Flowers on the grave of Davorjanka Paunovic

PERSONAL VIEW

By Vladimir Krstulovic

This year too, Prince Alexander II Karadjordjevic and Princess Katherine laid flowers on the grave of Davorjanka Paunovic – Zdenka, member of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia who fought against fascism, for the freedom of the people. She was buried in 1947 in the park of Dedinje Palace, as decided by Tito. Beside ideological closeness, Tito and Zdenka were bonded by passionate love that ended tragically.

At the time when tuberculosis took Davorjanka Paunovic’s life, the sufferings started in the life of the young Alexander Karadjordjevic. Without any guilt of his own or responsibility for whatsoever, he was convicted to live without Yugoslav citizenship, without property and possibility to come to the country of his ancestors.

Suffering often has a decisive impact on the forming of personality and man’s character. It makes one powerful enough to afflict suffering to others, and assures somebody else that it is righteous to help the week and act in favour of everybody. The outcome of the struggle for the country’s liberation and revolutionary violence resulted in the fact that Marshal Tito lived and governed Yugoslavia from Dedinje Palace. It does not take much explanation to realize how the vast majority of citizens was in a position to accept that fact as a normal state of affairs. The revolution allowed no questions of itself, free thinking faced the minefield with the dilemma whether the end of the revolution was really the beginning of counter-revolution. Reality had shown that the new order did not function by itself based on the premises that progress was scientifically proven. Violence has played a crucial role of the fuel necessary for the development of the new social order.

In 1968 there was a break-down of the society that was established by the World War II winners, in their conflict with those who cared more for social justice than power itself. The new conformism was reestablished by violence again. The so-called normal life was continued in the conditions in which power was without limitations of mandate. However, such harmony of power had limited lifespan, and it brought the society to a critical point. The society could no longer be ruled. Extreme violence became necessary. The war. Of course, the authorities used that method, too. From the point of view of their own interest the war was chosen rationally as the form of destruction that offers the opportunity to prolongue the power and not to leave the historical stage.

Millions of people who later became victims supported such authorities by undisputable majority.

Only for short, in 2000, words like truth and freedom had their true meaning.

Serbia today? In the dead of the night there is little value in the story of a sunny veranda where one can eat raspberries with cream. Former president of Serbia and former Prime Minister of Serbia were deprived of their role in the society and their lives.

Dictatorship was replaced with “democratship”. The power of parties is absolute, and the elected representatives of citizens in the Parliament are powerless. Contrary to democratic principles the “unity of power” was in fact reestablished.

Illusions are lost. Eventually, that might be a good thing. Is there a choice for Serbia? Of course there is. Why not have a referendum that would show what the voters think of parliamentary monarchy? Free choice will bring back self-respect to the citizens of Serbia. The referendum is a wiser choice than new violence.

It is not difficult to realize why the idea of parliamentary monarchy is not suitable for the authorities.

First, a Monarch, as the supreme representative of the citizens’ political will immediately deprives political parties of the possibility to claim that all power belongs to them. No, the power does not belong to them, it belongs to the voters. Second, a Monarch can unrestrictedly put limitations or even disperse the Government organs, in agreement with the electorate, if the Government deviates from publicly proclaimed goals and political programs. Third, a Monarch has the best chances to represent all citizens with honour.

From the social interest’s point of view Crown Prince Alexander was carrier of progress and solidarity with his proposal of the law that would turn the Dedinje Palace to the State of Serbia and not himself. And to open it for the public and put it at the disposal of the Government.

Finally, Alexander’s father King Peter II had appealed to the members of Yugoslav Army in the fatherland to take the side of the People’s Liberation Army under command of Marshal Tito and fight against the occupiers for the country’s liberation.

Through its victims, through its freedom fighters, through continuity of Alexander Karadjordjevic’s activities, Serbia has its honorable place among the victors over Nazism and fascism.

No current politician has the ability to represent what Prince Alexander is, due to the fact that none of them was neither opposition nor realistic alternative to the authorities at the time of the Republic, i.e. the times of Slobodan Milosevic’s pro-fascist dictatorship. Those who were are not among the living: Ivan Djuric, Ivan Stambolic, Zoran Djindjic. Only the final disclosure of “Telecom Serbia” affair will show how the present politicians were related to the regime of S. Milosevic.

2004 is tomorrow. We can still choose, it is not late yet.

By his relationship to Davorjanka Paunovic Prince Alexander has proved the measure of respect and tolerance that authentically testifies he can be the Head of Serbia, on the foundations of antifascism and humanism, to the benefit of every citizen of Serbia and the international position of our country. In that case, the Government of Serbia could finally be able to do its job undistracted.

Serbia is ripe for the historical compromise, or, for the new forms of violence. Constitutional parliamentary monarchy might reestablish Serbia’s identity and economic and political stability.