Tomislav Nikolic
Encyclopedia
Tomislav "Toma" Nikolić is a Serbia
n politician, President of the Serbian Progressive Party
. He is also a former member of the Serbian Radical Party
, where he served as Deputy Leader of the party and parliamentary leader during the absence of Vojislav Šešelj
. During his leadership of the party, Nikolić favored pushing the SRS towards focusing on issues such as poverty and unemployment, rather than militant nationalism. Nikolić held this post from February 23, 2003 to 6 September 2008, when he resigned following a disagreement with Šešelj regarding Serbia's relations with the European Union. Nikolić then formed the Serbian Progressive Party in which several SRS politicians, including Aleksandar Vučić
, joined.
He served as President of the National Assembly of Serbia
between 8 and 13 May 2007 and was Deputy Prime Minister of FR Yugoslavia in the coalition government from 1999 to 2000. Nikolić ran for the President of Yugoslavia
in the 2000 elections
and placed third. He also ran three times for the President of Serbia
(in the 2003, 2004
and 2008 elections
). In 2003 he won the most votes, but the election was canceled due to low turnout. In 2004 and 2008 he placed second behind Boris Tadić
.
Nikolić has published thirteen books , mostly about politics. He and his wife Dragica (née Ninković) have two sons, Radomir and Branislav.
, which merged with the Serbian Chetnik Movement to form the Serbian Radical Party
. Nikolić became a member of the new party on January 23, 1991. He was soon elected the party's vice-president, and at the last three Congresses of Serbian Radicals he was elected deputy president.
Nikolić has been a deputy in the National Assembly of Serbia
since 1991, the only one to be elected continuously since that year. During the rule of Slobodan Milošević
and the Socialist Party of Serbia
, he and Šešelj were sentenced to three months in prison which he served in Gnjilane
.
However, in March 1998 Nikolić's Serbian Radical Party formed a coalition with the Socialist Party of Serbia and Nikolić became the vice-president of the Government of Serbia
and, by the end of 1999, the vice-president of the Government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
Parliamentarians elected Nikolić the Speaker of Parliament on May 8, 2007. Nikolić defeated Milena Milošević of the Democratic Party by 142 to 99 votes out of 244 members of Parliament. The Democratic Party of Serbia endorsed him. Hajredin Kuci of the Democratic Party of Kosovo
, Ylli Hoxha of the Reformist Party ORA
, and Prime Minister of Kosovo
Agim Çeku
condemned the election of Nikolić as "counterproductive and dangerous for Kosovo
". On May 9 Nikolić met with Russian Ambassador Aleksandr Alekseyev and gave a speech to Parliament in which he advocated making Serbia part of a Belarus
-Russia
superstate
, saying that together they would "stand up against the hegemony of America and the European Union."
He resigned from his position as speaker on May 15 after the Democratic Party and the Democratic Party of Serbia
formed a preliminary alliance in preparation for a coalition government. He was the Speaker with the shortest mandate in the history of parliamentary democracy in the Balkans. Nikolić told the Democratic parties that if they "peacefully accept" the independence of Kosovo] the Radical Party "will not sit calmly and wait."
Nikolić is also known for his controversial statements made in public. On 28 February 2003, about 20 days before the assassination of Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Đinđić, he said: "If anyone of you, in the following month or two, sees Zoran Đinđić, tell him that Tita
also had a problem with a leg before his death" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2Z3G0D3x4E&feature=related. He also stated that Serbian president Boris Tadić
was ustasha http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mG_ycqKtps&feature=related, and that he was not sorry for the death of Serbian journalist Slavko Ćuruvija
http://www.b92.net/info/vesti/index.php?yyyy=2007&mm=05&dd=08&nav_category=418&nav_id=245466 http://www.pressonline.rs/page/stories/sr.html?view=story&id=47954. His public statements include that he still dreams about Greater Serbia
as a state where all Serbs will once live in http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNZEclITgpw, and that Russian troops should be allowed to build a military base in Serbia at the strategic location Pasuljanske livade http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKP4sUz22H4&feature=related.
of 2000, finishing in third place behind Vojislav Koštunica
and Slobodan Milošević
.
, but the results of the election were invalid due to a turnout of only 38,80%.
received 27.3%. In the second round held on June 27, Nikolić lost to Tadić having only secured 45.4% of the vote, while Tadić obtained 53.7%.
