2022–2023: Deputy President of the Together–We Must parliamentary group
Aleksandar Jovanović (Serbian Cyrillic:Александар Јовановић; born 30 September 1966), commonly known by his nicknameĆuta, is a Serbian environmental and political activist who has been a member of theNational Assembly of Serbia since August 2022.
Born inBelgrade, Jovanović often stayed atStara Planina, a mountain in Eastern Serbia, and was interested in rock music, football, andchess during his youth. He founded the Defend the Rivers of Stara Planina organisation in 2017, which primarily concentrated on combating the construction ofsmall hydros in the Stara Planina region, although over time, Jovanović shifted his presence over other regions of Serbia. He gained recognition in the media and has been noted as one of the representatives ofenvironmental activism in Serbia. Jovanović has organised environmental protests and gatherings around Serbia and managed to stop the construction of several projects.
As a youth, Jovanović regularly stayed atStara Planina where his grandparents lived.[5] In his youth he showed interest in rock music and learned to play guitar. He also playsfootball andchess.[5] Jovanović is often referred to by a nickname Ćuta.[6][7]
Jovanović giving a speech during a protest in September 2019
His activist career began in 2016, and a year later, he founded the organisation Defend the Rivers of Stara Planina, to combat the construction ofsmall hydroelectric power plants in the Stara Planina region.[8][9] Since then, he has been a notable representative of the group of activists that opposes the construction of small hydros.[10] Over the course of his activist career, he managed to stop the construction of several small hydros across Serbia.[11]
In early 2018, Jovanović and other members of his organisation formed aFacebook group, which quickly gained popularity.[6] Due to his activism, in June 2018, thegovernment of Serbia decided to send a thank-you note to Ćuta, although he ended up refusing to receive the note.[12] He has criticised the Serbian government for its approach toenvironmental protection.[13] In September 2018, he organised mass protests inPirot; the protests were participated by a couple of thousand demonstrators, with a demand to prohibit the construction of small hydros.[14] He and his organisation managed to send a case regarding the construction of a small hydro on theVisočica river to theSupreme Court of Cassation, which ended up prohibiting the construction of a small hydro in November 2018.[15]
Over the course of 2019, he organised environmental protests across cities in Serbia, initially beginning in January.[16] Another series of protests were held in April.[17][18] A month later, he and other activists from his organisation were fined by the Misdemeanor Court after they cleaned the riverbed of the river inRakita, and later that month they organised protests in front of theUniCredit headquarters in Belgrade.[19][20] Two months later, they called for the government to react regarding the small hydro in Rakita.[21] Jovanović organised protests in Belgrade on 21 September,[22] and a week later, environmental activists held talks with Serbian presidentAleksandar Vučić, during which he demanded for the total prohibition of constructing small hydros across Serbia; Vučić rejected his demand.[23][24] He took part inThe Weight of Chains 3 documentary film.[25]
Jovanović called for protests to be held in June 2020, after accusing the government of not respecting environmental protection regulations.[26][27] Activists, politicians, and scientists participated in the protests.[28] He gave a speech during the protests and announced the removal of pipes from the bed of the Rakita river.[29] In August, the government decided to invoke a ban of constructing small hydros in the Stara Planina region,[30] and during mid-August, a group of citizens, led by him, managed to break two pipes, which disabled the pipeline in the river.[31] The event gained national media coverage.[32][33] Later that month, another protest was organised by Jovanović andSavo Manojlović, the general director of Kreni-Promeni.[34] In November, Jovanović and other activists requested a talk to be held between them and the Anglo-Australian multinational companyRio Tinto, to discuss about the Project Jadar, although the talk ended up being cancelled.[35]
Protests which were dubbed as "Protests for Harmless Air", were organised in early January 2021.[36] Jovanović, as a representative of his Defend the Rivers of Stara Planina organisation, participated in the protests and gave a speech criticising Rio Tinto andLinglong Tire, a Chinese tire manufacturing enterprise.[37] During the protest, he stated that "air, water, and our country are non-negotiable".[38] He was invited to theUtisak nedelje, a Serbian political talk show, on 7 March, where he expressed hispro-conservation views,[39] and stated that "environmental activists in Serbia are labelled as enemies of the state".[40] Two days after the show, he was detained by the police, and was released shortly after.[41] Later that month, he said that he would organise an Ecological Uprising protest on 10 April.[42] The request gained attention, and around 60 environmental organisations participated in the protests.[43][44] Thousands of demonstrators gathered in front of theHouse of the National Assembly, and Jovanović demanded the government to suspend all projects harmful to the environment, as well as to adapt regulations to the highest environmental standards.[44][45] Following the April protests, which he deemed to be successful,[46] he stated that he would form an environmental movement, and that it would cooperate with other green movements in Serbia.[47][48] During May, he and other environmental activists organised gatherings and protests at theRevabog, which is located next toKrnjača.[49][50] In June, he confirmed his ambition to form a movement, and stated that he would be ready to cooperate with a fellow opposition politicianNebojša Zelenović and theDo not let Belgrade drown (NDB) movement.[51][52]
