Rastko Pocesta – a 12-year-old’s fight against nationalism
Rastko is 12, from Belgrade, and he’s a geek interested in democracy and human rights. Recently he came into focus of some media after he began receiving death threats on his blog and Facebook profile, because of his support for NATO, EU and Kosovo’s independence.
Here’s an interview he gave to BBC couple of days ago:
What I find most intriguing in this whole story is not that Rastko is so smart for his age (he’s probably not the only one) but the reaction he causes among the grown-ups, which is almost always the same, whether they agree with his political attitude or not: “Stop meddling with human rights and go play with the other children.”
Maybe I’m missing something here, but since when has interest in human rights and politics become a bad thing? It is true that a great number of people in Serbia should stop meddling with politics, but somehow I don’t think Rastko is one of them.
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Owen, I guess this is not just a nick, but your name. Be honest for a moment. Unless you work for one of the institutions that are in charge for twisting Serbian minds, I hope you can admitt the obvious – that similar case would never cause anything more than a PTO meeting in the west.
Marijana, I do agree with you that the kid has probably been descended on by the media for the sake of a good story, and obviously the Kosovo/a-Serbia issue’s at the heart of that. Nevertheless he does appear to be intelligent for his age and reasonably well-informed, on the basis of his own research rather than parental prejudice. I suspect he’s not terribly worldly wise but he knows his own mind and with a kid that determined and intelligent it can be hard for an anxious parent to persuade their child that discretion is sometimes the better part of valour. That’s not what I call child abuse. It was the put-down reference to child abuse and the anti-Albanian racism in some of the comments that I found disturbing. He’s young, he might have a theoretical view of the world rather than one based on direct experience (though who knows – I had a fleeting impression he may have had his own bruising encounters with the outside world), but he’s not stupid and the clip shows him to be thoughtful rather than simply regurgitating received ideas. I think he deserves respect even if he is probably better off without the publicity.
Owen, I agree with you that some messages reflect anti-Albanian racism, which is sad. However, for Serbia issue of Kosovo and Metohija and NATO agression is serious, much more than recent terrorist attacks are for example for USA or Britain. Therefore, would you agree with me that 12-year old boy in one of these countries that was doing some “independent” thinking and reading, after which he somehow concluded that it would be really patriotic to support Al Qaeda, would not receive same support and open arms approach like RP? Do you understand what kind of anti-Serbian propaganda are you supporting and the extent of the whole ordeal? And would you like your kid to be involved in such controversy at that young age?
Marijana: You hit the nail on the head.
Actually, I know precisely who Selselj is, but I wasn’t about to fall for whatever dumb little trick you were trying to play as you act as apologist for lies concocted by Albos and western media.
Anyway, my knowledge of Serbian politics would have absolutely nothing to do with the fact that I spotted this kid as a fraud rather quickly, which apparently you were unable to do.
While I was reading one review about a rather boring movie where audience is treated as they are 12-year old kids, I realized irony surrounding this nonsense. You have two choices – remain quiet and accept that all of us in Serbia are treated as less-than-twelve-years-old-kids that know nothing about history, logic, media, politics, or you can ask the question: why, why are the rules so different only for us? And get the usual answer – because adults said so.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhdHn9e5CAs
his mums ugly init
Marijana, you probably know where I stand, so you’ll be aware that I don’t accept the parallel. One of the reasons for outsiders’ attitude towards Serbia is your own relentless self-justification. The issue is always everyone else’s aggression.
Ha,ha,I didnt know that Rastko made a blog dedicated to serial killers.
Now I can understand why he loves NATO and USA so much.
Owen, I do not know your background, so I can’t understand where are you coming from. I never blame anyone else for our own weaknesses. We do have them and we will either improve or disappear as a nation. For double standards, real (not imaginary) agression, attack on our state(s), our history, our heritage, there is no one else to blame but attackers. I have no problem to discuss this with any proud cowboy from Texas who understands the concept of the land. Most people I talk to abroad are decent and misinformed about this. Why is everything so special and unique, one standard for Yugoslavia, other for Bosnia, third for Kosovo? Even NGO mind can’t explain this. No one can. Take care and please find some other nation to vent your frustration.