Tomislav Nikolić ran again for presidency in the 2008 presidential election
. His slogan was With All Heart . On January 20, 2008, Nikolić again won the first round with 39.99% of the vote. Nikolić and incumbent Boris Tadić
, who got 35.39% of the vote, then faced each other in a runoff election on February 3. Nikolić lost to Tadić receiving 2,197,155 or 47.97% of votes.
membership for Serbia. In the following days Nikolić formed a parliamentary group with a number of other Radical Party representatives called "Napred Srbijo" (Forward, Serbia). Nikolić stated to the press that the "old Serbian Radical Party no longer exists". On September 11, 2008 Vojislav Šešelj addressed to all Radical Party members by the letter. He named Nikolić and his group as "traitors, western puppets and agents". He also called all SRS members to remain loyal to the ideology of "Serbian nationalism, anti-globalism and pro-Russian politics". On September 12, 2008 Nikolić and his group were officially ejected from the Radical Party. In reply, Nikolić announced he would form his own party. The founding congress is to be held on 21 October 2008.
On September 24, 2008 he announced that his new party's name would be Serbian Progressive Party
and that the first convention would be held on October 21.
, Nikolić and his political supporters – Milanka Karić (Strength of Serbia Movement, wife of Bogoljub Karić
), Velimir Ilić
(New Serbia), Aleksandar Vulin (Movement of Socialists) and Aleksandar Vučić
organized a protest demanding early parliamentary elections. According to an official Serbian police report there were around 55,000 people present.
On April 16, 2011 Nikolić organized a larger protest with the same request. He also started a thirst and hunger strike
that morning and later moved to the national parliament. He stated that his goal is to force the current Serbian government (led by Boris Tadić
) into holding early parliamentary elections. On April 17, Boris Tadić came to visit Nikolić in his chambers at the parliament. There was no consensus, but Tadić advised Nikolić to stop striking for his own good. Short after his visit, Nikolić's condition worsened and he was taken to the Belgrade KBC in New Belgrade (Private hospital
). Serbian media regularly reports on his condition. In the night of April 17 his arterial tension was high (150/100 mmHg). He has also been refusing to receive intravenous therapy
or medication
.
n village of Antin in the then-SAO Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia in August 1991. Survivors claimed that it was committed by the members of volunteer units “Šešelj
’s followers”, among whom Tomislav Nikolić was mentioned. The inspiration for initiating such a claim were previous statements of Nikolić regarding his involvement in the Yugoslav wars
. He was awarded a title of chetnik voivode
(Chetnik duke) by Vojislav Šešelj for “showing by a personal example how one should fight for the Serb ideal in the battles in Slavonia”.
The suspicion that Nikolić had taken part in the killing of civilians in Antin was first raised by Žarko Korać
, a member of the National Assembly of Serbia
, who first revealed information about the Antin massacre in an interview to RFE
in June 2005. In the same month, Vladimir Popović
, former chief of the Government Communications Bureau, revealed more details in the interview to B92
Insajder saying that he had learned about these allegations from Jovica Stanišić
, former head of State Security. Nataša Kandić
, human rights
activist, wrote in a public letter that she was in possession of evidence that indicates Nikolić had personally participated in the killing of elderly residents of Antin.
Nikolić did not deny claims that he was stationed in Antin at the time, but has stated that there were no civilian deaths in Antin and that he himself never fired a bullet. Tomislav Nikolić filed a lawsuit on September 12, 2005, as Kandić stated on B92 that "some civilians in the Croatian village of Antin suffered under his hand in 1991." The Serbian Radical Party then accused the NGO of spreading anti-Serbian sentiments.[1] The Croatian ministry of the interior also stated that they did not have any information on Nikolić's offences in Antin.
After Kandić refused to apologize, Nikolić sued her for defamation. Court found Nataša Kandić guilty on charges of defamation in February 2009 after she failed to provide any evidence for her statements. Nikolić was also given right to seek material compensation.
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
n politician, President of the Serbian Progressive Party
Serbian Progressive Party
The Serbian Progressive Party is a right-wing political party in Serbia.-History:The Serbian Progressive Party formed as a group of breakaway MPs in parliament from the Serbian Radical Party led by Tomislav Nikolić over disagreements about the direction of the party. Its founding congress was...
