The Feminist Anti-Fascist Network (FAMa) expresses its revolt against the verdict of the Criminal Appellate Court in Belgrade, which upheld the fine imposed on the activist of the peace movement in Serbia, Aida Ćorović.
The fine was imposed because on December 9, 2021, activists Aida Ćorović and Jelena Jaćimović threw several eggs at a mural with the image of convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić, at the corner of Njegoševa and Aleksa Nenadović streets in Belgrade, after the local police prohibited the action removal of the mural previously announced by the Youth Initiative for Human Rights.
This verdict disturbs the democratic public both in Serbia and in other post-Yugoslav countries because it sends a clear message that the expression of critical views is not tolerated but rather severely sanctioned.
Condemning Aida Ćorović for a non-violent act of expressing a political position, the court left the zone of objectivity and impartiality and sided with those who relativize, justify and affirm war crimes and their perpetrators.
“Advocating for the freedom to express political views and peaceful assembly, FAMa will address international organizations which focus is the protection of human rights defenders.
We stand firmly by our colleague and her decision to oppose the glorification of the war criminal Ratko Mladić, and thus the maintenance of the atmosphere of conflict, threats and the rattling of weapons in our region”, announced FAMa.
FAMa was officially founded in 2023 on December 6, the day when the founding assembly of the Women’s Anti-Fascist Front (AFŽ) was held in 1942 in Bosanski Petrovac.
Representatives of the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly are part of FAMa, which consists of more than 100 female activists, politicians, researchers, artists and workers from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia, North Macedonia, Slovenia and Serbia.
