| Serbian Radical Party | |
|---|---|
| Српска радикална странка | |
| Srpska radikalna stranka | |
| Leader | Vojislav Šešelj |
| Founded | 1991 |
| Headquarters | Belgrade |
| Political ideology | Serbian nationalism, Populism, Far Right[1][2][3][4] |
| International affiliation | |
| European affiliation | Euronat |
| Colour(s) | red, blue, white |
| Website | www.srs.org.yu |
| Also about Serbian politics |
Politics List of political parties Elections |
The Serbian Radical Party (Serbian: Српска радикална странка or Srpska radikalna stranka, SRS) is a nationalist right-wing political party in Serbia. It was formed in 1991 when the People's Radical Party (a party from the 1990s, not Nikola Pašić's People's Radical Party) and the Serbian Chetnik Movement joined into one organisation. The Serbian Chetnik Movement was formed after a split in the Serbian Renewal Movement in 1990. It supports the Greater Serbian ideal and is said to claim Chetnik heritage. On 23 December 2007 the Party of Serbian Unity of former Željko Ražnatović Arkan merged into SRS.
Contents |
Leadership
During the 1998-2000 period it formed governments with the Socialist Party of Serbia at times, while it also spent its time in opposition, with the leader, Vojislav Šešelj, landing in jail in 1994. Šešelj is awaiting trial at the Yugoslav War Crimes Tribunal at the Hague. He was associated with activities of paramilitary units during the war in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.[5] The SRS's deputy president, leading the Party while Šešelj is in The Hague, is Tomislav Nikolić. Nikolić won one of the invalid presidential elections when less than 50 per cent of citizens voted. In the last presidential election the law on voter turnout was abolished. In first round of Serbian presidential elections, 2004 he won about 30% of votes. In the second round he lost to the DS leader Boris Tadić, winning 45%.
Platform
The Radical Party's policies include implementing United Nations Resolution 1244 allowing the Serbian police and Serbian army to protect Serbian citizens in the province of Kosovo, a Serbian province under UN administration. The SRS had been part of a Government coalition with Slobodan Milošević's Socialist Party of Serbia during his presidency. Since the SRS picked up a plurality in the December 2003 parliamentary elections, it has added many social elements to its programme.
Elections
In the 2003 general elections, the SRS picked up a plurality of seats and votes, with 27.6% of the popular vote and 82 out of 250 seats. Winning 1,153,453 or 28.59% of the total people that voted on the Serbian parliamentary election, 2007 and received 81 seat out of total 250. The party formed alone a SRS MP club which's president became Tomislav Nikolić and Aleksandar Vučić vice-president. On the National Assembly's first session on February 14 2007 all party members voted against the accepting of Martti Ahtisaari's proposal for the preliminary solution for the status of Kosovo.
Outreach
The party had a presence in Republika Srpska and Republic of Serbian Krajina in the early 1990s. In 2006 a Radical Party of Serbs in Macedonia has been registered and gained the status of candidate in the Republic of Macedonia's 2006 Parliamentary elections. It is speculated that the SRS is trying to register as a party in the newly independent Montenegro, where it has declared support for the creation of a Serb-Montenegrin state within the independent Montenegro.
Further reading
- Irvine, Jill A.; Carol S. Lilly (March 2007). "Boys Must be Boys: Gender and the Serbian Radical Party, 1991-2000". Nationalities Papers 35 (1): 93-120.
References
- ^ The Virtual and Global Social Democratic Party - Political Exchange World-wide: List of Extreme Right-wing & Left-wing Parties
- ^ Southeast Europe Portal - Serbia: Local Elections 2004 Results
- ^ Guardian: Extreme nationalist elected speaker of Serbian parliament
- ^ Boston.com news article: Milosevic ally gains key Serbian post
- ^ "Profile: Vojislav Seselj" BBC News 27 November 2006
External links
- Serbian Radical Party Official Website (Serbian)