. He is also a former member of the Serbian Radical Party
Serbian Radical Party
The Serbian Radical Party is a far-right Serbian nationalist political party in Serbia, founded in 1991. Currently the second-largest party in the Serbian National Assembly, it has branches in three of the nations that currently border Serbia – all former federal republics of Yugoslavia...
, where he served as Deputy Leader of the party and parliamentary leader during the absence of Vojislav Šešelj
Vojislav Šešelj
Vojislav Šešelj, JD is a Serbian politician, writer and lawyer. He is the founder and president of the Serbian Radical Party and was vice-president of Serbia between 1998 and 2000...
. During his leadership of the party, Nikolić favored pushing the SRS towards focusing on issues such as poverty and unemployment, rather than militant nationalism. Nikolić held this post from February 23, 2003 to 6 September 2008, when he resigned following a disagreement with Šešelj regarding Serbia's relations with the European Union. Nikolić then formed the Serbian Progressive Party in which several SRS politicians, including Aleksandar Vučić
Aleksandar Vucic
Aleksandar Vučić is a Serbian politician, Deputy President of the Serbian Progressive Party. He is a former secretary-general of the Serbian Radical Party and was President of the Serbian Radical Party's city parliamentary club before joining the Serbian Progressive Party. Besides Serbian,...
, joined.
He served as President of the National Assembly of Serbia
President of the National Assembly of Serbia
The President of the National Assembly of Serbia is the speaker of the parliament of Serbia...
between 8 and 13 May 2007 and was Deputy Prime Minister of FR Yugoslavia in the coalition government from 1999 to 2000. Nikolić ran for the President of Yugoslavia
President of Serbia and Montenegro
The President of Serbia and Montenegro was the head of state of Serbia and Montenegro. From its establishment in 1992 until 2003, when the country was reconstituted as a conferederacy via constitutional reform, the head of state was known as the President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
in the 2000 elections
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia presidential election, 2000
Presidential elections were held in Yugoslavia on 24 September 2000. They were won by Vojislav Koštunica of the Democratic Opposition, who beat Slobodan Milošević in the first round of voting.-Results:...
and placed third. He also ran three times for the President of Serbia
President of Serbia
The President of Serbia is the head of state of Serbia. Presently serving as the head of state is Boris Tadić. He was elected with a narrow majority of 50.31% in the 2008 Serbian presidential elections.-Authority, legal and constitutional rights:...
(in the 2003, 2004
Serbian presidential election, 2004
Serbia held the first round of its 2004 elections for President of Serbia on Sunday, 13 June 2004, and the second round on Sunday, 27 June 2004. Boris Tadić, the pro-western Democratic Party's candidate, was the eventual victor...
and 2008 elections
Serbian presidential election, 2008
A pre-term presidential election was held in Serbia on January 20 and February 3, 2008. Incumbent President Boris Tadić was reelected as President of Serbia in the second round with 51.61 percent of the votes cast, defeating challenger Tomislav Nikolić....
). In 2003 he won the most votes, but the election was canceled due to low turnout. In 2004 and 2008 he placed second behind Boris Tadić
Boris Tadic
Boris Tadić is the President of Serbia and leader of the Democratic Party. He was elected to a five-year term on 27 June 2004, and was sworn into office on 11 July. He was re-elected for a de facto second five-year term on 3 February 2008 and was sworn in on 15 February...
.
Nikolić has published thirteen books , mostly about politics. He and his wife Dragica (née Ninković) have two sons, Radomir and Branislav.
Political career
In the 1990s, he became a member of the People's Radical PartyPeople's Radical Party
The People's Radical Party of Serbia was a political party formed on January 8, 1881, which was active in the Kingdom of Serbia and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes...
, which merged with the Serbian Chetnik Movement to form the Serbian Radical Party
Serbian Radical Party
The Serbian Radical Party is a far-right Serbian nationalist political party in Serbia, founded in 1991. Currently the second-largest party in the Serbian National Assembly, it has branches in three of the nations that currently border Serbia – all former federal republics of Yugoslavia...
. Nikolić became a member of the new party on January 23, 1991. He was soon elected the party's vice-president, and at the last three Congresses of Serbian Radicals he was elected deputy president.