In August 2021, Jovanović and his newly formedEcological Uprising (EU) organisation announced that a protest would be held on 11 September. That protest marked the beginning of the2021–2022 environmental protests, which were held until February 2022.[53] He played a key role in the protests.[8][54][55] During the protests, he received criticism from government officials, while the pro-government media spread attacked his career and views.[56] His demands were mainly centred around Rio Tinto.[57] In November, he called for the radicalisation of the protests, which led toroadblocks being organised across Serbia in late November and early December.[58] During that period, he discussed with Zelenović andRadomir Lazović from NDB about the creation of a coalition.[59] He then signed a coalition agreement with Zelenović'sTogether for Serbia (ZZS) party, and announced his participation in the2022 general election.[60][61] The coalition was formalised in January 2022, under the nameWe Must.[62] Jovanović appeared first on the We Must ballot list.[63] The coalition won around 5% of the popular vote and 13 seats in the National Assembly; he won his seat and became a member of the National Assembly.[64][65]
In May 2021, he announced the merger of Action, led by Zelenović, Ecological Uprising, and Assembly of Free Serbia into a joint left-wing[66] political party, which occurred on 11 June.[67][68] Together withBiljana Stojković and Zelenović, he became one of the co-leaders of the party, namedTogether (Zajedno).[69] After being sworn in as a member of the National Assembly on 1 August 2022, he was assigned head of the committee for environmental protection and a member of the committee for culture and information.[1][70] He has continued his environmental activism even after being elected member of the National Assembly.[71][72] He took part at the protests atSavski Nasip in March 2023 and theSerbia Against Violence protests which began in May 2023.[73][74] Due to internal disagreements inside Together, Ćuta and other members of EU left the party in September 2023.[75] Jovanović and his organisation took part in the 2023 election as part of theSerbia Against Violence coalition.[76] He was successfully re-elected to the National Assembly.[77] Once the14th National Assembly of Serbia was constituted in February 2024, he became the parliamentary leader of his organisation.[78]
He is opposed tolithium mining.[79] While responding to issues regarding spillingsulfuric acid into rivers, he has said that "I would brutally punish anyone who poisons the air and the land".[80]
Jovanović supports theaccession of Serbia to the European Union but is opposed to sanctioning Russia due to theRussian invasion of Ukraine.[81] He is a critic of the approach of the Serbian government towards Kosovo.[82] He is particularly opposed to the recognition of Kosovo, saying that "for those who do not know whose Kosovo is, look at the Serbian Constitution".[83][84] Jovanović has also criticised the treatment of Albanians on pro-government television channels, saying that "onPink andHappy you will not see good Albanians, because on those televisions all Albanians are portrayed as Serb-haters andshiptars".[85]
While being asked whether he supported holding the2022 Belgrade EuroPride, he has said that he supports "equal rights for all citizens, regardless of our differences".[86] In 2023, Jovanović stated his opposition to same-sex marriages, adding that "not even the whole EU has legalised it".[87] He has, however, stated his support for the LGBT+ population.[87]
TheParty of Freedom and Justice political party criticised Jovanović in 2021 due to the alleged claim that he participated in the formation of theSerbian Progressive Party (SNS), something that he had denied doing.[8][88][89] During an interview forVreme, Jovanović stated that he "was offered to create a green party that would cooperate with SNS", although he rejected the offer.[90]
^abcdAranđelović, Višnja (19 September 2021)."Zeleni gerilac".Politika (in Serbian).Archived from the original on 24 February 2022. Retrieved24 February 2022.
^Georgievski, Jovana (1 August 2018)."Do poslednje kapi vode".Vreme (in Serbian).Archived from the original on 24 February 2022. Retrieved24 February 2022.
^Drčelić, Zora (21 April 2021)."Srbija se trovati ne može".Vreme (in Serbian).Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved26 February 2022.
^Aranđelović, Višnja (2 January 2020)."Ćuta ne može da ćuti".Politika (in Serbian).Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved25 February 2022.
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