09.02.2022 | 21:39

Tibor Varadi: A missed opportunity for humane nationalism

Tibor Varadi, a member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, professor of international law and writer of documentary books, assesses the time of the pandemic as a time of uncertainty with no end in sight. The pandemic, as Varadi stated in an interview with the SEEcult.org, confirms his thesis that it is not easy to guarantee the right to everyday life, which should be a human right.

Varadi believes that the opportunity was missed for the pandemic to give way to “humane nationalism”.

“I think that Covid-19 was a chance for the creation of some type of ‘humane nationalism’, but at least so far – it has failed to transform the priorities. That is not easy. Because what would happen if instead of the arms race – which is constantly recording new successes everywhere, even in Serbia (because we have preceeded Croatia in 2021) – or, say, instead of the military-communication circus on the Ukrainian border, attention and money were focused towards the pandemic. NATO, the Russian army and many other armies would be the big losers. Leaders in particular, including politicians. We are already too acustomed to heroism being created from opposition, not in cooperation. It would not be easy for military and political leaders to find their way among the new standards. There is also the circumstance that in our country for thirty years, and elsewhere in Europe and America for much longer, no wars were faught… There are also personal interests. I think that these interests most often lead the game, and not the geopolitical interests that are emphasized. We witnessed a war of influence between Russia and the West a few years ago, over whether Montenegro will join NATO. Was it a conflict of real interests, or a conflict of hero candidates? Are Berlin and Paris safer after Podgorica became a NATO city, and would Moscow be safer if NATO did not expand to Podgorica? Or is it a race of the officials who handle influence? It is much easier for both Biden and Putin to be heroes by defending national interests towards each other. If danger is not enough to justify heroism, things can be amplified through communication. “The ‘humane nationalism’ would be a much more uncertain scene for the leaders,” Varadi stated.

The Harvard doctoral student and favorite professor of Berkeley, Emory, Cornell, Budapest CEU University, Novi Sad Faculty of Law, a man who edited the well established Novi Sad magazine “Uj Symposion” and later was a contributor to the famous “La Revue de L’arbitrage”, notes that reality fabrication has become an occupation.

“In times of war and post-war fascination, a parallel reality is reached on the wings of ecstasy. Today, the parallel reality does not come for free. It needs to be fabricated and it has become an occupation. As for the patterns of parallel realities, I think they have similarities, no matter how and when they are created. These patterns are clearly visible in the writings from the post-war years. Maybe they can be of help in recognizing modern patterns, too” said Varadi, who once represented Serbia (formerly the FRY and Serbia and Montenegro) before the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague.

*The entire interview (in Serbian) can be found on this link.

(SEEcult.org)

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