My Country Is Different It Can Never Happen Here.
Review: Blueprint for Revolution by Serdja Popovic.
Review: Blueprint for Revolution by Serdja Popovic. 9.99 GBP
There was nothing much to do in Belgrade in mid 80's. Communist government was very strict on what kind of art could be distributed to public. Radios were allowed to broadcast only Serbian folk music. But people still managed to smuggle vinyl albums of Western bands such as Iron Maiden or Deep Purple. Teenagers used ‘music from abroad’ to escape the harsh reality of daily routine.
A young boy called Srdja was one of the first who was stunned by the riffs of Iron Maiden. He got the love and passion for music from his older brother, who was “cool, had a band , and his taste in music was respected in all the right circles….And I [Srdja] desperately wanted to follow his example.”
Srdja’s brother’s name was Igor. And Igor saw that his young bro sees him as a role model. He decided to teach a lesson to the young Srdja. A lesson that had changed Srdja’s views for the rest of his life.
“ [Igor] just handed me a Peter Gabriel record and told me to listen to “Biko”, the song about the murdered black South African activist who gave his life to fight against apartheid.”
“This , Igor explained, was why I should be making music. Not for the girls, not for the crowds, but for the chance to make a positive impact.”
Igor’s words hit Srdja right in the heart and mind. “This was what I wanted to be a part of. I wanted to make things better for people” And Srdja was right. His desires very soon became needed for his country.
It Had To Be You
The biggest traitor of his country is a dictator. He robs and kills his own people.
He often destroys the nation’s culture to glorify his image.
The way Stalin or Mao did.
He rewrites history, so it would suit himself.
The way Stalin and Mao did.
He starts external and internal wars.
The way Slobodan Milosevic did.
With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the violent Serbian dictator Slobodan Milosevic began to wage wars against his neighbours, and was tightening control over his own citizens. And Srdja knew, he had to act.
He formed a political movement called Otpor!, which eventually grew and overthrew Serbian dictator.
Since then Srdja realised that this is his vocation — to teach how to use non-violent methods to overthrow violent regimes. Activists from the most of world’s authoritarian regimes came to him for advice.
Over a decade after the Serbian uprising, Srdja instructed dozens of activists from Egypt to Maldives on how to use non-violent methods to overthrow dictators. His experience grew with time and he, now, shares his methods in his book “Blueprint for Revolution”.
My Country is Different it Can Never Happen here.
When you live under oppressive and corrupt regime, which shuts down independent news channels and tells you lies — you start to lose hope. Because in a closed society, it’s difficult to find people who think like you. Who see injustices around and want a change. Everybody keeps quiet and is afraid to speak.
Popovic’s book gives hope to people who live under that kind of oppressive regimes. He starts his book with a chapter “it can never happen here”.
Again. It’s a simple phrase. For some it doesn’t mean anything. But for a person who lives or lived under an oppressive government this phrase describes the situation very well. Because when you live under authoritarian government you get a feeling, that nothing can be changed. You can sit and watch how Egyptians overthrow their government, but say “My country is different, it can never happen here.” You can watch revolutions in Ukraine, Georgia or Tunisia and repeat “it can never happen here”.
Srdja shows that in every country, where revolution occurred, whether Tunisia or Georgia — people were saying exactly the same. ‘It can never happen here’. Srdja explains that whilst countries may have different cultures, social structures or oppressors — all of them have their own way to make a change.
And that scares dictators.
Authoritarian governments know Srdja Popovic and this is what they think about him.
They call him a foreign agent or persona non-grata in authoritarian countries. In ‘Blueprint for Revolution’ Srdja describes how he has to meet with activists in hidden cafes or apartments to safely have a chat with them.
Secret services of countries such as Maldives or Syria are monitoring closely those who express interest in Srdja’s work or want to meet him. Srdja doesn’t posses a ‘secret formula’ of how to build a liberal democratic society in one day. But what he gives to activists is a push for action. And that push is called ‘hope’. The authoritarian governments understand, if their citizens go to Srdja for help, it means they are fed up with their rule. That’s what scares them.
Where does Popovic live?
Srdja lives at the airports. Every month he takes dozens of flights towards authoritarian countries to spread his power of hope to activists who don’t want to leave their homes to seek better life abroad. They want to take a stand against their violent rulers
The one thing that hasn’t changed in Srdja since his teenage years is his love of music.
Thirteen years after Serbian revolution, Peter Gabriel — the singer that inspired Srdja- came to Serbian capital of Belgrade. Of course Srdja was at his concert. After Gabriel finished his set and took his bow, he returned to the scene. Srdja was watching. Gabriel told to audience:
“Thirteen years ago to this day… You had young people in this country that had the courage to stand up fo the rights of the people, and since then, they’ve been teaching people around the world what they learned… There is young people in many countries now arond the world who still have to find the courage to stand up for what they believe in, to fight what they know is wrong, and to defend the rights of their people. One such young person did exactly this in South Africa, and it cost him life. His name is Steven Biko.”
Srdja’s heart froze. “There’s still a lot to be done to make the world free” — he thought.
