Diaspora and region Serbs meet in Belgrade

My father started the Democratic party with Micunovic to challenge the communists. My father was elected to parliament. He came back to Serbia to invest but was ripped off left right and centre. And this was a guy who knew how things worked. We fought massive theft for years in the courts with no sense of fair play or payback. Our family love Serbia and have contributed in a major way, but if someone asked me today to invest i would sadly have to say no. Maybe things will change and when it does i will be the first one investing.

Successive governments since 2000 have consistently failed to re-engage sizeable parts of the diaspora. In fact I'd say that some of this obstruction is deliberate due to vested interests by government officials and their Serbian business backers. Those backers don't want competition.

There is also a problem with corruption - on both sides. Some members of the diaspora and members of government appear to believe that they are owed some kind of favour and should receive some benefit in kind:

There was a well known Serb born businessman based in France (won't mention him by name) who used the diaspora 'tag' for his own personal benefit. He was head of the diaspora in that country - even though most French Serbs had never heard of him, or did not like his reputation. He came to Serbia on the crest of a wave after 2000 claiming patriotic credentials and rubbing shoulders with politicians. After a few years he begun his own political party, he barely lifted a finger during the campaign and didn't spend any money. Then he took the cash subsidy awarded by the state to political parties and has barely been heard of since.

The whole old fashioned corruption tinged relationship between government and diaspora should be reset.

There should be a fund to encourage highly skilled workers to return to Serbia in sectors where there is a shortage in parts of industry / business. Of course there are not a lot of jobs around, but its important to get the ball rolling, to show that Serbia is a country worth remaining / investing in.

Younger diaspora Serbs enjoyed the benefits of a high quality education during the 70's and 80's before Jugoslavija collapsed and there is no doubt in my mind that many of them are very well off.

I also think that voting is one of the most basic ways to re-connect with the diaspora and also that the mythical census should be sorted out once and for all. Its important to establish some facts about how many of the diaspora there is and roughly where they are located. Then the Serbian government should target them (in a gentle way), put voting booths in those areas, potentially invest in cultural centres in those areas etc.

There are a myriad of ways to re-engage the diaspora, even those that are cynical about Serbia. I only wish that successive Serbian governments would have the forsight to be able to carry out a decent plan and invest in it properly. Of course this would also mean that a lot of corruption would have to be stamped out...

I should add, i don't think anywhere in the former Yugoslavia is any better( maybe Slovenia)

Loosely speaking, I'm one of these diaspora Serbs who came to Serbia to invest.

I can't say I'm unhappy with what I've achieved. I have a nice little team there helping me out on various data-entry low-level IT stuff for a very reasonable rate.

However, if anyone asked me if they would recommend that they invest in Serbia, I would only tell them two things: "no" "RUN".

Serbia's way to broken in so many ways to be worth doing anything in.

I am very glad that finally Zeka spoke the truth about his own beloved country of birth.
You see , this better for people to chatiside their own country , rather than badmouthing other countries .
(Agim Kelmendi, 6 July 2011 17:22)
=======================

How about you practice what you preach?

My father started the Democratic party with Micunovic to challenge the communists. My father was elected to parliament. He came back to Serbia to invest but was ripped off left right and centre. And this was a guy who knew how things worked. We fought massive theft for years in the courts with no sense of fair play or payback. Our family love Serbia and have contributed in a major way, but if someone asked me today to invest i would sadly have to say no. Maybe things will change and when it does i will be the first one investing.
(Zeka, 6 July 2011 16:32)

I am very glad that finally Zeka spoke the truth about his own beloved country of birth.
You see , this better for people to chatiside their own country , rather than badmouthing other countries .

So you (the government) want to help us invest in Serbia? Then stay the hell out of our business, get rid of the red tape bureaucracy and stop making me report 'my presence' to the nearest police station when I land and arrive at my destination.

These meetings and assembly serve no purpose from a business point of veiw and could have a counter effect. Investors get nervous when the government comes creeping around.

As for voting, honestly not many of us do it, partly because we have no time and partly because, I like to think, that most of us find it odd to allow people living in another country under permanent residence to take part in deciding the political future of another, despite having dual citizenship.

No one should decide Serbia's political future besides the people living inside Serbia. Makes sense doesn't it?

As someone who has lived both in Serbia/Belgrade and in the diaspora..I must comment. I do agree that there is corruption that exists in Serbia..that is clear..I agree with all the other comments. However, it must be mentioned that those who live in the diaspora have false sense of expectation of what they will experience in Serbia. I have found the majority of Serbs living outside their country to be stuck in an alternate universe full of extreme ideas and unrealistic expectations in regards to Serbia. Often they return in the hopes of investing little but reaping all the benefits that they have imagined. Unfortunately this caused disappointment and often failure.

