Aleksandar Jovanović Ćuta

Aleksandar Jovanović (Serbian Cyrillic: Александар Јовановић; born 30 September 1966), commonly known by his nickname Ćuta, is a Serbian environmental activist.

Aleksandar Jovanović
Александар Јовановић
Jovanović in 2021
Personal details
Born (1966-09-30) 30 September 1966
Belgrade, PR Serbia, FPR Yugoslavia
Political partyIndependent
Children2
OccupationEnvironmental activist
Nickname(s)Ćuta

Born in Belgrade, Ćuta often travelled to Stara Planina, and was interested into rock music, football, and chess during his youth. He founded the "Defend the Rivers of Stara Planina" organization in 2017, which primarily centered on combating the construction of small hydros in the Stara Planina region, although over the time, Ćuta has shifted his presence over other regions of Serbia. He has gained recognition in the media since then, and has been noted as one of the representatives of environmental activism in Serbia. Over the period, Ćuta has organized protests and gatherings around Serbia, and has managed to stop the construction of several projects, in order to preserve the nature.

In 2021, Ćuta organized the "Environmental Uprising" protests, which set off the beginning of the 2021–2022 environmental protests, in which he had played a key role, and has been noted as one of the leaders of the protests. He later formed a movement, and a coalition with Nebojša Zelenović and Dobrica Veselinović, which was formalized in January 2022 under the name We Must. Ćuta was its ballot representative in the 2022 general election.

Early life

Ćuta was born on 30 September 1996 in Belgrade, PR Serbia, FPR Yugoslavia.[1][2][3] He grew up in the Žarkovo neighborhood, and attended a primary school in Košutnjak and Banovo Brdo. He later attended the Faculty of Dramatic Arts at the University of Arts in Belgrade.[1][4]

Activism

Early period
Jovanović giving a speech during a protest in September 2019

During his youth, Ćuta often travelled to Stara Planina, where his grandparents lived.[5] His activist career began in 2016, and a year later, he founded the "Defend the Rivers of Stara Planina" organization, in order to combat the construction of small hydroelectric power plants in the Stara Planina region.[2][6] Since then, Ćuta has been a notable representative of the group of activists that opposes the construction of small hydros.[3][7] Over the course of his activist career, he has managed to stop the construction of several small hydros across Serbia.[8]

In early 2018, Ćuta and other members of the his organization formed a Facebook group in order to post their activities regarding their activism, which quickly gained popularity.[9] Due to his activism, in June 2018, the government of Serbia decided to send a thank-you note to Ćuta, although he ended up refusing the note.[10] Ćuta has also been a critic of the Serbian government due to their approaches to environmental protection.[11] In September 2018, Ćuta organized mass protests in Pirot, and the protests were participated by a couple of thousand demonstrators, in demand to prohibit the construction of small hydros.[12] He and his organization managed to send a case regarding the construction of a small hydro on Visočica river to the Supreme Court of Cassation, which ended up prohibiting the decision of constructing a small hydro in November 2018.[13]

Over the course of 2019, Ćuta organized environmental protests across cities in Serbia, initially beginning in January.[14] Another series of protests were held in April.[15][16] A month later, Ćuta and other activists from his organization were sent a verdict after they cleaned the riverbed of the river in Rakita, and later that month they organized protests in front of the UniCredit headquarters in Belgrade.[17][18] Two months later, they called for the institutions to react regarding the situation in Rakita.[19] Ćuta organized protests in Belgrade on 21 September,[20] and a week later, environmental activists held talks with president Aleksandar Vučić, during which Ćuta demanded for the total prohibition of constructing small hydros across Serbia, although Vučić rejected his request.[21][22]

Ćuta called for protests to be held in June 2020, after accusing the government of not respecting the regulations on environmental protection.[23][24] Activists, politicians, scientists, and professors had participated in the protests.[25] Ćuta gave a speech during the protests, and had announced a revolt to be held in Rakita.[26] In August, the government had decided to invoke a ban of constructing small hydros in the Stara Planina region,[27] and during mid-August, a group of citizens, led by Jovanović, managed to break two pipes, which disabled the pipeline in the river.[28] The event gained national media coverage.[29][30] The government mortgaged the river in Rakita in February 2022.[31] Later that month, another protest was organized by Ćuta and Savo Manojlović.[32] In November, Ćuta and other activists requested a talk to be held between them and Rio Tinto, in order to discuss about the Project Jadar, although the talk was not held in the end.[33]

2021–2022 period

Protests which were dubbed as "Protests for Harmless Air", were organized in early January 2021.[34] Ćuta, as a representative of his "Defend the Rivers of Stara Planina" organization, participated in the protests and gave a speech criticizing Rio Tinto and Linglong Tire.[35] During the protest, he has stated that "air, water, and our country are non-negotiable".[36] Ćuta was invited to the Utisak nedelje show on 7 March, where he expressed his pro-conservation views,[37] and has stated that "environmental activists in Serbia are labeled as enemies of the state".[38] Two days after the show, he was detained by the police, and he was released shortly after.[39] Later that month, Ćuta said that he is preparing to organize an "Environmental Uprising" protest on 10 April.[40] The protest gained attention, and around 60 environmental organizations participated in the protests.[41][42] Thousands of demonstrators gathered in front of the House of the National Assembly, and Jovanović demanded the government to suspend all projects harmful to the environment, as well as to adapt regulations to the highest environmental standards.[42][43] Following the April protests, which he deemed to be successful,[44] Ćuta stated that he might form an environmental movement, and that it would cooperate with other green movements in Serbia.[45][46] During May, Ćuta and other environmental activists organized gatherings and protests at the Reva bog, which is located next to Krnjača.[47][48] In June, he confirmed his ambition to form a movement, and stated that he is ready to cooperate with Nebojša Zelenović and the Do not let Belgrade drown movement.[49][50]

In August 2021, Ćuta and his newly-formed "Environmental Uprising" organization have announced that protests would be held on 11 September. These protests marked the beginning of the 2021–2022 environmental protests, which have been held since then.[51] Ćuta has played a key role in the protests, and has been noted as one of the de facto leaders.[2][52][53] During the protests, Ćuta received criticism from government officials, while the pro-government media has spread misinformation about his career and views.[54] He has also stated the demands of the protests, which were mainly centered on Rio Tinto.[55] In November, Ćuta called for the radicalization of the protests, which led to roadblocks being organized across Serbia in late November and early December.[56] During that period, he signed a coalition agreement with Zelenović's Together for Serbia (ZZS) party, and announced his participation in the 2022 general election.[57][58] The coalition was formalized in January 2022, under the name We Must.[59] Ćuta appeared first on the We Must ballot list.[60] The coalition won around 5% of the popular vote and 13 seats in the National Assembly; Ćuta is set to become an MP by May 2022.[61][62]

Personal life

Jovanović is often known and referred by his nickname Ćuta.[9][63] He resides in Belgrade.[64] Ćuta showed his interest into rock music during his youth, when he learned to play the guitar. He had also often played football and chess.[5] Ćuta was married twice, and has two children.[5] He took part in The Weight of Chains 3 documentary film, which aired in 2019.[65]

Political affiliation

Some opposition politicians from the Party of Freedom and Justice have previously criticized Jovanović due to the alleged claim that he participated in the foundation of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), which he had denied.[2][66][67] During an interview for Vreme, Ćuta stated that "he was offered to create a green party that would cooperate with SNS", although he rejected the offer.[68] Ćuta is registered as independent.[69]

References
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