The arrival of spring is usually synonymous with crowded terraces in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. But on Saturday, fear and anger marked the spirits, after two shootings that left 17 dead in 48 hours, sowing amazement in the small Balkan country.
People wonder, "Why?" On Wednesday, in an upscale neighborhood in central Belgrade, a 13-year-old student opened fire at a school, killing eight classmates, seven girls and a boy, as well as a popular guard.
Less than two days later, Serbia still in shock suffered a new massacre: a young man of 21 murdered eight people with an automatic rifle and injured 13 others in two villages about sixty kilometers from Belgrade. He was arrested after several hours on the run.
Saturday, the second day of national mourning decreed by the authorities, the trauma was palpable in the streets of Belgrade.
People continue to go in front of the Vladislav Ribnikar school, most of them a calla lily in hand, and line up to sign a book of condolences placed on a table in front of the entrance to the establishment, guarded by the police.
The sidewalks around the school have been transformed into makeshift shrines, with mounds of flowers, toys, letters, poems, amid stains of wax from dripping candles.
"My son wanted to pay a last tribute to his friends," Zoran Radojicic, a 51-year-old pharmacist, told AFP after signing the condolence book, saying he was "saddened, but above all angry".
Usually bustling, the neighborhood is shrouded in silence, broken only by muffled sobs and the crackling of candle flames.
"We are all guilty: parents, government and the education system," said Todor Dragicevic, a 28-year-old doctor. "We have not been able to solve the problems".
In Serbia, about 39 out of 100 people own a firearm, the highest rate in Europe for civilian gun ownership, according to the Small Arms Survey (SAS) research project.
Weapons occupy an important place in the culture of the country, after centuries of occupation, rebellion and wars.
Despite this, shootings are rare and school killings non-existent in Serbia's recent history.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has promised to "disarm" the country by reducing the number of gun licenses and tackling the problem of illegal weapons, which has been rampant since the wars of the 1990s.
"Fewer guns will mean less danger for our children," he said.
But some wonder about other possible causes of the killings.
"There is a lot more aggression in society," Tamara Dzamonja Ignjatovic, president of the Association of Psychologists of Serbia, told AFP.
Pro-government media glorifies the criminal way of life. Convicted gangsters are the stars of popular television programs.
President Vucic himself had shown during a live interview in 2021 images of the dismembered bodies of suspected criminals, saying it was important that citizens "see what kind of monsters we are dealing with".
"Unfortunately, the outrageous behavior of one human being towards another is encouraged, whether on reality TV shows or in parliament," said Ms Dzamonja Ignjatovic.
But the tragedy also showed a more peaceful side of Serbia.
In the aftermath of the shootings, people responded to calls to donate blood and thousands took to the streets to pay their respects to the victims.
"A lot of people showed solidarity and empathy, the most important thing today (...) We can't go back, but we can soften the shock," said Ms. Dzamonja Ignjatovic.
06/05/2023 18:40:17 - Belgrade (AFP) - © 2023 AFP
