City Under Siege; Citizens Demand Responsibility from Officials

28 September 2008

Informal civic group Citizens of Sarajevo (Gradjani Sarajeva) demands, in a protest letter condemning the violence over these thinking differently which had its most extreme form last Wednesday, September 24, at the opening ceremony of the first Sarajevo Queer Festival, when groups of hooligans and religious radicals attacked the participants and organizers of the Festival.

Građani Sarajeva emphasize the responsibility of the highest police officials in the Canton of Sarajevo, Minister of Interior �eljko Mijatović and Police Commissioner Himzo Selimović, for the failure of the Cantonal Police to do its duty, in spite of the fact that it has already assessed that the Festival may be a high risk event.

`When the citizens gathered in front of the National Theatre to protest the impudence of the Cantonal and City Administration, the Police kept them 50 meters away from the entrance. Why were people, who called for violence for days before, allowed access to the very entrance of the building that housed the opening ceremony of the Queer Festival?` ask the Citizens of Sarajevo.

The Citizens of Sarajevo accused the politicians, the media and religious leaders of contributing to the escalation of violence and promoting it as a way of expression of views and opinions, while doing nothing to calm the situation. From the Ministry of Human Rights and the Gender Equality Agency they demand to at least come forward and present their views on these matters.

`We demand that all political and religious institutions in Bosnia and Hercegovina to share their responsibility for the incidents surrounding the organization and the events of the Queer Festival! Our opinions about the Festival, whether it is needed or not may differ, but violence is unacceptable as a way to resolve the debate, nor is it a sign of courage!` says the informal group.

Građani Sarajeva call on the political leaders, and above all the Mayor of Sarajevo, to provide adequate protection to all citizens and to ensure that Queer Festival shall proceed to its conclusion without incidents, thus demonstrating that their mantra about Sarajevo as tolerant democratic city and metropolis is not just a bunch of empty words.

Dino Mustafić, director fo the MESS theatre festival joined the protests, and invited all public personalities and citizens to raise their voice against those who, through words or action, prevented another cultural event.

`The closing and removal from public view of exhibitions, performances and other programmes offered by the QSF ought to be a cause of concern not just for the citizens and cultural workers, but also, and especially the state institutions that have as their very raison d`etre the promotion and assistance of such events, in particular events that are de facto the only form of expression available to those citizens, whom we call `minorities` and deserve special democratic and other care by contemporary society`, says Mustafić.

`The very essence of cultural events � festivals, exhibitions, etc. � is to democratize art and enrich and humanize the public spaces. Holding cultural events under police protection which proved inefficient in what looked like a siege of the Academy of Fine Arts, is a humiliation that the citizens of Sarajevo and the cultural scene should not and shall not accept`, adds Mustafić, demanding from the citizens of Srajevo to again demonstrate civic and human courage that made the besieged Sarajevo its good name in the world.