Nikolić has been a deputy in the National Assembly of Serbia
National Assembly of Serbia
The National Assembly of Serbia is the unicameral parliament of Serbia. It is composed of 250 proportionally elected deputies elected in general elections by secret ballot, on 4 years term. The National Assembly elects the President of the National Assembly who presides over the sessions...
since 1991, the only one to be elected continuously since that year. During the rule of Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević was President of Serbia and Yugoslavia. He served as the President of Socialist Republic of Serbia and Republic of Serbia from 1989 until 1997 in three terms and as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1997 to 2000...
and the Socialist Party of Serbia
Socialist Party of Serbia
The Socialist Party of Serbia is officially a democratic socialist political party in Serbia. It is also widely recognized as a de facto Serbian nationalist party, though the party itself does not officially acknowledge this...
, he and Šešelj were sentenced to three months in prison which he served in Gnjilane
Gnjilane
Gnjilane or Gjilan is a city and municipality in eastern Kosovo. It is the administrative center of the District of Gjilan. It is famous for having been recorded the lowest temperature in Kosovo with on 25 January 1963.-Name and history:...
.
However, in March 1998 Nikolić's Serbian Radical Party formed a coalition with the Socialist Party of Serbia and Nikolić became the vice-president of the Government of Serbia
Government of Serbia
Officially the Government of the Republic of Serbia is the executive branch of government in Serbia.-Current government:The current government was elected on 7 July 2008 by the majority vote in the National Assembly of Serbia and restructured on 14 March 2011...
and, by the end of 1999, the vice-president of the Government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
Parliamentarians elected Nikolić the Speaker of Parliament on May 8, 2007. Nikolić defeated Milena Milošević of the Democratic Party by 142 to 99 votes out of 244 members of Parliament. The Democratic Party of Serbia endorsed him. Hajredin Kuci of the Democratic Party of Kosovo
Democratic Party of Kosovo
The Democratic Party of Kosovo is the largest political party in Kosovo . It is a social democratic party and the main leftist party in Kosovo....
, Ylli Hoxha of the Reformist Party ORA
Reformist Party ORA
Reformist Party ORA was a social-democratic centre-left political party in Kosovo. The party stood for an independent, free and democratic Kosovo.The party was normally referred to as ORA, which in Albanian means the Hour....
, and Prime Minister of Kosovo
Prime Minister of Kosovo
The Prime Minister of Kosovo is Head of Government of the disputed Republic of Kosovo .The Prime Minister and the Government of Kosovo, which he or she heads, are responsible for their actions to the Assembly of Kosovo, of which they must all be members...
Agim Çeku
Agim Çeku
Agim Çeku is the current Minister of Security Forces for the Republic of Kosovo. He is also the former Prime Minister of Kosovo and a chief of the Kosovo Liberation Army . He was born in the village of Ćuška near Peć, in the Yugoslav province of Kosovo .Çeku is an ethnic Albanian...
condemned the election of Nikolić as "counterproductive and dangerous for Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
". On May 9 Nikolić met with Russian Ambassador Aleksandr Alekseyev and gave a speech to Parliament in which he advocated making Serbia part of a Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
-Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
superstate
Superstate
A superstate is an agglomeration of nations and/or states, often linguistically and ethnically diverse, under a single political-administrative structure. This is distinct from the concept of superpower, although these are frequently seen together...
, saying that together they would "stand up against the hegemony of America and the European Union."
He resigned from his position as speaker on May 15 after the Democratic Party and the Democratic Party of Serbia
Democratic Party of Serbia
The Democratic Party of Serbia is a political party in Serbia.-Foundation:The Democratic Party of Serbia was founded when a faction of the Democratic Party that supported its involvement in the Democratic Movement of Serbia split from the party and formed their own in 1992.Soon after the March...
formed a preliminary alliance in preparation for a coalition government. He was the Speaker with the shortest mandate in the history of parliamentary democracy in the Balkans. Nikolić told the Democratic parties that if they "peacefully accept" the independence of Kosovo] the Radical Party "will not sit calmly and wait."
