Football, hooliganism and nationalism: the reaction to Serbia's gay parade in reader commentary online

Abstract

Recent events in Serbia, particularly the murder of a French football fan in 2009, hooligan violence in response to the gay parade in Belgrade and riots during the Serbia–Italy UEFA football game in 2010, have brought renewed attention to the issue of hooliganism in Serbia. Apart from vehemently opposing the gay parade, the main actors in these riots – football hooligans and members of radical nationalist groups – have made far-reaching appeals about the nature of Serbian identity, morality and the ‘true’ Serbian nation, have called for toppling of the current government and a clear anti-EU stance. This paper simultaneously explores the overlap between football hooliganism and the extreme-right movement, as well as the reaction of everyday people to the activities of the groups' participants. Discourse analysis of 2700 reader comments in response to the events surrounding the 2010 gay parade provides rich information on the major themes in everyday people's reactions to hooliganism.

Notes

^1.Sugden and Tomlinson, Hosts and Champions.

^2.Arbena, ‘Sport, Development and Mexican Nationalism’; Duke and Crolley, Football, Nationality and the State; Guilianotti, Bonney, and Mepworth, Football Violence and Social Identity; Hargreaves, ‘Olympism and Nationalism’; and Sugden and Tomlinson, Hosts and Champions.

^3.Hoberman, ‘Sport and Ideology’.

^4.Bairner, Sport, Nationalism and Globalization.

^5.Sack and Suster, ‘Soccer and Croatian Nationalism’, 306.

^6. While hooliganism typically refers to a specific form of spectator violence at football matches, used to cover a variety of actions taking place in football-related contexts, the term ‘hooliganism’ is largely a media construct rather than a specific concept relating to football violence, and is frequently used in a ‘cover-all’ umbrella term including various forms of minor and more serious ‘violence’, referring broadly to football fans who cause ‘damage’ to society. See Spaaij, Understanding Football Hooliganism.

^7. Studies of football hooliganism are too plentiful to mention here. For an excellent overview of the field, see Spaaij, Understanding Football Hooliganism. Also see Dunning, ‘Towards a Sociological Understanding’; King, ‘Outline of a Practical Theory’; and Guilianotti, Bonney, and Mepworth, Football Violence and Social Identity.

^8. Stakic, ‘Homophobia and Hate Speech in Serbian Public Discourse’.

^9.Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia, ‘Radicalization’.

^10. Ivan Colovic, as quoted in Stankovic, ‘Insajder: (Ne)moc drzave’ [Insider: Power(less) of the state].

^11.Colovic, Politics of Symbol in Serbia, 273–4.

^12.Gasser and Levinsen, ‘Breaking Post-War Ice’, 459.

^13. Marcus Tanner, ‘Yugoslavia's Ethnic Hatred Boils over in Soccer Violence’, The Times, May 10, 1990, 10.

^14. Sack and Suster, ‘Soccer and Croatian Nationalism’, 311–2.

^15. Gasser and Levinson, ‘Breaking Post-War Ice’, 459.

^16. Arkan himself was a member of the State Security (Drzavna bezbednost) branch of the Serbian Ministry of Interior, a post he filled due to his propensity for criminal activities as well as the relationships with his father, general of the Yugoslav National Army, and Stane Dolanac, Minister of Interior and later member of the presidency. See Shentov, Todorov, and Stoyanov, Partners in Crime, 41–2; and Stewart, Hunting the Tiger, 145–6.

^17. A summary of the charges against Arkan by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia can be found here: International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, ‘Zeljko Raznatovic “ARKAN”’, United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, http://www.icty.org/x/cases/zeljko_raznjatovic/cis/en/cis_arkan_en.pdf.

^18. While Arkan initially recruited Delije members for his Volunteer Guard, he later selected ‘volunteers’ from Serbian prisons as well as members from criminal circles in Serbia. For a thorough account of the recruitment of Tigers and their activity, see Australian Government Refugee Review Tribunal, ‘Country Advice Serbia’. See also Sack and Suster, ‘Soccer and Croatian Nationalism’, 312.

^19.Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia, ‘Hooliganism Spills from Political’, 3.

^20.Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia, ‘Radicalization’, 1.

^21.Kazimir, ‘Nasilje u sportu i mediji’ [Violence in sport and the media], 2 (our translation).

