Securitization Theory and Floods in Serbia: The Case of Social Networks

Milan Krstić

Abstract

A year ago, during the devastating floods that hit Serbia, writings of certain users of social networks, characterized as panic spreading and threat to security, was met with condemnation of public officials. They were led by the Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic. In this paper, we are trying to carry out a scientific description of the actions of the government, especially of the Prime Minister, towards one group of social networks users. The theoretical framework that we are going to use is the theory of securitization, as a normatively neutral analytical framework. The primary method we are going to apply is critical discourse analysis. We are going to test whether the Prime Minister of Serbia securitized the activities of certain users of social networks in the Republic of Serbia, which is the first research question of this paper. The starting point of this paper is that the Prime Minister did commit aforementioned securitization. Bearing in mind the different form compared to traditional securitizing move, another issue to which this work will seek to provide an answer is what the reasons that led to the successful securitization were, despite of certain shortcomings in relation to the purely theoretical model (primarily in terms of “security grammar”). The paper argues that this is due to the socio-political and socio-linguistic dimension of the context in which the securitization was carried out.

References

1. Antonić, Slobodan, Vukadinović, Đorđe. (2014) “Šta je govorio Vučić.“. Vreme 1221: pp. 22-23
2. Apostolovski, Aleksandar. (2014) “Bujica neproverenih vesti“. Politika, May 21. Available at: http://www.politika.rs/rubrike/tema-dana/Bujica-neproverenih-vesti.sr.html [Accessed May 30 2015]
3. Apostolovski, Aleksandar. (2014) “Politički poredak i vodena stihija“. Politika, May 28. Available at: http://www.politika.rs/rubrike/Politika/Politicki-poredak-i-vodena-stihija.sr.html [Accessed May 30 2015].
4. Bećković, Olja. (2014) “Utisak nedelje: gosti Bojan Pajtić, Đorđe Pavićević, Zoran Panović“. TV B92, June 1. Video podcast available at: http://www.b92.net/video/utisak.php?yyyy=2014&mm=06&dd=02&nav_id=855920 [Accessed May 30 2015].
5. Bećković, Olja. (2014) “Utisak nedelje: gosti Srđan Verbić, Srbijanka Turajlić, Una Draganić, Vukan Marković“. TV B92, May 25. Video podcast available at: http://www.b92.net/video/utisak.php?yyyy=2014&mm=05&dd=26&nav_id=852975 [Accessed May 30 2015].
6. Bujošević, Dragan. (2014) “Stav Srbije: gosti Rodoljub Šabić, Milan Antonijević, Vladimir Đukanović“. Prva TV, June 8. Video podcast available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufwDfCRybj4 [Accessed May 30 2015].
7. Buzan, Barry, Waiver, Ole. (2009) “Macrosecuritisation and security constellations: reconsidering scale in securitisation theory”. Review of International Studies 35: pp. 253-276
8. Buzan, Barry, Waiver, Ole, de Wilde, Jaap. (1998) Security: A new framework for analysis. London: Lynne Rienner Publishers.
9. Ejdus, Filip. (2012) Međunarodna bezbednost: teorije, sektori, nivoi. Beograd: Službeni glasnik i Beogradski centar za bezbednosnu politiku.
10. Facebook. (2014) “Jelena Macic Status”. 20 May. Available at: https://www.facebook.com/jelena.macic.1?fref=ts [Accessed May 30 2015].
11. “Gašić: Vodili smo borbu i protiv dezinformacija“. (2014) Politika, May 27: p. 7.
12. Gedošević, Lana. (2014) “Zabranjen ulaz u Obrenovac! Policija postavila punkt.“ Blic, May 20. Available at: http://www.blic.rs/Vesti/Drustvo/466914/Zabranjen-ulaz-u-Obrenovac-Policija-postavila-punkt [Accessed May 30 2015].
13. Gligorijević, Jovana. (2014) “Život na internetu: Između cenzure i širenja panike“. Vreme 1221: pp. 26-27.
14. Human Rights Watch. (2015) “Letter to Vice President Joe Biden”. Available at: http://www.hrw.org/node/135387 [Accessed May 30 2015].