Nikolić is also known for his controversial statements made in public. On 28 February 2003, about 20 days before the assassination of Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Đinđić, he said: "If anyone of you, in the following month or two, sees Zoran Đinđić, tell him that Tita
Josip Broz Tito
Marshal Josip Broz Tito – 4 May 1980) was a Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman. While his presidency has been criticized as authoritarian, Tito was a popular public figure both in Yugoslavia and abroad, viewed as a unifying symbol for the nations of the Yugoslav federation...
also had a problem with a leg before his death" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2Z3G0D3x4E&feature=related. He also stated that Serbian president Boris Tadić
Boris Tadic
Boris Tadić is the President of Serbia and leader of the Democratic Party. He was elected to a five-year term on 27 June 2004, and was sworn into office on 11 July. He was re-elected for a de facto second five-year term on 3 February 2008 and was sworn in on 15 February...
was ustasha http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mG_ycqKtps&feature=related, and that he was not sorry for the death of Serbian journalist Slavko Ćuruvija
Slavko Curuvija
Slavko Ćuruvija was a Serbian journalist and newspaper publisher. His brutal murder on 11 April 1999 in Belgrade, Serbia provoked international outrage and wide condemnation...
http://www.b92.net/info/vesti/index.php?yyyy=2007&mm=05&dd=08&nav_category=418&nav_id=245466 http://www.pressonline.rs/page/stories/sr.html?view=story&id=47954. His public statements include that he still dreams about Greater Serbia
Greater Serbia
The term Greater Serbia or Great Serbia applies to the Serbian nationalist and irredentist ideology directed towards the creation of a Serbian land which would incorporate all regions of traditional significance to the Serbian nation...
as a state where all Serbs will once live in http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNZEclITgpw, and that Russian troops should be allowed to build a military base in Serbia at the strategic location Pasuljanske livade http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKP4sUz22H4&feature=related.
Presidential campaign, 2000
Nikolić ran in the FR Yugoslavia presidential electionFederal Republic of Yugoslavia presidential election, 2000
Presidential elections were held in Yugoslavia on 24 September 2000. They were won by Vojislav Koštunica of the Democratic Opposition, who beat Slobodan Milošević in the first round of voting.-Results:...
of 2000, finishing in third place behind Vojislav Koštunica
Vojislav Koštunica
Vojislav Koštunica is a Serbian politician, statesman and the president of the Democratic Party of Serbia. He was the last President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, succeeding Slobodan Milošević and serving from 2000 to 2003...
and Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević was President of Serbia and Yugoslavia. He served as the President of Socialist Republic of Serbia and Republic of Serbia from 1989 until 1997 in three terms and as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1997 to 2000...
.
Presidential campaign, 2003
Nikolić also ran in the 2003 Serbian presidential election where he achieved most votes in the first round with 46,23%, ahead of Dragoljub MićunovićDragoljub Micunovic
Dragoljub Mićunović, PhD is a prominent Serbian politician and philosopher.-Early life:...
, but the results of the election were invalid due to a turnout of only 38,80%.
Presidential campaign, 2004
Nikolić made yet another bid for presidency in the 2004 presidential election. In the first round, he received 30.1% of the vote and Boris TadićBoris Tadic
Boris Tadić is the President of Serbia and leader of the Democratic Party. He was elected to a five-year term on 27 June 2004, and was sworn into office on 11 July. He was re-elected for a de facto second five-year term on 3 February 2008 and was sworn in on 15 February...
received 27.3%. In the second round held on June 27, Nikolić lost to Tadić having only secured 45.4% of the vote, while Tadić obtained 53.7%.
Presidential campaign, 2008
Serbian presidential election, 2008
A pre-term presidential election was held in Serbia on January 20 and February 3, 2008. Incumbent President Boris Tadić was reelected as President of Serbia in the second round with 51.61 percent of the votes cast, defeating challenger Tomislav Nikolić....
. His slogan was With All Heart . On January 20, 2008, Nikolić again won the first round with 39.99% of the vote. Nikolić and incumbent Boris Tadić
Boris Tadic
Boris Tadić is the President of Serbia and leader of the Democratic Party. He was elected to a five-year term on 27 June 2004, and was sworn into office on 11 July. He was re-elected for a de facto second five-year term on 3 February 2008 and was sworn in on 15 February...
, who got 35.39% of the vote, then faced each other in a runoff election on February 3. Nikolić lost to Tadić receiving 2,197,155 or 47.97% of votes.