Is he a muslim?
Does anyone know what he is?..Muslim first or Christian
The poor boy, he’s obviously very missguided but he is smart and speaks good English, may be he will change his view when he gets over. Who would send death threats to a child? no matter what he thinks.
Is it normal that 12 years old boy ,doesn’t have friends, but internet suporters??Is it normal that 12 years old boy doesn’t leave his house very often???Seriously, does anyone else thinks this is disturbing or its just me ( no matter what’s boy’s opinion on politics)?
Question is: do his parents want money or to live in America?
It’s horrible that they have found this as a way to reach selfish goals.
1. If they want money there R other ways than to push there 14 year old child as a spokesperson of there own agenda,
2. If they wish to live in America ,then there R other means of transport than making a scene with there child as a leading actor in this sad sad story…
And I have to point out that these are the best scammers in search of a better life somewhere outside a poor Serbia. Sad, sad , sad…
The kid is ethnic albanian from Kosovo, that’s why he supports independence od Kosovo… There is no such thing like fight for human rights… Bulls**t!!!
This is classic propaganda. At first, the surname “Pocesta” coming from the area where Croatian living – Ljubuski in Hercegovina. If this boy is obsessed with Nato – then this is a problem of him. The truth is only one – Kosovo belongs to Serbia. There are criminals in this moment. Not Albanian. Albanian living in Albania. Can someone tell me something about two France, two Germany’s , two UK’s ?? Forget this! Kosovo is Serbia, NATO should go home.
The boy is very intelligent but he must do some other things in his life in order to become mature personality. He must focus on relationships with friends and girlfriends so he could develop social and emotional parts of personality. You don’t have to be intelligent and educated to understand that bombs can not be humanitary you just have to be a little bit empathic. So Rastko, don’t forget emotional intelligence, it will take you to your people.
He is just a kid, he cant understand fully many things. He isn’t the only kid in Serbia who is political active in that age, which of course isn’t good thing, but life in Serbia isn’t easy. In my class and school also, 15 years ago, many talked about politics, at least some as you say above average mature and intelligent kids. And all had their parents opinions and facts. That is why you have to be at least 18 years old to vote.
“Maybe I’m missing something here, but since when has interest in human rights and politics become a bad thing?”
Well…there is nothing wrong in interest in human rights and politics, but it is wrong to put a 12 year old in a spot of media, just because he is saying something that puts a buffer on someone’s guilt over what was done in Kosovo, and is being done all around the world. Would you be making this article if he said something against NATO? He has a lot of growing up to do, and see many of his ideals crushed. Yes, he is eloquent, but he is a child playing a game in a grown up’s field. Shouldn’t someone be 18 years old to legally have a Facebook page?! Why are his parents exposing him so much? Shouldn’t they try to protect him? This reminds me a lot of Orson Scott Card’s book “Enders game”. It didn’t end well for Enders conscience, when he found out that it wasn’t a game at all, but that he was being manipulated.
Cekajte, zar ne provaljujete da je decku Ceda Kanibal idol. Sve je jasno, mozda je mali i Hrvat…
@Owen: You say:
“One of the reasons for outsiders’ attitude towards Serbia is your own relentless self-justification. The issue is always everyone else’s aggression.”
Doesn’t the very existence and life’s work of personnalities like Biljana Kovacevic Vuco, Zoran Djindjic…and millions of people who are their think-alikes in Serbia (amongst others Rastko Pocesta) prove that your above quoted statement (that “the issue is always everyone else’s aggression”) is just NOT true?
And why would anyone have an “overall” “attitude towards” ANY one country?!? (filled with millions of individuals who all have their own piece of mind.) –
– Isn’t that just stereotyping a nation, unfair & unjustified putting all of it’s individuals “in the same basket”?? (just like IT IS when they say “all Americans are stupid” or “all Americans support USA’s aggressive, offensive foreign policy”...etc.?)