Profile: Ljubisa Ristic

Cultural-political worker

Where and when was he born: In Kosovo, 1947

What did he do in the 1968-77 period: Studied theatrical production at the Faculty of Drama in Belgrade; edited the papers

"Student" and "Vidici"; was one of the leaders of the student demonstrations in summer 1968; his diploma play at the Yugoslav Drama Theater still holds the all time Yugoslav record in the number of performances.

Characteristics: Comes form a Partisan family (father was a top intelligence officer). Member of the League of Communists from 1963-1969 when he was chucked out of the Party. Arrested several times for participating in protests against the self-managing Socialist system. Shows tendency towards Leftist deviations, Trotskyism, Maoism and anarcho-liberalism.

Self-criticism: "I never was a student leader. I spoke sometimes, but so did others. I was simply a young man like the other 50,000 there.

What did he do from 1977-1985: Founded the theatrical movement KPGT (Kazaliste Gledalisce Pozoriste Teatar) with the ambition of creating a Yugoslav cultural space. He staged plays in the whole of the former Yugoslavia, with actors from all over Yugoslavia.

Characteristics: In Ljubisa Ristic's activities there are tendencies which are contrary to our social-political system and as such they are unacceptable. In some plays such as the "Brothers Karamazov" and "Mass in A Minor", he speaks openly from a counter-revolutionary position, which has a negative effect on the political-security situation in the sphere of culture, and wider.

Self-criticism: "The KPGT is not a project that is over, it is still ongoing. We founded the KPGT in Zagreb in 1977 as a warning and clear sign of what was to come. That's KPGT. I have no reason to ask either Tudjman (Franjo, Croatian President) or Milosevic (Slobodan, Serbian President) whether KPGT exists or not. No borders, political decisions, or alleged historical turnabouts will not stop me in what I am doing."

What did he do subsequently:

He was (and still is) the director of the National Theater in Subotica; he founded YUFEST - a mammoth theatrical festival during which he turned whole cities into a gigantic theater. In 1988 Vojvodina Hungarians tried to remove him from the post of director with the accusation that he had dismantled the theater's Hungarian department. He resolved the problem successfully with the help Radoman Bozovic, a ranking Provincial official.

Self-criticism: "I used to know a man in Subotica who was prepared for something, without knowing who had prepared him and for what. He suddenly popped up as the head of the Vojvodina government. His name is Radoman Bozovic."

What, in the end, has he understood: That the collapse of Communism and the war in Yugoslavia are part of a great geostrategic conspiracy in which the Serbs have been allotted the role of American pawns with the goal of weakening Europe economically and being a safeguard towards Asia: "That which we have discovered today, with proof, is that there will be a great showdown with China at the end of the century: these exhaustive preparations include the disintegration of the so-called Communist world. This is happening...It is clear that the Serbs have agreed to carry out this business for some reason. This is terrible for the Serbs."

Why is it terrible: "That which is most important, and which we have to do, is to qualify to participate in this world political game as subjects, and not objects. It's going to cost us dearly. Thus, in the next 20-30 years we will be a military power in this part of the world - with all the obligations of a military power. Since it is our future to be a rather militarized state, with an economy which is dependent on the production of food and the military-industrial complex, certain consequences for the political system and the position of individuals must be forecast and planned. These consequences will be very unpleasant for the lives of citizens."

Characteristics: In spite of youthful errors, Ristic shows a high degree of class and social-historical awareness.