Resignation and the Serbian Progressive Party
Nikolić abruptly resigned from Radical Party leadership on September 6, 2008. Serbian media cites differences between Nikolić and other Radical Party hierarchy, especially party leader Vojislav Šešelj, about how the party should react to proposed European UnionEuropean Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
membership for Serbia. In the following days Nikolić formed a parliamentary group with a number of other Radical Party representatives called "Napred Srbijo" (Forward, Serbia). Nikolić stated to the press that the "old Serbian Radical Party no longer exists". On September 11, 2008 Vojislav Šešelj addressed to all Radical Party members by the letter. He named Nikolić and his group as "traitors, western puppets and agents". He also called all SRS members to remain loyal to the ideology of "Serbian nationalism, anti-globalism and pro-Russian politics". On September 12, 2008 Nikolić and his group were officially ejected from the Radical Party. In reply, Nikolić announced he would form his own party. The founding congress is to be held on 21 October 2008.
On September 24, 2008 he announced that his new party's name would be Serbian Progressive Party
Serbian Progressive Party
The Serbian Progressive Party is a right-wing political party in Serbia.-History:The Serbian Progressive Party formed as a group of breakaway MPs in parliament from the Serbian Radical Party led by Tomislav Nikolić over disagreements about the direction of the party. Its founding congress was...
and that the first convention would be held on October 21.
2011 protests
On February 5, on the area in front of the National AssemblyNational Assembly of Serbia
The National Assembly of Serbia is the unicameral parliament of Serbia. It is composed of 250 proportionally elected deputies elected in general elections by secret ballot, on 4 years term. The National Assembly elects the President of the National Assembly who presides over the sessions...
, Nikolić and his political supporters – Milanka Karić (Strength of Serbia Movement, wife of Bogoljub Karić
Bogoljub Karic
Bogoljub Karić ) is a businessman and politician from Serbia.- Early life :Bogoljub Karić was born on January 17, 1954 in Peć, Kosovo, Serbia, FPR Yugoslavia, to Janićije Karić and Danica Kuzmanović. He earned a degree in Geography from Prirodno-matematički fakultet in Priština and his Master's...
), Velimir Ilić
Velimir Ilic
Velimir "Velja" Ilić is Serbian politician and a former Minister of Capital Investments in the Serbian government in the cabinet of Vojislav Koštunica.- Biography :...
(New Serbia), Aleksandar Vulin (Movement of Socialists) and Aleksandar Vučić
Aleksandar Vucic
Aleksandar Vučić is a Serbian politician, Deputy President of the Serbian Progressive Party. He is a former secretary-general of the Serbian Radical Party and was President of the Serbian Radical Party's city parliamentary club before joining the Serbian Progressive Party. Besides Serbian,...
organized a protest demanding early parliamentary elections. According to an official Serbian police report there were around 55,000 people present.
On April 16, 2011 Nikolić organized a larger protest with the same request. He also started a thirst and hunger strike
Hunger strike
A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance or pressure in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke feelings of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most hunger strikers will take liquids but not...
that morning and later moved to the national parliament. He stated that his goal is to force the current Serbian government (led by Boris Tadić
Boris Tadic
Boris Tadić is the President of Serbia and leader of the Democratic Party. He was elected to a five-year term on 27 June 2004, and was sworn into office on 11 July. He was re-elected for a de facto second five-year term on 3 February 2008 and was sworn in on 15 February...
) into holding early parliamentary elections. On April 17, Boris Tadić came to visit Nikolić in his chambers at the parliament. There was no consensus, but Tadić advised Nikolić to stop striking for his own good. Short after his visit, Nikolić's condition worsened and he was taken to the Belgrade KBC in New Belgrade (Private hospital
Private hospital
A private hospital is a hospital owned by a profit company or a non-profit organisation and privately funded through payment for medical services by patients themselves, by insurers, or by foreign embassies. This practice is very common in the United States and Australia...
). Serbian media regularly reports on his condition. In the night of April 17 his arterial tension was high (150/100 mmHg). He has also been refusing to receive intravenous therapy
Intravenous therapy
Intravenous therapy or IV therapy is the infusion of liquid substances directly into a vein. The word intravenous simply means "within a vein". Therapies administered intravenously are often called specialty pharmaceuticals...
or medication
Medication
A pharmaceutical drug, also referred to as medicine, medication or medicament, can be loosely defined as any chemical substance intended for use in the medical diagnosis, cure, treatment, or prevention of disease.- Classification :...
.
