A LESSON IN PUBLIC RELATIONS

So, former Yugoslav dictator Slobodan Milosevic is elected to Parliament by the Serb people, despite being on trial in The Hague for crimes against humanity.

What sort of people would elect a simple-minded nationalistic thug as their leader and then continue to support him, even after his policies have been exposed as corrupt and his justifications for war have been exposed as lies?

Ronald O. Richards,
Los Angeles, US

Many of us would probably dismiss this comment, or else we would just sit there and quietly be offended by it. What Mr. Joveljic did should serve as an example to us all. He wrote the following counter-letter:

Mr R.O. Richards would like to know why the Serbs elected Mr Milosevic to their Parliament (02/01/04).

Those who live in glasshouses should not throw stones about. Mr Milosevic has not been convicted of any crime - and hence must be presumed innocent under principles dear to Anglo-Saxon law in both Australia and the US.

Furthermore, it is not his, but the US/NATO justification for the war in Kosovo that was exposed as a crude fabrication. What sort of people elect a simple-minded nationalistic thug, then continue to support him even after his justifications for war have been exposed as lies? Mr Richards, they are called Americans.

In targeting a country and demonising its leadership, U.S. leaders assisted by ideologically attuned publicists, pundits, academics, and former government officials create a climate of opinion that enables Washington to do whatever is necessary to inflict serious damage upon the designated nation, all in the name of human rights, anti-terrorism, and national security.

There is no better example of this than the tireless demonisation of democratically elected President Slobodan Milosevic and the U.S.-supported wars against Yugoslavia.

In my opinion, Milosevic's real sin was that he resisted the dismemberment of Yugoslavia and opposed U.S. imposed hegemony. Yugoslavia, while Mr Milosevic was in power, was the only nation in Europe that did not apply for entry into the NATO. He also attempted to spare Yugoslavia the worst of the merciless privatisations and rollbacks that have afflicted other former communist countries.

What Mr. Joveljic did is something that we should all do. He made an effort to get the truth out. Many of us are overwhelmed by the shear number of lies and the massive amount disinformation and deionization aimed against the Serbian people. Mr. Joveljic didn't let himself be overwhelmed. He did something constructive with his outrage and so can you.

Writing letters to the newspaper is something that YOU CAN DO to combat the deionization of the Serbian people. Set a goal that you will write a letter every month to your local newspaper. Start in your own community. Make a difference with your friends and neighbors.

If you aren't a good letter writer then contact reporters and offer them story ideas. If you have public/cable access television in your community then use that and interview one of your friends or relatives from Yugoslavia on the air. If you're well spoken and good under pressure, then contact your local talk radio station and see if they'll interview you.

I encourage everybody who is reading this to set a goal to do at least one thing a month to improve the public image of the Serbian people. There's no reason why you can't do at least one thing a month. You don't have to get on to CNN to make a difference, start in your local community. Even if you can only improve the image of the Serbs with just two or three people that's worthwhile because those people might tell other people.

The Serbian people have one thing on their side that their enemies will never have: the truth. The Serbian people, and those who call themselves friends of the Serbian people, have an obligation to spread the truth as widely as they are able to. It doesn't matter if you can only do it on a small scale, do it anyway.

Be like Nebojsa Joveljic and do something. Don't just sit there tolerating the lies and bigotry directed against the Serbian people. Do something about it for God's sake.