Of course I'm a free man. And my father Curly For most of his life he had complete freedom. Grandfather Said was something of a semi-free man, because he worked in Štoj, cultivated and looked after the estate, but he also had time to fish, so said a man from Ulcinj. Mario Shurla - clearly describing the genesis of the last black enclave in Ulcinj.
Mario's father Rizo was a top photographer and, with his witty and witty character, left a strong mark on the recent history of the southernmost Montenegrin city, especially Pristan, where he had a photography shop. He was born in 1922 in Ulcinj, as a child of a direct descendant of Africans who lived in the city at the time.
His contribution to the development of Ulcinj as an attractive tourist destination, which inherits multiculturalism and promotes all other differences, including those in skin color, is immeasurable. Just like his contribution to the conquest of freedom for his compatriots and their successful integration into the local community.
That is why everyone who knew Riz is delighted by the recent initiative of the non-governmental organizations Center for Civic Education (CCE), Antifascists of Cetinje and UL Info - that a street in Ulcinj will bear the name of this famous photographer, participant in the National Liberation War (NOB), actor and the most famous member of the Afro-Ulcinj community.
The initiative was submitted to the Municipality of Ulcinj, the Municipal Assembly and the Council for proposing names for settlements, streets, squares and institutions.
Partisan, photographer, actor and symbol of multiculturalism
NGOs point out that Rizo Šurla, as a well-known anti-fascist and symbol of multicultural Ulcinj, deserves a street in that city.
“Rizo Šurla (also known as Rizo Harapi) was born in 1922 in Ulcinj, into an Afro-Albanian family. His father Saidi was a direct descendant of the first Africans to live in Ulcinj. In his youth, Šurla was involved in boxing and worked in catering in Dubrovnik, while he learned photography in Belgrade. During World War II, he joined the partisan movement and enlisted in the Srem Front. He was wounded in the NOB. After the war, he returned to Ulcinj, where he opened the first photography shop 'Pinješ' in 1952 and was the only photographer in the city for a long time. He is also remembered for his role in the TV drama 'Jagoš i Uglješa' from 1976. He was one of the symbols of Pristan and Bojana - a fisherman, a football lover and a bohemian. He died in Ulcinj in 2003. He was one of the last members of families of African origin in this city,” the explanation states. initiatives.
It is emphasized that the image of Riz Šurla was painted in 2021 on the staircase leading to the former "Galeb" hotel, along with other prominent figures from the history of Ulcinj, which, as the initiative states, means that his city has already, in a way, paid tribute to him.
"We would like to remind you that the Municipality of Ulcinj is the first Municipality in Montenegro to adopt the Charter on Social Cohesion, which, as it was announced at the time, 'demonstrates commitment to building a more open and connected society, based on equality and respect'. We appreciate that naming a street after the most prominent Ulcinj resident of African origin, whose community has been a special feature of this city for centuries and contributed to its development, would represent a strong symbolic act of recognition, especially since there are no streets named after them in Ulcinj, although there are a number of localities whose names refer to this community," states the initiative of the three NGOs, who believe that Rizo Šurla, in accordance with the Law on Memorials, meets the criteria for a prominent figure, considering his contribution to the community, culture and the fight against fascism.
"Interculturalism and nurturing diversity are some of the fundamental values of Montenegro that we should be proud of. Naming a street after Riz Šurla would ensure the institutional preservation of the memory of his life and work, as well as the contribution of the Afro-Ulcinj community, so that new generations will have the opportunity to learn about them."
Dreamed of freedom
Riz's father Said was a servant of the Ulcinj nobleman. Prenka's costume in Štoj. At the beginning of the last century, he dreamed of freedom, like most of his compatriots. Freedom came later, however, he conquered Rizo for himself and his descendants...
Rizo and Said belong to a pure-blooded lineage of African blacks who have been brought to Ulcinj from African countries for centuries to serve.
Mario has a slightly lighter complexion than his father and grandfather, which is a result of the mixed marriage between Rizo and a local woman. Swim. And Mario's children, Andjela i Stefan, have a lighter complexion than him, since he is also the wife Helena white woman.
Some of the next generations of Said Šurla's lineage will undoubtedly have a completely bright future...
And it all started a long time ago - even before the arrival of the Turks, at a time when Ulcinj pirates had close ties with the pirates of Algeria, Malta and Tunisia. The pirates brought blacks from these and other African countries and sold them to the rich people of Ulcinj - to serve them. This was especially pronounced in the 17th and 18th centuries, when the Ulcinj pirates were the fear and terror of the Mediterranean.
Prof. Ph.D Djurdjica Petrovic (1927-2003), full professor at the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade and one of the most important ethnologists of the second half of the 20th century, in his exposé, based on the research of scientists Tihomir Đorđević Africanists Aleksandar Lopašić, points out that in 1706, Ulcinj had 120 large-capacity ships at its disposal, while there were only 20 in the entire Boka Bay at the same time.
