SERBIA: Main opposition party, the Serbian populist Progressive party holds their campaign rally in Belgrade

Record ID: 346555

  • Title: SERBIA: Main opposition party, the Serbian populist Progressive party holds their campaign rally in Belgrade
  • Date: 27th April 2012
  • Summary: RALLY IN PROGRESS / NIKOLIC ON BEAM (SOUNDBITE) (Serbian) LEADER OF SERBIAN PROGRESSIVE PARTY, TOMISLAV NIKOLIC, SAYING: "I dared to be rival to tsar Boris (referring to Boris Tadic), I put my hand in the snakes nest, they bit me, knowing that nothing can stop me, I will beat him, despite being tarnished, hunted, insulted, humiliated, but will beat him because of you, and our children." NIKOLIC ON FLOOR RALLY IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (Serbian) MAN FROM OBRENOVAC, DEJAN, SAYING: "Its simple, Serbia needs change, we have lost a lot since 2000, since the 5th of October, we have lost time and energy so changes are needed in order to go forward, it's obvious that we are behind countries in the region, look at Croatia, all countries are better than us, and that's my answer, why Toma (Nikolic)." (SOUNDBITE) (Serbian) WOMAN FROM UZICE, LJUBA, SAYING: "Well, it's time that the youth starts to work, I will vote for him, so young people can get jobs, that's all." (SOUNDBITE) (Serbian) WOMAN FROM OBRENOVAC, MIRJANA NESTAREVIC, SAYING: "We are all in quicksand, if we don't get out now, we will never be able to do that."
  • Embargoed: 12th May 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Serbia, Serbia
  • Country: Serbia
  • Topics: Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVABJLRLCX56LQ3X0P45H33MXAGE
  • Story Text: Serbia's main opposition party, the Serbian populist Progressive party held its election campaign rally on Thursday (April 26) in Belgrade, ahead of twin presidential and parliamentary elections on May 6.
    The Democratic Party of President Boris Tadic is bidding to extend its hold on power and keep the ex-Yugoslav republic edging closer to the European Union but the party is trailing in polls behind the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), whose conservative, populist policy has played to voter anger over the state of the economy and corruption.
    An SNS-led bloc would take 33.5 percent of the vote in the parliamentary election, ahead of the Democratic Party on 28.3 percent, according to the results of an opinion poll conducted between April 14 and 22 by pollster Faktor Plus.
    Serbian Progressive Party leader Tomislav Nikolic and Tadic are neck-and-neck in the race for president and will almost certainly enter a second round on May 20.
    "I dared to be rival to tsar Boris (referring to Boris Tadic), I put my hand in the snakes nest, they bit me, knowing that nothing can stop me, I will beat him, despite being tarnished, hunted, insulted, humiliated, but will beat him because of you, and our children," Tomislav Nikolic, leader of main opposition party, Serbian Progressive party, said.
    Nikolic has rebranded himself since splitting from Serbia's ultranationalist Radical Party in 2008, embracing EU accession and distancing himself from Serbia's nationalist past.
    For Nikolic supporters, Nikolic is the best choice for Serbia.
    "It's simple, Serbia needs change, we have lost a lot since 2000, since the 5th of October, we lost time, energy, so changes are needed in order to go forward, its obvious that we are behind countries in the region, look at Croatia, all countries are better the us, and that's my answer, why Toma (Nikolic)" Dejan, from Obrenovac said.
    Another woman from Obrenovac, Ljuba hopes that Nikolic will get more jobs for young people.
    "Well, its time that youth starts to work, will vote for him (Toma), so young people can get jobs, that's all," Ljuba, woman from Uzice added.
    "We are all in quicksand, if we don't get now, we will never be able to do that," Mirjana Nestarevic, a woman from Obrenovac said.
    But Western diplomats worry about his party's capacity to govern and commitment to undertake painful reforms to improve economic efficiency and encourage competition.
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