After his first-round victory at Roland Garros over Aleksandar Kovacevic (6-3, 6-2, 7-6), Novak Djokovic wrote on camera: “Kosovo is the heart of Serbia – stop the violence” in a unusual political position of the winner of the 22-Grand Slam.
Djokovic wrote the message in reference to local political issues in Serbia. Police used tear gas to disperse Serbs who gathered in front of municipal buildings in the Kosovar town of Zvecan (one of four Serb municipalities in northern Kosovo), trying to prevent a newly elected ethnic Albanian mayor from entering his office More than 50 people were injured in clashes between KFOR (NATO’s mission in Kosovo) and Serbian protesters.
“I’m not a politician and I don’t intend to enter the political debate,” Djokovic said, speaking slowly but emotionally to Serbian media. “This issue is very sensitive… As a Serb, everything that is happening in Kosovo hurts me a lot.”
“This is the least I could have done. I feel the responsibility as a public figure – no matter in what field – to support… Especially as the son of a man born in Kosovo, I feel the need to give my support to them and to Serbia. I don’t know what the future holds for the Serbian people and for Kosovo, but we need to support and show unity in this type of situation.”
Djokovic: “I’m not holding back, I’d do it again”
Asked in Serbian if the organizers had approached him about his words in front of the camera, Djokovic said that “so far it hasn’t been like that” and that he hopes “it will continue like that”.
“I don’t know what will happen – I have heard that there have been many objections on social networks – if I will be punished… I am not holding back, I would do it again.
“My position is clear: I am against wars, violence and any kind of conflict, as I have always stated publicly. I empathize with all the people, but the situation with Kosovo is a precedent in international law… I am very sorry for the situation we are in: Kosovo is our firestone, our fortress, our most important monasteries there are…”
The Serbian army has been on “high alert” near the Kosovo border since Friday, following clashes between police and Serbs living in northern Kosovo. Kosovo claimed independence in 2008, but the Serbian government considers the territory an autonomous region of Serbia. The territory has been a source of political tension for decades.
