Artists in Serbia have criticized the appointment of a nationalist ex-paramilitary chief as the head of the National Theatre board, as the authorities crack down on the culture sector days before an expected new wave of anti-government protests.
Dragoslav Bokan, who was announced as the new president of the National Theatre’s board of directors last Thursday, was one of the founding commanders of the White Eagles, one of the most feared militia units during the Yugoslavia wars of the 1990s. Members of the White Eagles have been accused of carrying out massacres in Bosnia and Herzegovina, though Bokan has said he never “commanded any action” and that his role in the paramilitary organization was more secretarial.
At a time when Serbian society is in turmoil amid massive protests against the government of the nationalist president, Aleksandar Vučić, critics say Bokan’s appointment to an institution that has consistently backed the wave of unrest has clear political motivations.
The venue, which hosts productions of theatre, ballet and opera, has over the last eight months regularly expressed its solidarity with the wave of anti-corruption protests that have swept the country after a concrete canopy collapsed on to a busy pavement at Novi Sad central station, killing 16 people. After curtain calls, National Theatre actors have held up banners reading “the students’ demands are our demands” while wearing red gloves – a reference the red handprint that has become one of the protest’s recurring symbols. Initially focused on calling for those responsible for the disaster to be held accountable, the protesters’ demands have since evolved to call for a reform of the government body regulating digital media, as well as early parliamentary elections.
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