The Novi Sad Exit music festival could soon become history – at least in Serbia, writes the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. "The Serbian state has been taking measures against the major event ever since its leadership took a stand against the increasingly autocratic rule of President Aleksandar Vučić. And the situation is similar for publishers, theaters and other cultural institutions that, according to those in power, represent the wrong political line."
"The case of the Exit festival, however, is the most famous – and could probably be the most financially significant," says the article by journalist Mihael Martens. He explains that more than sixty percent of the festival's visitors come from abroad. "This means that a lot of money is pouring into the coffers of the second largest city in Serbia."
According to the author, the loss of reputation for Serbia could be greater than the economic damage. The article recalls that the festival, which hosts hundreds of artists and bands every July, has won numerous international awards and brought both promising outsiders and established names from pop, rock, punk, techno and other musical styles to Serbia.
Support for protests
The year 2000, when Exit was founded, was, as the Frankfurt newspaper writes, "the last year of the rule of Serbian autocrat and warmonger Slobodan Milošević, whose propaganda minister was for a time the young Vučić. A few months before Milošević's overthrow on October 5, 2000, when there was hope that his paralyzing rule would come to an end, although that was not yet in sight, rebellious young people founded a festival whose name was programmatic. 'Exit' was supposed to mark Serbia's exit from the era of war, nationalism, isolation, corruption, manipulated media reporting and economic decline."
This year's 25th festival is dedicated to those beginnings, it says. "Under the motto 'State of exit', organizers say the event aims to commemorate its origins as a 'student movement for democracy and freedom' in 2000. Given the mass protests against Vučić's rule that have been going on for months, it is anything but a retrospective slogan."
In today's Serbia, the German newspaper writes, "the generation of children of those who took to the streets against Milošević a quarter of a century ago is now rebelling against Vučić. He has completely undermined democracy in the country, which functioned quite well before he came to power more than a decade ago."
The pattern is clear.
Solidarity with the students comes at a price: the state has withdrawn its support for the festival. The article quotes the Exit team's warning: It is entirely possible "that the festival will be moved to another country starting next year due to this undemocratic pressure."
But the example of the festival in Novi Sad, as the author states, is just one of many. He also points to the example of the publishing house "Akademska knjiga" from Novi Sad: "The publisher supported student protests on Facebook, and also publishes books by Serbian academics who criticize the government. The publisher Bora Babić has now received a bill for this: his requests for funding for literary projects have been rejected."
"Not every funding cut has to be a political punitive measure (the authorities cite a lack of funds as the reason), but the pattern is clear: cultural institutions that showed solidarity with the protests are denied state funding. Actors close to the government receive it," the Frankfurt newspaper writes.
"Tax money for a murderer"
At the same time, the article also mentions what the state is supporting: the publication of books by Milorad Ulemek. "A multiple murderer who was sentenced to forty years in prison and who, as a major figure in the Serbian underworld, also planned and carried out contract killings, Ulemek was the driving force behind the assassination of Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Đinđić in 2003."
"While in prison, he developed scribbling tendencies. The distribution of his books, imbued with nationalism and pathos, with titles like 'Iron Trench' and 'For Honor and Glory,' is financed by taxpayers' money in today's Serbia. The government's library acquisition program includes nine titles by this prolific serial killer. This illustrates the worsening political reality in Serbia," the author assesses and concludes: "If Exit were to leave Novi Sad (there are probably many cities in Southeast Europe that would gladly offer themselves as an alternative location), it would have a historical consequence: the festival was created when Milošević's autocracy was in its final stages – and it could disappear with Vučić's autocracy."
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