^22.Brubaker, Ethnicity without Groups.

^23.Hobsbawm, ‘Invention of Tradition’, 10.

^24.Wodak et al., Discursive Construction of National Identity.

^25.Fearon and Laitin, ‘Violence and the Social Construction of Ethnic Identity’, 851–2.

^26.Bourdieu, ‘Identity and Representation’, 223.

^27.Calhoun, Nationalism, 5.

^28.Fox and Miller-Idriss, ‘Everyday Nationhood’, 538.

^29. Ibid., 539.

^30.Colovic, Politics of Symbol in Serbia, 280.

^31.Surculija, Pavlovic, and Padejski, ‘Mapping Digital Media’.

^32. His sentence was reduced in 2011, because the Appeals Court decided there was insufficient evidence that Misic tried to stick the torch down the police officer's throat, since the burn injuries were not on his mouth but on his back and the left side of his face only. See FoNet, ‘Preinacena presuda Urosu Misicu’ [Judgment revised for Uros Misic], Vecernje Novosti Online, May 4, 2011, http://www.novosti.rs/vesti/naslovna/aktuelno.69.html:329209-Preinacena-presuda-Urosu-Misicu.

^33.Elektronske Novine, ‘Otkriveni napadači na ambasade i policiju?’ [Embassy and police attackers discovered?] Elektronske Novine, August 25, 2011, http://www.e-novine.com/srbija/vesti/50293-Otkriveni-napadai-ambasade-policiju.html.

^34. Rade Stanic, ‘Moc desnice’ [The power of the right], Politika Online, August 3, 2008, http://www.politika.rs/rubrike/Tema-nedelje/Moch-desnice/Moc-desnice.lt.html.

^35.Blic Online, ‘Huligani ponovo lomili Beograd’ [Hooligans smashing Belgrade again], Blic Online, July 30, 2008, http://www.blic.rs/Vesti/Politika/51112/Huligani-ponovo-lomili-Beograd; and Glas javnosti, ‘Huligani opet ruse’ [Hooligans destroy again], Glas javnosti, July 30, 2008, http://www.glas-javnosti.rs/clanak/tema/glas-javnosti-30-07-2008/huligani-opet-ruse.

^36. In January 2011, the main organizer Djordje Prelic was sentenced to 35 years in prison, while the other accomplices received between 4 and 32 years. See Blic, ‘Huligani nasrtali na novinare i vređali sud’ [Hooligans attacked/journalists and insulted the court], Blic Online, January 26, 2011, http://www.blic.rs/Vesti/Hronika/231597/Huligani-nasrtali-na–novinare-i-vredjali-sud. In January 2012, the Appeals Court reduced their sentences by half, including Prelic's from 35 to 15 years; see Vuk Cvijic, ‘Prepolovljene kazne ubicama Brisa Tatona’ [Penalties halved for the killers of Brice Taton], Blic Online, January 26, 2012, http://www.blic.rs/Vesti/Hronika/303657/Prepolovljene-kazne-ubicama-Brisa-Tatona.

^37.Stankovic, ‘Insajder: (Ne)moc drzave’ [Insider: Power(less) of the state].

^38.Beta Agency, ‘Potvrdjena presuda za pretnje Brankici Stankovic’ [Judgment confirmed for the threats to Brankica Stankovic], Blic Online, September 16, 2010, http://www.blic.rs/Vesti/Hronika/207487/Potvrdjena-presuda-za-pretnje-Brankici-Stankovic.

^39. K. Djordjevic, ‘Datum i marsuta gej parade’ [Date and route for the Pride Parade], Politika Online, July 21, 2009, http://www.politika.rs/rubrike/vesti-dana/Datum-i-marshruta-gej-parade.sr.html.

^40. Ognjen Zoric, ‘Vodji “Obraza” dve godine zatvora za nerede na Paradi ponosa’ [Two years in prison for the leader of ‘Obraz’ for rioting at the Gay Parade], Radio Slobodna Evropa, April 20, 2011, http://www.slobodnaevropa.org/content/vodja_obraza_osudjen_na_dve_godine/9500255.html.

^41.Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia, ‘Pride Parade’.

