In the middle of Belgrade, nationalist propaganda and graffiti about Kosovo

The message "Kosovo is the heart of Serbia" is written on the facade of a building in the main pedestrian area of ​​Belgrade, where thousands of tourists pass every day.

This nationalist slogan, denying Kosovo's independence, which was declared in 2008, replaced a graffiti denying the genocide against Bosniaks in Srebrenica.

The latter had been there since June 2024 and the far-right group "People's Patrol" was signed as the author.

Activists from the non-governmental organization "KROKODIL" have erased that graffiti several times, but the nationalist messages have continued to return.

"They do this graffiti with the aim of spreading propaganda, fear, hatred, nationalism and similar things," Filip Jovanović, an activist who has participated in around twenty graffiti actions, tells Radio Free Europe.

After the activists' last action, a message about Kosovo appeared on the facade, but this time, no organization signed as the author.

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty did not receive a response from the Belgrade City Administration, nor from the Municipal Inspectorate of the Old Town Municipality, on whose territory the graffiti was written.

Marko, a 26-year-old from Belgrade, says he doesn't see anything objectionable in graffiti like the one currently on the facade of the "Beograd" store in the city center.

"It's our history and tourists walking through the city center should see it. I think there should be more murals like this," he says.

Lubica, 43, also from Belgrade, believes that such messages have no place in the city center.

“After all, this is the city center and it would be better if there was no graffiti. If there had to be something, then it would be good if it was related to our folklore, like, for example, the pattern from the Pirot carpet,” he says. Although it is located in a busy pedestrian area, the graffiti has not caught Nenad’s eye.

"I didn't even see that graffiti until you showed it to me. I have nothing against state policy, but I think it would be nicer if it were just a white wall," he says.

The City Administration and the Municipal Inspectorate of the Old City have not responded to Radio Free Europe's question about why the graffiti denying Kosovo's independence has not been removed.

The slogan "Kosovo is the heart of Serbia" spread in the late 80s, during the rise of Serbian nationalism, and was also widely used during the war in Kosovo in 1998-1999.

It was used by politicians, organizations, fan groups and parts of the Serbian Orthodox Church.

After the declaration of Kosovo's independence, which Serbia still does not recognize, the slogan was brought back into use.

Barbed wire for activists

"KROKODIL" activists have several times removed from the facade of the former "Beograd" shopping center the graffiti with the message in English: "The only genocide in the Balkans was against Serbs."

This message first appeared in early June 2024 and was signed as the author by the unregistered far-right group "People's Patrol", known for its links to groups close to Russia and for actions against migrants.

The graffiti appeared just days after the United Nations adopted a resolution declaring July 11th as the International Day of Remembrance of the Srebrenica Genocide.

During the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1995, Bosnian Serb forces, under the command of Ratko Mladic, killed over 8.000 Bosniak men and boys.

“The last time we were there [on April 11], the surface was oiled and pieces of barbed wire were laid, so that someone would slip and get hurt. We had to work very carefully,” says Jovanović. The 23-year-old psychology student lives in Valjevo – about 100 kilometers southwest of Belgrade.

He goes to Belgrade whenever "KROKODIL" organizes graffiti removal actions and says that, so far, he has participated in about twenty of them.

Even though nationalist messages quickly return to the walls, he says he doesn't lose motivation.

"Each of us should brush our teeth every morning and every evening. The same thing is with what we do – it's a kind of regular maintenance of the city's hygiene," says Jovanović.

"KROKODIL" activists are returning the facades to their original white state, covering up the chauvinistic slogans written on the walls.

About a hundred meters away from the graffiti "Kosovo is the heart of Serbia", on "Sremska" street, activists also covered up the graffiti "When the army returns to Kosovo" in mid-May.

Serbia's police and army withdrew from Kosovo in 1999, after the signing of the Kumanovo Agreement, which stopped NATO bombing of the former Yugoslavia, which was initiated due to crimes by Serbian forces against Albanian civilians.

This nationalist slogan is written in many places in Serbia and has been removed before by civil activists, who say it incites intolerance and calls for conflict.

Murals "When the Army Returns to Kosovo" have been appearing all over Serbia for more than three years now.

For days, unknown persons have written on public and private facades, as well as on retaining walls along highways.

The murals are not signed, but a portal associated with fans of the football club "Crvena Zvezda" has claimed that they have placed this verse in several locations in Belgrade.

Jovanovic says that nationalist graffiti is making a comeback quickly because, according to him, their writing is supported by the government.

"Those who write them have protection from the police, in the sense that they are not punished even when they post them in broad daylight, even though it is illegal," he says.

Representatives of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party, including its leader and former Prime Minister Miloš Vučević, have criticized the activists removing this graffiti, accusing them of “hating everything Serbian.”

What does the law say?

For painting murals in residential buildings, the consent of the residents living there is required, and if the object is under protection, approval from the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments is also required.

There is no public information about any person punished for writing these graffiti.

The Belgrade Municipality did not respond to Radio Free Europe's question about the number of charges filed against people who have posted nationalist graffiti in the last five years.

On the other hand, the municipal police have initiated several procedures against "KROKODIL" activists and civil society organizations, who, by covering up the graffiti, have returned the walls to their previous state.

However, the Belgrade Minor Offense Court has issued several acquittals for activists, concluding that it has not been proven that they committed minor offenses.

Opposition activist and teacher Dejan Petrovic from Niš paid a fine of 25 euros after covering up the mural "When the army returns to Kosovo" that was located in the yard of the school where he works."Some think we are a municipal service"

Jovanović says that since the moment he was involved in these actions, he has not received a single report from the municipal police.

"There have been several times when representatives of the municipal police have congratulated us for removing graffiti. This is quite unusual," he says.

Cleaning activities are mainly organized during the day, while passersby, says Jovanović, react mostly positively.

"Some even think that we are the city's municipal service that is returning the wall to its previous condition. We have even had people mistake us for painters and ask us if we can paint their apartment," Jovanović recounts.

He hopes that their action will encourage other individuals with liberal and pro-European stances to get involved in "cleaning" public spaces.

War criminals on the walls

Following the final conviction in The Hague in 2021 for genocide and war crimes, murals and graffiti in honor of Ratko Mladic, the former commander of the Army of Republika Srpska, appeared in Belgrade and across Serbia.

One of the most famous murals was placed on "Njegosheva" street, in the center of Belgrade.

Efforts by citizens and activists to remove it were unsuccessful, as unknown perpetrators, suspected of being part of right-wing groups and fan groups, quickly restored it.

After being covered up by activists in May 2023, he never returned.

The Youth Initiative for Human Rights has, meanwhile, filed over 300 complaints in ten cities in Serbia, demanding the removal of graffiti glorifying Mladic./REL.