Serb List holds final convention in Gracanica: Tomorrow is the most important day for Serb survival — let us be wise

The Serb List held its final convention in Gracanica ahead of the snap parliamentary elections, sending the message that tomorrow is the most important day for Serbs in Kosovo — a day when the future is being chosen and the survival and continued presence of Serbs in these areas defended. Serb List representatives urged voters to show wisdom, courage and unity tomorrow.

The gathering at the Gracanica Cultural Centre began with the Serbian national anthem, “Boze pravde”, while chants of “Victory”, “Serbia” and “Serb List” echoed throughout the event, with Serbian flags waving in every corner of the hall.

A large number of people remained outside the Cultural Centre, as there was not enough room inside.

The Mayor of Gracanica, Novak Zivic, said that Serbs are facing a day of decision.

“Оn the day when we choose the future of our children. When we will all stand proudly and upright together and defend, through the elections, our survival and continued presence in these areas. And when we say ‘no’ to pressure and to those who wish our people no good. We all know what our Gracanica has gone through recently. And it was no coincidence that they targeted us by arresting the directors of our schools and hospitals. They thought they would intimidate the Serbian people, force us to bow our heads, and divide us. But they failed, brothers and sisters,” Zivic said.

He said that Gracanica, Laplje Selo, Dobrotin, Gusterica, Ugljare and all Serbian communities in central Kosovo, as well as everywhere else where the Serbian people live, would tomorrow also be voting for Bratislav Lazic, Mirjana Dimitrijevic, Milica Dimic, Nebojsa Rasic, Boban Petrovic, Ljubisa Karadzic, Sasa Mladenovic, Aleksandar Trajkovic, and the directors who were recently arrested.

“Because the Serbian people are strongest when times are hardest and most united when unity is most needed. We are a people who have survived for centuries in the most difficult times, despite injustice and pressure. We preserved the Serbian name and identity, our faith, language and roots. That is why today I proudly say before you — we will overcome and we will win. The Serb List will win. They tried to break us, to instill fear and discord. But they failed and they will fail again. And we will show them that tomorrow, when we vote for our Serb List stronger and more united than ever. Because that is a vote for us,” Zivic said.

He added that a vote for the Serb List is a vote for “our future, our state of Serbia, new jobs, our schools and hospitals, salaries and pensions”.

“Today I want to ask a simple question to those who were considering taking a different path. I ask you: if you vote for Rasic, how do you think he will provide for you? With what money? From what source? Do you really believe that Kurti and Rasic will secure salaries for the Serbs who live here? Do you believe that Kurti will finance all those employed in healthcare, education or kindergartens, or pay salaries to those working in institutions? We all know the answer — he will not. Voting for such Serbs does not mean merely a change in policy, but turning one’s back on one’s own state of Serbia. And without that state of Serbia, what would happen to all of us overnight?” Zivic said.

He stressed that he understands how difficult the situation is and knows the burden carried by the Serbian people.

“But I ask you, when you are in the polling booth, standing before the ballot paper, to keep in mind your future and the future of your children. So let us be united and courageous, and show them that we are not for sale. There is no office and no amount of money for which I would sell the name and future of my children. I have no dilemma as to who I will stand with on 7 June. I will vote for our state and for those supported by our Belgrade, because that is the only barrier between our survival and our disappearance,” Zivic said.

He stressed that he understands how difficult the situation is and is fully aware of the burden carried by the Serbian people.

“But I ask you, when you stand in the voting booth before your ballot paper, to keep in mind your own future and the future of your children. Let us therefore remain united and courageous and show them that we are not for sale. There is no office and no amount of money for which I would sell the name and future of my children. I have no dilemma about where I will stand on 7 June. I will vote for our state and for those supported by Belgrade, because that is the only barrier between our survival and our disappearance,” Živic said.

Nikolina Petkovic, a law student from Gracanica, addressed the gathering as a future lawyer at a time when, as she put it, law and justice no longer exist for the Serbian people.

“At a time when all our rights, our communities, our land, our streets and our own homes are under threat. At a moment when our doctors, professors and members of the Serbian intellectual elite are being arrested, we students, pupils and children of Gracanica strive to become even better. Better at school, better at university and better in every aspect of our lives. Through hard work, we want to contribute to preserving our community and defend our homes with knowledge, books and pens,” Petkovic said.

She emphasized that students want to build their future in Kosovo.

“This is where we study, work and start families. We want to graduate as good lawyers, dedicated doctors and capable teachers. We do not want others to shape our society and our system. We want to be part of that system as capable and responsible people, to contribute to it and create better living conditions,” Petkovic said.

She added that free education, textbooks, student scholarships and warm student dormitories mean a great deal to students of the University of Pristina, just as they do to students around the world.

“With all these educational opportunities, it is only natural that we emerge as fully prepared academic citizens who will create a better tomorrow. We respect others, but we also demand respect. We demand complete equality and the right to decide about ourselves, our families and our community. We know our path. Our tools are books and pens. Our arena is the student reading room, from which we will emerge with our heads held high. I ask only one thing of you—it is not difficult—let us remain united. That gives us the strength to stand together beneath the Serbian tricolour, because we have no other homeland,” Nikolina said.

Serb List parliamentary candidate Srđan Popovic reminded the audience of everything the people of Gracanica had endured.

“You all know how hard we have fought and everything we have survived as residents of Gracanica. The kidnappings, the killings, the expulsions throughout Kosovo, the burning of monasteries and much more. Yet here we are, a quarter of a century later, still standing proudly. Still standing proudly in our Gracanica. Some believed they would discourage us. Some believed they would frighten us. But what they actually achieved was to unite us even more and strengthen our determination to secure the best possible result on 7 June,” Popovic said.

He stressed that his experience in the previous parliamentary term had shown him the importance of every seat in parliament.