^42. ‘Neredi zbog hapsenja Mladica’ [The riots over the arrest of Mladic], Vreme, May 27, 2011, http://www.vreme.com/cms/view.php?id = 993035; and ‘Protesti zbog hapsenja Mladica, privedeno 35 osoba’ [Protests against the arrest of Mladic, 35 persons detained], Vecernje Novosti Online, May 26, 2011, http://www.novosti.rs/vesti/naslovna/aktuelno.69.html:332054-Protesti-zbog-hapsenja-Mladica-privedeno-35-osoba.

^43. ‘Zabranjena “Parada ponosa” i svi skupovi’ [‘Pride Parade’ and all assemblies prohibited], Vesti Online, September 30, 2011, http://www.vesti-online.com/Vesti/Srbija/168166/Zabranjena-Parada-ponosa-i-svi-skupovi.

^44. ‘Fudbal, incidenti i pobeda Partizana’ [Football, incidents and Partizan victory], Tanjug, November 25, 2011, http://www.tanjug.rs/novosti/25371/fudbal–incidenti-i-pobeda-partizana.htm.

^45. ‘“Delije” i “Firma” tukli hrvatske navijače, kod 13 uhapšenih nađeno oružje’ [‘Delije’ and ‘Firma’ beat Croatian fans, 13 arrested with arms], Blic, http://www.blic.rs/Vesti/Hronika/303537/Delije-i-Firma-tukli-hrvatske-navijace-kod-13-uhapsenih-nadjeno-oruzje.

^46.Colovic, Politics of Symbol in Serbia, 276. For more background information, see ‘Football, Blood and War’, The Observer, Observer Sport Monthly, January 18, 2004, http://observer.guardian.co.uk/osm/story/0,6903,1123137,00.html.

^47. Kazimir, ‘Nasilje u sportu i mediji’ [Violence in sport and the media], 5 (our translation).

^48.Kurir, ‘Zatvor zbog Srebrenice’ [Prison for Srebrenica], Kurir, October 19, 2006, http://arhiva.kurir-info.rs/Arhiva/2006/oktobar/19/SP-03-19102006.shtml.

^49. According to the show ‘Insider’ and several newspapers (e.g. Glas javnosti, August 1, 2006, 12), this figure comes from official evidence on the basis of criminal court proceedings of the police.

^50. Official site of Obraz, http://www.srb-obraz.org.

^51. Official site of 1389, http://www.1389.org.rs.

^52. Official site of Nasi Srbija, http://nasisrbija.org.

^53. Official site of Dveri, http://www.dverisrpske.com.

^54. Official site of Nacionalni stroj, http://www.nacionalnistroj.com.

^55. Official site of Blood and Honor, https://www.bhserbia.org/.

^56. The 15 groups included Partizan sub-groups Brigate, Ludaci Padinska Skela, Alkatraz, Anti-Romi, South Family, Shadows, Head Hunters, Extreme Boys, Brain Damage, Iriducibili New Belgrade and Cuvari casti; Zvezda subgroups Ultra Boys, Belgrade Boys and Ultras and Rad subgroup United Force.

^57. M. Derikonjic, ‘Nema zabrane navijačkih grupa’ [No ban for fan groups], Politika Online, March 19, 2011, http://www.politika.rs/rubrike/Hronika/Nema-zabrane-navijackih-grupa.lt.html.

^58.Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia, ‘Annual Report, Serbia in 2010’, 75.

^59. V. Cvijic, ‘Zabranjen Nacionalni stroj’ [Nacionalni stroj banned], Blic Online, June 2, 2011, http://www.blic.rs/Vesti/Hronika/257679/Zabranjen-Nacionalni-stroj.

^60.Beta Agency, ‘Ustavni sud trazi dodatne dokaze za zabranu “Obraza”’ [The Constitutional Court asks for further evidence for the prohibition of ‘Obraz’], Blic Online, December 14, 2011, http://www.blic.rs/Vesti/Hronika/295552/Ustavni-sud-trazi-dodatne-dokaze-za-zabranu-Obraza.

^61.Manosevitch and Walker, ‘Reader Comments to Online Opinion Journalism’; and Dimaggio et al., ‘Social Implications of the Internet’.

^62.Albrecht, ‘Whose Voice is Heard?’; and Min, ‘Online vs. Face-to-Face Deliberation’.

^63.Rojo and Ragsdale, ‘Participation in Electronic Forums’; and Dahlberg, ‘Internet and Democratic Discourse’.

