Issue No. 198 Friday, January 22 - Tuesday, February 04, 2016 ORDER DELIVERY TO Warming Expats find Little YOUR DOOR +381 11 4030 303 up to opportunity access to [email protected] - - - - - - - ISSN 1820-8339 1 winter knocks in end-of-life BELGRADE INSIGHT IS PUBLISHED BY 0 1 Serbia care in Serbia Page 4 Page 7 Page 11 9 7 7 1 8 2 0 8 3 3 0 0 0 Even when the Democrats longas continue to likely is This also are negotiations Drawn-out Surely the situation is urgent Many of us who have experi We feel in-the-know because bia has shown us that (a.) no single no (a.) that us shown has bia party or coalition will ever gain the governa form to required majority negotiations political (b.) and ment, will never be quickly concluded. achieved their surprising result at last month’s general election, quickly itbecame clear that the re sult was actually more-or-less the result election other every as same in Serbia, i.e. inconclusive. as Serbia’s politicians form new political parties every time disagree with they their current party reg 342 currently are (there leader political parties in Serbia). istered the norm. One Ambassador Belgrade-based recently told me he was also alarmed by the distinct lack of urgency among politicians. Serbian “The country is standstill at and a I don’t understand their logic. If they are so eager to progress towards the EU and en theycome how investors, courage go home at 5pm sharp and don’t work weekends?” overtime. little a warrant to enough Decision EDITOR’S WORD Predictability Political By Mark R. Pullen elections Serbian numerous enced rate ourselves as pundits when it comes to predicting election re sults and post-election moves. our experience of elections in Ser - - - - - - - - - - Football on sale: Serbia time for - BulgariaNEWS facing talent exodus on top NEWS Low wages for UN job “The situation in the party seems “Dacic will eventually side with Nikolic agreed: “The question is Fearing they might not cross the Pensioners leader, Jovan Krkoba The reported price is the post of In addition, the Socialists are bar Tadic has denied talk of horse- At the same time, Dacic seems re reach an agreement “If we don’t Source: Balkan Insight (www.balkaninsight.com) Balkan Insight (www.balkaninsight.com) Source: players and clubs’ party over which way to turn. extremely complicated, as we try to convince the few remaining lag gards that we need to move out of one Socialist shadow,” Milosevic’s Party official complained. in a bid to guide his party into Tadic the European mainstream, but much of the membership and many offi cials may oppose that move.” will the party split or ‘old- back down,” he noted. timers’ threshold to enter parlia 5-per-cent ment, the Socialists teamed up with Association of Pensioners and the the led by business United Serbia Party, man Dragan Markovic “Palma”. bic, Palma and Dacic are all pushing for a deal with the Democrats. of deputy PM, with a brief in charge security for the Socialist leader. gaining for other ministries, includ ing capital investments, Kosovo and education, Belgrade media reported. trading with the Socialists, maintain ing that ministries would go only to those committed to working for the “strategic goal”. government’s negotiations with luctant to call off the nationalists. with the DSS and Radicals, par ty leadership will decide on future steps”, Dacic announced, following par new country’s of session first the liament on Wednesday. PM Boyko Borisov - - - - financial instabil- must choose who to - ity in Serbian foot- nominate as Bulgaria’s page 10 ball leagues ‘chase candidate for the next away’ young, UN Secretary-General soon or risk losing the talented football chance of securing the hile the football world watch es events unfold at the Euro players – weaken- a strong current also However, Mihajlo Markovic, a founder of Markovic, a prominent supporter Some younger Socialist officials Neighbourhood Matters position and splitting faces extinction unless it changes. flows in the opposite direction, led by party veterans enraged the Tadic. prospect of a deal with recently warned of a crisis the party, if Dacic opts for the pro-European “nat bloc, abandoning the Socialists’ ural” ideological partners. of Milosevic during the 1990s, is seen as representative of the “old- timers” in the party who want to stay policies, true to the former regime’s even though these almost ruined the Socialists for good. have voiced frustration over the con tinuing impasse within their own Football Rebellion Football pean Championships in Austria and pean Championships in Switzerland, Bosnia is experiencing led by fans, play a soccer rebellion, enraged ers and former stars who are by what they see as corrupt leaders football association of the country’s leaders. W Issue No. 1 / Friday, June 