Accusations of war crimes by Nataša Kandić
In 2005, the Humanitarian Law Center asked the War Crimes Prosecution Office to investigate a massacre committed in the CroatiaCroatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n village of Antin in the then-SAO Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia in August 1991. Survivors claimed that it was committed by the members of volunteer units “Šešelj
Vojislav Šešelj
Vojislav Šešelj, JD is a Serbian politician, writer and lawyer. He is the founder and president of the Serbian Radical Party and was vice-president of Serbia between 1998 and 2000...
’s followers”, among whom Tomislav Nikolić was mentioned. The inspiration for initiating such a claim were previous statements of Nikolić regarding his involvement in the Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
. He was awarded a title of chetnik voivode
Chetniks
Chetniks, or the Chetnik movement , were Serbian nationalist and royalist paramilitary organizations from the first half of the 20th century. The Chetniks were formed as a Serbian resistance against the Ottoman Empire in 1904, and participated in the Balkan Wars, World War I, and World War II...
(Chetnik duke) by Vojislav Šešelj for “showing by a personal example how one should fight for the Serb ideal in the battles in Slavonia”.
The suspicion that Nikolić had taken part in the killing of civilians in Antin was first raised by Žarko Korać
Žarko Korac
Professor Žarko Korać , Ph.D. is a Serbian psychologist and politician.He teaches psychology at the University of Belgrade Faculty of Philosophy and is one of the founders and president of the Social Democratic Union...
, a member of the National Assembly of Serbia
National Assembly of Serbia
The National Assembly of Serbia is the unicameral parliament of Serbia. It is composed of 250 proportionally elected deputies elected in general elections by secret ballot, on 4 years term. The National Assembly elects the President of the National Assembly who presides over the sessions...
, who first revealed information about the Antin massacre in an interview to RFE
Radio Free Europe
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty is a broadcaster funded by the U.S. Congress that provides news, information, and analysis to countries in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East "where the free flow of information is either banned by government authorities or not fully developed"...
in June 2005. In the same month, Vladimir Popović
Vladimir Popovic
Vladimir Popović may refer to:* Vladica Popović , Yugoslav footballer who played in the 1962 FIFA World Cup* Vladimir Popović , former Montenegrin footballer* Vladimir Popović , Montenegrin actor...
, former chief of the Government Communications Bureau, revealed more details in the interview to B92
B92
B92 is a radio and television broadcaster with national coverage headquartered in Belgrade, Serbia. The network's key demographic is chiefly urban and young audience. Its programs, including the news cover topics with fairly liberal political painted attitudes...
Insajder saying that he had learned about these allegations from Jovica Stanišić
Jovica Stanišic
Jovica Stanišić is a former head of the State Security Service now BIA within the Serbian Ministry of the Interior. He is facing trial at the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia for his role in the wars in Croatia and in Bosnia and Herzegovina...
, former head of State Security. Nataša Kandić
Nataša Kandic
Nataša Kandić is a Serbian human rights activist and the founder and executive director of Humanitarian Law Center , an organisation campaigning for human rights and reconciliation in the former Yugoslavia.- Work :After finishing her studies in Sociology, Nataša Kandić became...
, human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
activist, wrote in a public letter that she was in possession of evidence that indicates Nikolić had personally participated in the killing of elderly residents of Antin.
Nikolić did not deny claims that he was stationed in Antin at the time, but has stated that there were no civilian deaths in Antin and that he himself never fired a bullet. Tomislav Nikolić filed a lawsuit on September 12, 2005, as Kandić stated on B92 that "some civilians in the Croatian village of Antin suffered under his hand in 1991." The Serbian Radical Party then accused the NGO of spreading anti-Serbian sentiments.[1] The Croatian ministry of the interior also stated that they did not have any information on Nikolić's offences in Antin.
After Kandić refused to apologize, Nikolić sued her for defamation. Court found Nataša Kandić guilty on charges of defamation in February 2009 after she failed to provide any evidence for her statements. Nikolić was also given right to seek material compensation.
External links
- Presidential Campaign Website 2008
- Biography at B92
- Speeches and statements of the Serbian politicians from 1987 - 2007
- Statement on Zoran Djindjic on 23rd February 2003, YouTube Video
- Statement on Boris Tadic as ustasha, YouTube Video
- Press Daily
- Statement on Greater Serbia, YouTube Video
- Statement on Russian Troops in Serbia, YouTube Video
- http://www.b92.net/info/vesti/index.php?yyyy=2011&mm=04&dd=17&nav_category=11&nav_id=506658