^64.Dahlberg, ‘Internet and Democratic Discourse’; and Albrecht, ‘Whose Voice is Heard?’.

^65.Kollock and Smith, ‘Managing the Virtual Commons’.

^66.Postmes, Spears, and Lea, ‘Breaching or Building Social Boundaries?’; and Min ‘Online vs. Face-to-Face Deliberation’.

^67.Benson, ‘Rhetoric, Civility, and Community’.

^68.Albrecht, ‘Whose Voice is Heard?’.

^69.Manosevitch and Walker, ‘Reader Comments to Online Opinion Journalism’.

^70.Benson, ‘Rhetoric, Civility, and Community’.

^71.Albrecht, ‘Whose Voice is Heard?’; and Dahlberg, ‘Internet and Democratic Discourse’.

^72. Marija Drajic, ‘Stampani mediji u Srbiji. Zuto nam se pise’ [Print media in Serbia. Yellow is written for us], Preko ramena – Online casopis, November 23, 2010, http://www.prekoramena.com/t.item.75/stampani-mediji-u-srbiji-tabloidna-stampa.html.

^73. Surculija, Pavlovic, and Padejski, ‘Mapping Digital Media’.

^74. ‘Top Sites in Serbia’, Alexa, The Web Information Company, http://www.alexa.com/topsites/countries/RS.

^75. The top five non-tabloids are Blic, Vecernje Novosti, Politika, B92 and RTS, while the top five tabloids are Kurir, Press, Alo!, Pravda and Svet. See Surculija, Pavlovic, and Padejski, ‘Mapping Digital Media’.

^76.Blic, ‘Parada ponosa zavrsena, huligani pljackali grad, uhapsen vodja “Obraza”’ [Gay Parade finished, hooligans loot city, leader of Obraz arrested], Blic Online, October 10, 2010, http://www.blic.rs/Vesti/Drustvo/211212/Parada-ponosa-zavrsena-huligani-pljackali-grad-uhapsen-vodja-Obraza.

^77. ‘Demoliranje Beograda, jos jednom’ [Demolishing Belgrade, once again], B92, October 10, 2010, http://www.b92.net/info/vesti/index.php?yyyy = 2010&mm = 10&dd = 10&nav_category = 16&nav_id = 464314.

^78. The five Kurir articles are Sasa Stajic, ‘Dan kada je grad goreo’ [The day the city burned], October 10, 2010, http://www.kurir-info.rs/vesti/dan-kada-je-grad-goreo-54033.php; ‘Parada ponosa u Beogradu istorijski dogadjaj’ [Gay Parade in Belgrade a historical event], October 10, 2010, http://www.kurir-info.rs/vesti/drustvo/pavlovic-parada-ponosa-u-beogradu-istorijski-dogadjaj-54006.php; News Agencies, ‘Gay Parade Held, Police Drive Participants Home’, October 10, 2010, http://www.kurir-info.rs/vesti/drustvo/odrzana-parada-ponosa-policija-ucesnike-razvozi-po-kucama-53968.php; ‘Parada ponosa – sredjji prst za monahinje’ [Gay Parade: Middle finger for nuns], October 13, 2010, http://www.kurir-info.rs/vesti/gej-parada-haos-u-beogradu/parada-ponosa-srednji-prst-za-monahinje-54435.php; and Beta Agency, ‘Uhapsen vodja Obraza Mladen Obradovic’ [Leader of Obraz Mladen Obradovic arrested], October 13, 2010, http://www.kurir-info.rs/vesti/gej-parada-haos-u-beogradu/veljovic-uhapsen-vodja-obraza-mladen-obradovic-54025.php.

^79. For example, ‘The Democratic Party Headquarters Are Burning!’; response to a previous comment ‘What Are You Trying to Say?’, a one word response only, or similar. Kurir had the most unusable comments (17.8%), followed by Blic (9.4%) and B92 with the least (6%).

^80. The difference in attitudes towards the reaction of the police is more difficult to interpret, because a negative reaction in B92 comments mostly reflected dissatisfaction that the police were not doing more to crack down on hooligans, while Kurir's reflected disapproval that the police were protecting the parade in the first place.

^81. ‘Drvo koje ne rađa se siječe i u vatru baca’. See Press, ‘Skandalozno: Amfilohiju sude zbog gej parade?!’ [Scandalous: Amfilohije is tried due to Gay Parade], Press Online, September 24, 2009, http://www.pressonline.rs/sr/vesti/vesti_dana/story/80702/Skandalozno%3A+Amfilohij.

