A Sheik and the Hungry

Although used to stupid moves by the city administration, the Belgraders got surprised to see the humanitarian campaign entitled "Have you eaten today?" stopped. The story goes about the Belgrade Red Cross action, initiated by a private firm, ready to find money for 500-1500 daily meals for the poorest. An anonymous benefactor (formerly a social worker) has been feeding 500 Belgraders daily since June; this brought about the idea of a Humanitarian Fund for feeding the poor.

The action was to be organized by "Saatchi & Saatchi" marketing studio, ready to do the job free of charge. A TV and radio spot, a poster and an advertisement were made in a very short time. The promotional press conference was scheduled for November 10. One day before, the Belgrade Red Cross cancelled it "until further notice", mentioning "technical reasons". Stanimir Jevric, secretaty of the Organization, told VREME: "There was a problem with the poster. A few days before the conference, "Saatchi & Saatchi" stopped the distribution of the poster since it was badly printed. They managed to make a new one by November 10, but this time we were not satisfied, because the photo of a boy sitting by an empty plate was placed horizontally, instead of vertically. That is why we cancelled the press conference (...) I believe that the new poster will be finished very soon and that the action will be continued. The most important is to avoid the political abuse of this case."

The facts, however, speak differently. A new poster can be made in a day. The conference was postponed ten days ago and there are still no signs that the action will be continued soon. It is clear that the outcome is decided neither by "Saatchi & Saatchi", nor the printing house - they just offer services. The problem lies in the Red Cross or, more likely, somewhere "above". The impressive TV spot, saying "Here, by your side, invisible, there are tens of thousands of people who do not know whether they will eat today..." does not match with the promise that Serbia will not starve and freeze, made by the Sheik from Pozarevac (Slobodan Milosevic) on the occasion of opening another oil platform. In one of Belgade canteens for poor and homeless, there is a middle-aged women, an invalid, who always comes the last to take her two meals. Her son, an excellent student, must eat something...

"I feel terrible when they ask for another piece of bread or if they could have some more and there is nothing to give - says Milan Todic, the canteen manager. "Earlier on, some would skip the meal. But now, there is no leftovers. Many that used to take their meals home now eat here in order to warm up a bit.

The old canteen, an indescribable hovel, is now remembered with nostalgia. It used to make 300 meals daily, with a participation scale ranging from 10% to 40%. Last April, a socialist majority in the Parliament adopted a law on social protection introducing more severe criteria. Now, the poorest have to pay at least a half of the meal (318 dinars), providing, of course, that they are entitled to it according to the Law.

The poor have correctly understood the meaning of the official statistics. In one of the canteens in Solunska street 170 meals are given daily: 103 free of charge (from the Red Cross, i.e. the already mentioned private benefactor), 50 at half a price and 20 at a full price (635 dinars - approximately 55-60 cents). The stricking fact is that many people do not have enough money even for such cheap meals.

If one takes a look at the official figures, the situation does seem to be all that bad. According to the data accessible at the Center for Social Work, 9,998 families with 20,100 members get financial support, ranging from 14,338 dinars (around 14 USD) per household to 28,776 (around 29 USD) for families with five and more members (the amount does not vary according to the number of family members: 5 or 20, it is the same). Only the people without any income are entitled to this help; if the monthly wage is lower than the census, the state will generously cover the rest. Yet, there is a whole bunch of conditions to be fulfilled in order to get the financial help: apart from the apartment and a 500 square meters large piece of land, they must not possess any real estate. Otherwise, morgage is put on the "surplus". Those who two years before applying for social help sold property worth more than two monthly allowances are not entitled to financial aid. Neither are those who refused to inherit the property equivalent to the sum. Normal and healthy 15-year olds not attending school are automatically considered apt to work. If he refuses a job, is fired or quits, the whole family (except for handicapped children) loses the right to get social welfare. "Before this law was passed, we found out that there were 100,000 families in Belgrade in need of financial aid", says Ljiljana Mijanovic, a sociologist at the Belgrade Center for Social Work. "Today - a year and a half later - the situation got worse. However, the number of those entitled to financial help is not increasing - not because the situation is getting any better - on the contrary -, but because the criteria are getting more restrictive".

It is interesting to notice that the Law does not mention the right to meal. A lawyer in the Social Work Center, Milan Petkovic explains:

- By inertia, we still allow people to have meals in the canteens, with a 50% participation. Most of our "clients" earn a bit over the census for financial help".

There are around 250 people within this category. The Red Cross gives 850 free meals daily (150 of its own, the rest from donators). Humanitarian organization "Caritas" (Catholic Church), the Adventist Church, the Serbian Sisters Of Mercy, as well as a newly formed "Food for life" organization also feed the hungry. A short list of humanitarian organizations ends up with the Serbian Orthodox Church. The real needs exceed the quantities collected through such organizations by several times.

It is obvious that the campaign "Have you eaten today?" has to go on. It seems that the problem lies in the forecoming elections. The poor will have to be patient until December 20th.