13, 2008 Issue No. 1 / Friday, - - - - ing the domestic his ruling coalition. - field. Maria CHERESHEVA page 5 Ivana NIKOLIĆ ith the election to Filip AVRAMOVIĆ replace UN Ban Ki-moon as UN arko Grujić, a tal- Secretary-General ented 19-year-old approaching this conomists are warning that pro over Serbia’s uncertainty longed “This year has been lost, from the midfielder from Wyear, the tension over who will be nom- After eight years of stagnation, the pro-European and nation With Nikolic believes the Socialists, led “The group of younger Socialists Business Insight Costs Mounting future could scare off investors, lead investors, lead future could scare off to higher inflation and jeopardise prosperity for years to come. says standpoint of economic policy,” Econom the of Stamenkovic Stojan ics Institute in Belgrade. to Serbia’s late president, Slobodan to Serbia’s Milosevic, and reformists who want the party to become a modern Euro pean social democrat organisation. the Socialists returned to centre stage after winning 20 of the 250 seats in elections. parliament in the May 11 alist blocs almost evenly matched, the Socialists now have the final say on the fate of country. by Ivica Dacic, will come over to if only out of a pragmatic de Tadic, sire to ensure their political survival. gathered around Dacic seems to be adding said, Nikolic majority”, the in that these reformists believe the party Belgrade’s Red inated as the Bulgarian candidate for E - - - - Star Football Club, the job has been increasing. - was sold to the The reason for the behind-the- MUK’s Liverpool football club at the end scenes diplomatic fuss is that the Bal- of December for a total of €6 million, kan country holds a serious trump card Friday • June 13 2008 but will stay in Belgrade on loan to Red in the UN nomination process. Star until the end of the current season. The choice of a Secretary-General is Red Star, like most domestic football subject to an informal regional rotation clubs, is beset by serious financial prob- scheme, and Eastern Europe is the only THIS ISSUE OF lems and the club confirmed his sale region that has never presided over Belgrade Insight IS SUPPORTED BY: IS SUPPORTED was motivated by financial desperation. the organization. There is also a seri- on a new gov ense negotiations ernment have divided the ranks “It looks as if the Socialists will Simultaneous negotiations held This divides “old-timers” loyal Socialist leader Ivica Dacic remains the Serbian kingmaker Socialist leader Ivica Dacic remains Lure of Tadic Alliance Splits Socialists Tadic Lure of government, old pro-EU While younger Socialists support joining a new, over the prospect. revolt Milosevic loyalists threaten in Belgrade By Rade Maroevic “Red Star needs resources to pre- ous global campaign for a woman to be which holds of the Socialist Party, the balance of power between the blocs and has yet to announce main which side they will support. move towards a government led by the Democrats,” political analyst Mi lan Nikolic, of the independent Cen tre of Policy Studies, said. “But such a move might provoke deeper divi sions and even split the party.” with the pro-European and national ist blocs have drawn attention to a deep rift inside the Socialists. T serve this championship team, to keep Grujić was sold to Liverpool for €6 million. Photo: Facebook given the UN’s top job. a coaching staff… to provide money for Bulgaria fits both criteria. But the the current business. Transfers of pro- state with deteriorating fields and poor people train and play, getting prepared BIRN that this poll confirms Partizan’s main challenge the government is fac- fessional players are one of the legiti- attendance at the stadiums and don’t for better clubs. All the profit [for Ser- reputation for training young players. ing is the tough choice between two mate ways to raise the very necessary have the talent pool to recover. bian clubs] comes from the transfers,” “They have a well-established status indisputably strong candidates - the funds," according to a statement issued The main domestic football league, Poledica told BIRN. in Europe as a club from which quality Director-General of the United Nations by the team after the sale. Super League, rates poorly internation- The evidence backs this asser- players are coming,” Jevtović says. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Red Star is not alone in selling a ally, falling 27th out of 54 leagues on the tion. A recent poll by the Swiss Inter- This reputation for quality drives Organisation, UNESCO, Irina Bokova, promising player to shore up a club’s Union of European Football Associa- national Centre for Sports Studies, many foreign clubs to Serbia in pursuit and the Vice-President of the European ailing bottom line.