necessary for the development of the city, and holding of events being planned in the future.” He also threatened to deploy police forces to remove any protesters attempting to bloc the streets. These actions were preceded by a media campaign that justified the expulsion of Roma living in New Belgrade under “security” and “city image” considerations in the lead up to the Universiad 2009.

Through his statements, Major Dragan Djilas has contributed to the racist relationship towards Roma citizens and justified the destruction of their homes. As an “alternative” the city officials are suggesting to remove the building of a fence around the community so that “the city’s deformities won’t be seen during the Universiade.”

As a consequence, a series of public protests opposing the humiliating policy was organized and public pressure was put on the City Secretariat’s decision-makers to an extent that they did not dare to terminate what they started: the total erasure of the settlement. The new strategy is to erase the settlement’s visibility and to ban its residents from the streets. On June 16th 2009, a metal fence was built around the settlement. The fence is guarded by police and security staff on both sides, inside and outside the settlement. The residents are randomly forbidden to leave the settlement, which does not only limit their freedom of movement but also prevents them from carrying out their regular daily work on the streets of Belgrade, their only source of income.

We will not accept the humiliation of our fellow citizens, nor the attempt to forge reality. The true image of Serbia is composed of images such as the fancy “Belleville” area and Roma slum settlements being located right next to each other. It is composed of corruption on the highest level and the cutback of laborer’s rights and mass delocations. It is composed of the privatization of universities and the sad fact that high-publicity events such as the Universiade are more important than human lives and dignity. No fence will be able to change or hide that – no matter how big it may be.

As an explicit statement of opposing the intensified racist measures implemented by Belgrade authorities, and to support our fellow citizens, the members and friends of “Druga scena” decided to be the permanent guests in the Roma settlement for the duration of the Universiade. During this period a number of informal meetings, art workshops and cultural exchange programs are organized in cooperation with the ghettoized residents of the settlement. Together we demand that the fence around the Roma settlement in Block 67 is removed IMMEDIATELY. We demand that the City of Belgrade finally assumes its responsibility to improve the unacceptable living conditions of tens of thousands of Belgrade citizens who are forced to live in one of the approximately 150 slum settlements all over the city.

No to ghettoization of our neighborhood “for the benefit of the city”!

No to Universiade or any public event if it is at the expense of human dignity!

No to the authorities that value capital over human life and use racist strategies to manage their policies!

Does this mean that the Universiade will be paid for with human lives if necessary?

Our fellow citizens who have been left without home are determined to fight for their rights, their right to life, freedom, housing and work.

more information:

http://www.drugascena.org

http://www.archive.org/details/BELLEVILLE

http://www.youtube.com/user/pravonanaseljetv

http://www.dur.org.rs/cms/

WE CALL FOR INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY:

A) SIGN THE PETITION

http://www.petitiononline.com/01101102/petition.html

B)    CONTACT THE FOLLOWING:

(1) Mayor’s office of the City of Belgrade; (2) President’s Office of the Republic of Serbia; (3) International University Sports Federation (organizing the Universiade in Belgrade); (4) Your nearest Serbian embassy or consulate.

SAMPLES FOR LETTERS:

(1) Mayor’s Office:

E-mail: natasa.golubovic@beogradsg.org.yu

Head of Office, tel: 3246-764, 3229-787

tel: 3247-424, tel/fax: 3344-675

Natasa Golubovic

independent expert associate in international affairs

Dear Mr Djilas:

I am writing to express my outrage at the recent intensified racist measures implemented by Belgrade authorities. As I am informed, the city authorities built the metal fence around Roma settlements in Block 67, near University village Belville in New Belgrade. This strategy of ghettoisation which tries to erase the settlements’ visibility for the benefit of building a beautiful image of the city for Univerziade contest and to ban its residents from the streets is unacceptable.

I demand that you take all necessary measurments for removing the fence around the Roma settlements in the Block 67 IMMEDIATELY. As well, I demand that the City of Belgrade finally assumes its responsibility to improve the unacceptable living conditions of tens of thousands Belgrade citizens who are forced to live in one of the approximately 150 slum settlements all over the city.

Belgrade can not expect to rebrand itself in the eyes of the world by hosting Universiade  contests  if it is at the expense of human dignity.

I demand that your government respond and meet its obligations under a number of international conventions (Roma Decade is one of them!) and work towards securing the rights of Roma residents instead of deploying fences and police forces to suppress them.

Kind regards,

____________

(2) President of the Republic of Serbia:

GENERAL SECRETARIAT OF THE

PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA

Andricev venac 1, 11000 Beograd, Serbia

tel: +381 (0)11 3632-007, 3632-136

e-mail: kontakt.predsednik@predsednik.