Petrović states that there were about 100 black houses in Ulcinj in 1878. Such a large number of Africans, according to her, was the result of the prestige of the Ulcinj nobles, because a larger number of servants meant a greater reputation for the family.
In his work, Petrović recalls that Ulcinj sailors continued the slave trade after 1878 until the Balkan Wars and that the names of five traders from that period are known.
Some historical documents also mention voluntary arrival, such as the famous black woman Tear from Sudan, who married a man from Ulcinj Hajji Halil Ficija, then a major in the Turkish army.
Almost none of those questioned and spoken to by Đorđević and Lopašić knew where they came from.
In an interview with "Vijesti" more than ten years ago, Mario said that the reason for this was that black people were brought to Ulcinj young and died young, so that rarely anything could be passed down from generation to generation.
All the black people who lived in Ulcinj at that time, Mario says, are direct descendants of his grandfather.
Black people from Ulcinj mostly got their surnames from the families in which they served and lived. It was the same with Marije's family.
"Rizo told me that our ancestors served with the Šurla family from Ulcinj. That's where our last name came from. Rizo later added Arap as a second last name to Šurla. His brother Desire and fraternize Jani "They replaced the surname Šurla with the surname Arap. I kept only Šurla as a reminder of our past. And I don't regret it. And why should I, whether my surname is Arap or Šurla, I am certainly a free man, just unemployed," he said jokingly at the time.
On the other hand, according to some Ulcinj residents, the blacks who were servants to some locals shared both joy and sorrow with them. That they were not treated as slaves is also evidenced by the fact that they generously gave them their surnames, which they used even when they started new, independent lives.
Mario, who lives between Ulcinj and Belgrade, had a childhood that was no different from that of his white peers. That's what Rizo, who spent his first boyhood, and later his young manhood, in Croatia, fought for, not because he wanted to, but because others wanted him to.
"Riz was taken to Dubrovnik at the age of six, to a wealthy merchant Juste Tezaka", but not to work, but for the attraction. He looked after him, fed him and educated him. Later, he worked for Težak in the local tavern 'Dubrovnik' as an auxiliary worker. Life then took him first to Zagreb, where he worked as a waiter at the 'Esplanada' hotel, and then at the 'Mažestik' in Belgrade," Mario told his father's life story.
Meeting with Sava Burić
During the war, Rizo worked as a photographer in Belgrade, and in 1944 he enlisted for the Srem Front, where he was wounded. There is an anecdote from that time when Rizo's company was visited by General Savo Buric, and found him on guard duty. Something was unclear to him, so he approached Riz and asked him how he was and where he was from.
"From Montenegro," answered Rizo as if from a cannon.
"By God, I knew we were black, but not this much," Mario said, as Burić, a Montenegrin from Danilovgrad, jokingly replied to his father.
After the war, Rizo returned to Ulcinj. He worked as a waiter at “Jadran”, and in 1952 he opened a photography shop as a family business. Twenty years later, a shop sprang up on Pristan, under the walls of the Old Town. There, Rizo would take his camera every day and go to work. Nada would stay in the shop. The locals say that everyone wanted to take a picture with Rizo.
Locals say he was athletically built and handsome.
"Everyone wanted to take some souvenir from their vacation, and Rizo pleased everyone. He was like a magnet."
And so, thanks to Riz, the story of the Ulcinj blacks spread throughout Europe.
Black pearls
In his 1973 work, Petrović confirms that not all blacks were servants their entire lives, but that there were also freemen - two of them were captains of their own ships, while the rest were engaged in agriculture. Blacks, he writes, never engaged in crafts, except for two - Rizo as a photographer and Yusuf Šepateje as a mechanic.
The Ulcinj blacks are an inexhaustible inspiration for numerous historians, scientists, writers, journalists... They were devoted to their new homeland. Famous Ulcinj journalist and chronicler Aleksandar Janinović He called the black people of Ulcinj black pearls, clearly associating that Ulcinj had something that no other city had. In one of his numerous notes, he provided details of a conversation with Rizo Šurlo, who was already at the end of his life at that time. Rizo then told him that it was a mistake to call him an African in the book “The Tenth Border Brigade”, which states that he was wounded on December 23, 1944.
"Neither I nor my father are Africans. Some of our ancient ancestors came from there. But I am a Montenegrin. That's how I feel and that's how I've always declared myself," he told Rizo Janinović at the time.
And for all that he has done in promoting the city as a tourist and multicultural city, and for his unwavering spirit of freedom in both peace and war, the least Rizo deserves is to have a street named after him. Because pearls last...
Bonus video:
