Recollections of an Honorary Citizen

by Uros Komlenovic

Travelers on the road to Jagodina may come upon an interesting reception these days. At the tollgate on the outskirts of town, just off the Belgrade - Nis highway, two buses bearing Jagodina registration plates, full of policemen in high spirits, are headed in an unknown direction, most likely towards Kragujevac where the workers demonstrations don't seem to stop.

Spiteful lovers of associations will most certainly conclude that such a sight is utterly in keeping with the reputation of the town. On October 17, 1994, on the date of Jagodina's liberation, it proclaimed the former minister of police and the current vice-president of the Council of the Republics of the Federal Parliament, Radmilo Bogdanovic, an honorary citizen. The impression was completed by the announcement that a movie was recently filmed about Radmilo Bogdanovic.

The film "Radmilo Bogdanovic - Honorary Citizen of Jagodina" is a feature documentary, which was shown at the end of last week on the local TV station K-21. The movie is almost an hour and a half long and it was filmed in the production house of K-21. This is all the information that could be acquired from the nice and smiling employees of the TV station. The director Perica Stepanovic is authorized to relate further details who "shall be here in half an hour".

The above mentioned period was most probably used for an internal operative-security assessment, which, unfortunately, VREME didn't pass: instead of smiles, the only thing in sight was a "frozen" expression of the zealous secretary and a voice that wouldn't stand for any objections: "The director is busy, come back tomorrow". Needless to say, the director was busy again tomorrow, as he shall be the day after tomorrow as well...

What could set Television K-21 apart from the mass of similar local TV stations all over Serbia is most definitely their private film production - which produced a documentary project on the officially most honorable living citizen of Jagodina. "The idea for this movie came from my friend Perica Stepanovic which I accepted", says Radmilo Bogdanovic in a telephone interview for VREME. "The motive was the fact that, in the year I was celebrating my 60th birthday, I was proclaimed an honorary citizen of Jagodina. I financed a certain number of video tapes and handed them out to my friends and relatives. I wanted a document to remain, something personal which is intended for me and for those that I care for. I thought this was the right time, while I am still in prime condition," says Radmilo Bogdanovic and adds that he still isn't "for scrap" in a tone which discreetly, yet strongly warns those who would eventually wish to abuse the story of the movie. The former minister of police also insists that this is a private project and that there is no need to raise a media hubbub over it. Radmilo Bogdanovic didn't comment the fact that the "personal and private" movie was seen by the entire population of Jagodina.

It is interesting to note that the broadcast of the movie on the man who had for 20 years "played God" all over Svetozarevo of that period (he was the president of the Municipal Assembly for seven years, the head of the Secretariat of Internal Affairs, SUP, for eight years, to mention only the most influential functions), and later, all over Serbia, didn't arouse any special interest in Jagodina. Vladan Kovacevic, the president of the Municipal Committee of the Serbian Renewal Party in Jagodina, told VREME that he didn't see the movie:

"To be honest, I don't enjoy seeing that man on the street, let alone on a television set. Simply, I go out of my way not to see him, and the reasons can be found in his character and in the consequences of his rule of many years in Jagodina."

The president of the District Committee of the Democratic Party and member of the Main Committee of DS, Miodrag Nikolic, didn't see the movie either but, as he says, he can't wait to see it:

"I hear he has taken credit for constructing everything that was ever built in Jagodina, while I know that in all that time he didn't help to place a single stone here."

The malicious citizens of Jagodina aren't surprised that Television K-21 launched the idea to make a movie and later realize it themselves. Namely, it is a well known fact that frequencies for broadcasting TV programs are difficult to get and are easily taken away. Be it founded or not, the general belief that Radmilo Bogdanovic is still one of the most powerful people in the state definitely had to influence the director of a local TV station and so...

Bogdanovic's CV is unquestionably rich. Apart from the job in education and a bunch of "smallish" functions, he was mayor of Svetozarevo and head of SUP, president of the Community Municipalities of Sumadija and Pomoravlje, deputy of the Republic Secretary for National Defence, head of the Administration in the Republic SUP and, a fact not easily forgotten, Republic Minister of Police from 1988 to 1991 when, following the 9th of March demonstrations, he resigned yet remained in the "game" as an important person on the parliamentary security committees. He is the current vice-president of the "house of lords" in the federal parliament and is extremely active. Only in the last couple of months, he was soothing the Jugoeksport strikers, threatening Rugova, participating in the meetings of the Municipal Assembly of Jagodina where the main topic was the harvest... In the last few days he was making his rounds in the Serbian Republic, soliciting socialists votes, and it is certain that after September 14 he shall have to perform the same task on this side of the Drina river.