15. Jovičić, Biljana. (2014) “Premijer Vučić u Sremskoj Mitrovici“. Dnevnik 2 RTS, May 28. Available at: http://www.rts.rs/page/tv/ci/story/17/%D0%A0%D0%A2%D0%A1+1/1609349/%D0%94%D0%BD%D0%B5%D0%B2%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%BA.html [Accessed May 30 2015].
16. Krivični zakonik Republike Srbije. (2005) Beograd: Službenik glasnik Republike Srbije 85, 88.
17. Maglajlija, Vedrana (2014) “Kažnjivo širenje panike tokom poplava“. Al Jazeera Balkan, May 29. Available at: http://balkans.aljazeera.net/vijesti/kaznjivo-sirenje-panike-tokom-poplava [Accessed May 30 2015].
18. Medić, Veljko. (2014) Smenjeni šefovi svih pet policijskih uprava, Dnevnik 2 RTS, June 20. Available at: http://www.rts.rs/page/tv/ci/story/17/%D0%A0%D0%A2%D0%A1+1/1628970/%D0%94%D0%BD%D0%B5%D0%B2%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%BA.html [Accessed May 30 2015].
19. “MUP: 57 mrtvih u poplavama“. (2014) B92, July 9. Available at: http://www.b92.net/info/vesti/index.php?yyyy=2014&mm=07&dd=09&nav_category=16&nav_id=874410 [Accessed May 30 2015].
20. Nacionalni Dnevnik. (2014) TV Pink, May 19. Video podcast available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEHH8MSFTFI [Accessed May 30 2015].
21. Narodna Skupština Republike Srbije. (2014) Izveštaj o elementarnoj nepogodi – poplavi koja je zadesila Republiku Srbiju i merama koje su preuzete radi spasavanja stanovništva i odbrane ugroženih od poplava. Available at: http://www.parlament.gov.rs/upload/archive/files/cir/pdf/akta_procedura/2014/2220-14.pdf [Accessed May 30 2015].
22. “Nezapamćena tragedija: Mrtva tela plutaju po Obrenovcu“. (2014) Kurir, May 18: p. 1.
23. OSCE. (2014) “Government online censorship in Serbia worrying trend, says OSCE media freedom representative”. Available at: http://www.osce.org/fom/119173 [Accessed May 30 2015].
24. Phillips, Nelson, Hardy, Cynthia. (2002) Discourse Analysis: Investigating Processes of Social Construction. London: Sage Publications Ltd.
25. “Poplave u Beogradu: U Obrenovcu do sada evakuisano 3000 ljudi, stigli Slovenci i Vojska sa amfibijama“. (2014) Večernje Novosti, May 16. Available at: http://m.novosti.rs/vesti/beograd.74.html:491773-Obrenovac-Vise-od-800-ljudi-evakuisano-medju-kojima-i-beba-stanovnisto-bez-struje [Accessed May 30 2015].
26. “Sednica Republičkog štaba za vanredne situacije“. (2014) RTS SAT, May 16. Video podcast. Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neNOueRF75I [Accessed May 30 2015].
27. “Siniša Mali umalo podavio Obrenovčane, ali Tviteraši su kriminalci“ (2014). Telepromter, May 29. Available at: http://www.teleprompter.rs/sinisa-mali-umalo-podavio-obrenovcane-ali-tviterasi-su-kriminalci.html [Accessed May 30 2015].
28. Spaić, Tamara. (2014) “Saša Janković: Odluke se donose van institucija“. Blic, June 1: p. 3.
29. Stritzel, Holger. (2007) “Towards a Theory of Securitization: Copenhagen and Beyond”. European Journal of International Relations 13(3): pp. 357-383.
30. Twitter. (2014) “@NafurnaMala status”. 17 May. Available at: https://twitter.com/NafurnaMala/status/467593716614823936 [Accessed May 30 2015].
31. Ustav Republike Srbije. (2006) Beograd: Službeni glasnik Republike Srbije 98.
32. Vučenić, Danica. (2014) “Jedan na jedan: gost Rodoljub Šabić“. RTV, May 29. Video podcast available at: http://media.rtv.rs/sr_lat/jedan-na-jedan/6020 [Accessed May 30 2015].
33. Vlada Republike Srbije. (2014) “Proglašena vanredna situacija na teritoriji Srbije“. Available at: http://www.srbija.gov.rs/vesti/vest.php?id=209562 [Accessed May 30 2015].
34. “Vučić: Ne spaljujemo leševe u Lazarevcu“. (2014) Večernje novosti, May 28. Available at: http://www.novosti.rs/vesti/naslovna/drustvo/aktuelno.290.html:493522-Vucic-Ne-spaljujemo-leseve-u-Lazarevcu [Accessed May 30 2015].
35. Vuori, Juha. (2008) “Illocutionary Logic and Strands of Securitization: Applying the Theory of Securitization to the Study of Non-Democratic Political Orders”. European Journal of International Relations 14(1): pp. 65-99.