^82.B92, ‘Govor mrznje: Parada kao uranijum’ [Hate speech: The Parade as uranium], B92 Online, October 14, 2010, http://www.b92.net/info/vesti/index.php?yyyy = 2010&mm = 10&dd = 14&nav_id = 465324.

^83.Holy Assembly of Bishops, ‘Saopstenje Svetog Arhijerejskog Sinoda povodom najava gej parade u Beogradu’ [Statement of the Holy Synod of Bishops on the occasion of the announcement of the Gay Parade in Belgrade].

^84. Bishop of Backa Irinej Bulovic, as quoted in Blic, ‘Vladika sazvao sednicu Vlade’ [Bishop summoned the meeting of the government], Blic Online, March 6, 2009, http://www.blic.rs/Vesti/Politika/82119/Vladika-sazvao-sednicu-Vlade.

^85.Byford, ‘Christian Right-Wing Organisations’, 50.

^86.Labris Organization for Lesbian Human Rights, Godišnji izveštaj o položaju LGBTIQ [Annual report on the position of the LGBT].

^87.Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia, ‘Radicalization’.

^88.Kurir, ‘Peder odstranjuje Kosovo!’ [Faggot removes Kosovo!], Kurir, July 14, 2009, http://www.kurir-info.rs/vesti/peder-odstranjuje-kosovo-25339.php.

^89. Kazimir, ‘Nasilje u sportu i mediji’ [Violence in sport and the media], 96 (our translation).

^90. Part of the transcript of the parliament session following the violence in response to Kosovo independence: Blic, ‘Kostunica: Mladi su samo branili medjunarodno pravo’ [Kostunica: Young people were just defending International Law], Blic Online, February 22, 2008, http://www.blic.rs/Vesti/Politika/31371/Kostunica-Mladi-su-samo-branili-medjunarodno-pravo-.

^91. Ibid.

^92.Press, ‘Palma za Press: Znam ko su homici u skupštini Srbije!’ [Palma for Press: I know who is gay in the Serbian Parliament], Naslovi Net, March 17, 2009, http://www.naslovi.net/2009-03-17/press/palma-za-press-znam-ko-su-homici-u-skupstini-srbije/1078628.

^93. P. Vasiljevic, ‘Opozicija brani stavove Crkve’ [Opposition defends the views of the Church], Vecernje NovostiOnline, March 16, 2009, http://www.novosti.rs/vesti/naslovna/aktuelno.289.html:234550-Opozicija-brani–-stavove-Crkve.

^94. Slobodan Antonic, ‘Tolerancija nije dovoljna’ [Tolerance is not enough], Politika Online, March 19, 2009, http://www.politika.rs/pogledi/Slobodan-Antonic/TOLERANCIJA-NIJE-DOVOLJNA.lt.html.

^95. Slobodan Antonic, ‘Reakcija drzave ce biti jeziva!’ [The reaction of the State will be dreadful!], Pecat, Internet portal slobodne Srbije, October 13, 2010, http://www.pecat.co.rs/2010/10/slobodan-antonic-reakcija-drzave-ce-biti-jeziva/.

^96. Djordje Vukadinovic, ‘Od parade do poraza’ [From the parade to the defeat], Politika Online, October 12, 2010, http://www.politika.rs/pogledi/DJordje-Vukadinovic/Od-parade-do-poraza.lt.html.

^97.B92, ‘Oliver Antic o “Otporu” i “1389”’ [Oliver antic about Otpor and 1389], B92, September 24, 2009, http://www.b92.net/info/vesti/index.php?yyyy = 2009&mm = 09&dd = 24&nav_category = 11&nav_id = 383024.

^98. See biography and posts by Branko Radun, Fond Slobodan Jovanovic, http://www.slobodanjovanovic.org/author/Branko/?lang = lat.

^99. See Rossi, ‘Resurrecting the Past’; Mikus, ‘State Pride’; and Pavasovic Trost, ‘Construction and Contestation of Ethnic Identity’.

^100.Byford, ‘Christian Right-Wing Organisations’, 44

^101. The success of Dveri at the upcoming elections will be indicative of the prevalence of these views in mainstream society.