My father started the Democratic party with Micunovic to challenge the communists. My father was elected to parliament. He came back to Serbia to invest but was ripped off left right and centre. And this was a guy who knew how things worked. We fought massive theft for years in the courts with no sense of fair play or payback. Our family love Serbia and have contributed in a major way, but if someone asked me today to invest i would sadly have to say no. Maybe things will change and when it does i will be the first one investing.
(Zeka, 6 July 2011 16:32)

I am very glad that finally Zeka spoke the truth about his own beloved country of birth.
You see , this better for people to chatiside their own country , rather than badmouthing other countries .

Loosely speaking, I'm one of these diaspora Serbs who came to Serbia to invest.

I can't say I'm unhappy with what I've achieved. I have a nice little team there helping me out on various data-entry low-level IT stuff for a very reasonable rate.

However, if anyone asked me if they would recommend that they invest in Serbia, I would only tell them two things: "no" "RUN".

Serbia's way to broken in so many ways to be worth doing anything in.

I should add, i don't think anywhere in the former Yugoslavia is any better( maybe Slovenia)

I am very glad that finally Zeka spoke the truth about his own beloved country of birth.
You see , this better for people to chatiside their own country , rather than badmouthing other countries .
(Agim Kelmendi, 6 July 2011 17:22)
=======================

How about you practice what you preach?

Successive governments since 2000 have consistently failed to re-engage sizeable parts of the diaspora. In fact I'd say that some of this obstruction is deliberate due to vested interests by government officials and their Serbian business backers. Those backers don't want competition.

There is also a problem with corruption - on both sides. Some members of the diaspora and members of government appear to believe that they are owed some kind of favour and should receive some benefit in kind:

There was a well known Serb born businessman based in France (won't mention him by name) who used the diaspora 'tag' for his own personal benefit. He was head of the diaspora in that country - even though most French Serbs had never heard of him, or did not like his reputation. He came to Serbia on the crest of a wave after 2000 claiming patriotic credentials and rubbing shoulders with politicians. After a few years he begun his own political party, he barely lifted a finger during the campaign and didn't spend any money. Then he took the cash subsidy awarded by the state to political parties and has barely been heard of since.

The whole old fashioned corruption tinged relationship between government and diaspora should be reset.

There should be a fund to encourage highly skilled workers to return to Serbia in sectors where there is a shortage in parts of industry / business. Of course there are not a lot of jobs around, but its important to get the ball rolling, to show that Serbia is a country worth remaining / investing in.

Younger diaspora Serbs enjoyed the benefits of a high quality education during the 70's and 80's before Jugoslavija collapsed and there is no doubt in my mind that many of them are very well off.

I also think that voting is one of the most basic ways to re-connect with the diaspora and also that the mythical census should be sorted out once and for all. Its important to establish some facts about how many of the diaspora there is and roughly where they are located. Then the Serbian government should target them (in a gentle way), put voting booths in those areas, potentially invest in cultural centres in those areas etc.

There are a myriad of ways to re-engage the diaspora, even those that are cynical about Serbia. I only wish that successive Serbian governments would have the forsight to be able to carry out a decent plan and invest in it properly. Of course this would also mean that a lot of corruption would have to be stamped out...

My father started the Democratic party with Micunovic to challenge the communists. My father was elected to parliament. He came back to Serbia to invest but was ripped off left right and centre. And this was a guy who knew how things worked. We fought massive theft for years in the courts with no sense of fair play or payback. Our family love Serbia and have contributed in a major way, but if someone asked me today to invest i would sadly have to say no. Maybe things will change and when it does i will be the first one investing.

As someone who has lived both in Serbia/Belgrade and in the diaspora..I must comment. I do agree that there is corruption that exists in Serbia..that is clear..I agree with all the other comments. However, it must be mentioned that those who live in the diaspora have false sense of expectation of what they will experience in Serbia. I have found the majority of Serbs living outside their country to be stuck in an alternate universe full of extreme ideas and unrealistic expectations in regards to Serbia. Often they return in the hopes of investing little but reaping all the benefits that they have imagined. Unfortunately this caused disappointment and often failure.

So you (the government) want to help us invest in Serbia? Then stay the hell out of our business, get rid of the red tape bureaucracy and stop making me report 'my presence' to the nearest police station when I land and arrive at my destination.

These meetings and assembly serve no purpose from a business point of veiw and could have a counter effect. Investors get nervous when the government comes creeping around.

As for voting, honestly not many of us do it, partly because we have no time and partly because, I like to think, that most of us find it odd to allow people living in another country under permanent residence to take part in deciding the political future of another, despite having dual citizenship.

No one should decide Serbia's political future besides the people living inside Serbia. Makes sense doesn't it?