Sinisa Boljanovic

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Serbia: First Reactions to Acquittal of Sandor Kepiro

On Monday July 18, 2011, a court in Budapest acquitted 97-year-old Sandor Kepiro, a Second World War Hungarian police captain who served in occupied Serbia and, until recently, was “the most wanted Nazi.” He was charged with war crimes against Serbs, Jews and Roma during the Novi Sad Raid –...

Serbia: Novelists Participate in “Blog Day” Project

  10 December 2010

On Dec. 8, one of the Serbian publishing houses launched an interesting project: called Blog Day, it represents a unique example of web activism in Serbia that will be taking place four times a year. The topic of the first Blog Day was Ecology, and over 20 Serbian novelists have posted their contributions.

Serbia: Children Get Military Training in Russian Camps

  22 October 2010

In the prime of the newest public discussion on patriotism and the origin of violence in the Serbian society, newspaper Danas reported that two years ago Serbian children, aged 11 to 15 years old, had spent 16 days in scout camps in Russia, where they were being trained to assemble and dismantle weapons, to throw bombs, and to fire rifles. Sinisa Boljanovic translates some of the reactions to the case.

Serbia: Threats to B92's Journalist

  9 December 2009

Serbian journalist Brankica Stankovic, the author of a recent TV show about Belgrade's football hooligans, has been receiving serious threats, including via Facebook. Sinisa Boljanovic reviews the response in the Serbian blogosphere.

Serbia: The Death of a French Football Fan

  30 September 2009

Brice Taton, a 28-year-old French citizen and a fan of the Toulouse football team, was brutally beaten by fans of the Partizan football team in downtown Belgrade on Sept. 17, before the Partizan vs Toulouse game. He died in a Belgrade hospital on Sept. 29.

Serbia: Threats to LGBT Population

  23 August 2009

Serbia's gays are facing plenty of problems - and on Sept. 20, they are planning to hold a gay pride parade in Belgrade. Sinisa Boljanovic reviews some pro and contra reactions published on Serbian blogs and in other online venues.

Serbia: Torture or Therapy?

Last week, on May 21, a short film about torture in the Spiritual Rehabilitation Center "Crna Reka," located in south-western Serbia, was shown on the web site of Vreme, a Serbian weekly magazine. The patients of this center are drug addicts and its head is Branislav Peranovic, a Serbian Orthodox priest. Nearly all Serbian media have shown the horrible scenes from the short film, in which Peranovic is shown beating one of the patients brutally with a spade and with his fists. Sinisa Boljanovic reviews Serbian bloggers' responses.

Serbia: Thoughts on Doubt and Faith

  17 April 2009

Orthodox Christian believers will celebrate Easter on Sunday, April 19. On this occasion, some Serbian bloggers posted their thoughts about different legends and dogma related to Jesus Christ. Sinisa Boljanovic has translated two of these posts.

Serbia: Gypsies’ Houses Torn Down in Belgrade

  12 April 2009

This July, Belgrade will host the 25th World University Games, whose participants will stay in the newly-built University Village. There used to be some 350 Gypsy houses near that place, but, following an order of the City Department of Inspections, about 50 houses were torn down on April 3. A few dozen children, women, old and sick Gypsies spent the night without shelter, and were later attacked by the neo-Nazis. Sinisa Boljanovic translates bloggers' reactions to the incident and to the measures proposed by Belgrade's city authorities.

Serbia: Remembering NATO Bombing 10 Years Later

  26 March 2009

On March 24, 1999, NATO forces began attack on Serbia and Montenegro. The bombing went for 78 days. A few thousand people were killed, many buildings, bridges, railroads, roads and factories were destroyed. Also, many people still experience mental and psychic effects of the fear they had been through. Ten years later, Serbian bloggers are reminded of those terrible days. Below is a selection of some of their journal notes and recollections from the beginning of the war.