“We have seen how much damage the loss of a single seat can do to our ability to defend our national interests. I believe you have all seen that as well. And I know that you understand how important it is for that seat to return where it belongs—to you, to your people and to our interests. We must win on 7 June. We must secure all ten seats. Only then can we defend our national interests, defend our justice, defend our truth, and ensure that we survive and remain here,” Popovic said.

The President of the Serb List, Zlatan Elek, said that today’s gathering was also a rally in support of the arrested directors and thanked those who had been unable to enter the hall but had come to hear the party’s message.

“This is not the Serb List’s final convention. This is a gathering in support of our arrested healthcare and education workers who are languishing in prison despite being innocent. You have all witnessed the recent events here in Gracanica. The arbitrary arrests and detentions of the leaders of our healthcare and educational institutions are part of a policy created by the regime in Pristina. But you know, just as I do, that our fellow Serbs were not arrested by Albanians. They were arrested by Kurti’s Serbs—those who advocate what they call the painless integration of healthcare and education into the Kosovo system. The same Kurti’s Serbs who took land from us in Zubin Potok and Leposavic, where police bases and stations now stand. The same Kurti’s Serbs who voted for the genocide museum,” Elek said.

According to him, all of these efforts are aimed at dividing the Serbian people, setting them against one another and, in some cases, buying their loyalty.

“That is why I call on you today to remain united and stand together. On 7 June, let us be politically wise enough to be one heart, one soul and one voice. Brothers and sisters, let us be a single voice that tomorrow, on 7 June, accompanied by the bells of Gracanica, will announce a convincing victory for the Serb List, ballot number 119, and the winning of all ten mandates reserved for the Serbian people. And to those Kurti’s Serbs who seek to divide us, we send a clear and loud message from this gathering today: our capital is Belgrade, our president is Aleksandar Vucic, and we are strong precisely because we believe in the Republic of Serbia,” Elek added.

He also reminded those present that a recruitment process for 120 jobs in central Kosovo is currently underway.

“Why am I telling you all this? Because thanks to the Serb List and the selfless support of the Republic of Serbia, thousands of apartments have been built in Kosovo and Metohija in recent years. Thousands of families have moved into new homes. Hundreds of houses have been built. The best social assistance packages have been provided. Thousands of jobs have been created. And even as I speak to you now, there is an open competition for 120 positions in our healthcare institutions here in central Kosovo. Unfortunately, I must also point out that there is another side. Kurti and those so-called Serbs offer no employment, no houses, no apartments and no new jobs. What remains are gambling debts, lies and deception,” Elek said.

He thanked supporters for standing by the party through numerous election cycles, maintaining their dignity and refusing to give up.

“That is why I call on you to remain united tomorrow. Let reason and responsibility toward future generations guide us on 7 June. Let us be worthy of our ancestors and make our descendants, our children, grandchildren and future generations proud of us. Today, I want to say clearly and loudly: thank you for the strength you show every day. Thank you for supporting us through countless election cycles—at least four or five in the past sixteen months. Thank you for preserving your dignity and for never giving up. And tomorrow, on 7 June, let us show that they have not bought us, broken us or defeated us. Let us declare freely and without fear: we are one heart, one soul, one people, one list. Tomorrow there is only the Serb List and number 119. Long live Gracanica. Long live the Serbian people,” Elek said.

Igor Simic, a Serb List candidate from North Mitrovica, began his speech by calling for support for Serbs currently in detention.

“I believe that everything they are going through today will, in just a few days, become a memory they will recall with pride. To suffer for Serbia and for the Serbian people is an honour and a privilege reserved for the chosen few, and you are among them. Every person who remains here and preserves the Serbian name and identity—from Strpce to Leposavic, from Metohija to Kosovo Pomoravlje, and especially here in the heart of Kosovo and Metohija, in our Gracanica. Dear brothers and sisters, there was a time when people here looked to the north as an oasis of freedom. Today, we in the north look to you and learn from you—to be patient, calm, composed and wise,” Simic said.

He stressed that all of Kosovo would be watching Gracanica tomorrow.

“Please show that Gracanica is not Nenad RaSic. Show that Gracanica is not for sale. Let us send him a message from here: whatever he does, he has not bought us. Serbs do not sell their faith for personal gain. Serbs are not bought with a cultivator or any other reward. I am delighted to see today that our brothers from the north, from Pomoravlje and from Metohija have come to Gracanica so that we can once again send a message: you were never alone, you are not alone now, and you never will be, as long as you fight to preserve the Gracanica Monastery. Beneath its vaults you will see Novak Živic, Milan Joskimovic, Srđan Popovic and many others, whose families have shown the price that freedom demands,” Simic said.

He noted that neither in Gracanica nor beneath the Serbian tricolour “will you see those who are prepared to serve Kurti.”

“There is no Serbian flag at their gatherings or among their symbols. What are they ashamed of? Being Serbs? Many leaders, military commanders and politicians have walked this land, and our people remember them all. They remember the Brankovics, the Jugovics, the Obilics and the Hrebeljanovics. We never built monuments to Brankovics, but we did to Obilics. We never celebrated those who turned their backs on their people. That is why I use this opportunity to call on all those who have lost their way—come back. Our arms are open. This is your family, this is where you belong, beneath this tricolour,” he said.

Simic emphasized that tomorrow’s struggle is not only for those who currently live in Kosovo.

“It is also a struggle for all those who left—to return, because only here are they truly at home. We must be wise and politically aware, and I know that you are, both those in this hall and the hundreds standing patiently outside supporting us. I thank all activists of the Serb List. I know you have been stopped, photographed, harassed and detained. Be proud. You were not detained because you are criminals, but because you are honourable Serbs who proudly carry the Serbian flag,” Simic concluded.