{"id":42790,"date":"2025-01-23T10:16:12","date_gmt":"2025-01-23T09:16:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/p-portal.net\/?p=42790"},"modified":"2025-02-17T23:46:38","modified_gmt":"2025-02-17T22:46:38","slug":"how-a-2012-photo-is-once-again-used-as-a-tool-for-spreading-intolerance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/p-portal.net\/en\/how-a-2012-photo-is-once-again-used-as-a-tool-for-spreading-intolerance","title":{"rendered":"How a 2012 Photo Is Once Again Used as a Tool for Spreading Intolerance"},"content":{"rendered":"

On January 20, 2025, a post was published on the Facebook page of Homeland Movement MP Stipo Mlinari\u0107 \u0106ipe<\/strong>, claiming that Serbs in Croatia allegedly hide automatic weapons in their homes and freely fire them when celebrating.<\/p>\n

In his post (available here<\/a>), Mlinari\u0107 attempted to justify a shooting incident involving his party colleague Josip Dabro<\/strong>. A video<\/a> surfaced showing Dabro firing an entire magazine of bullets from the passenger seat of a moving car, which led to his dismissal as Minister of Agriculture in the government of their coalition partner, the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), led by Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovi\u0107<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Defending Josip Dabra, Mlinari\u0107 chose to shift the focus to Serbs:<\/p>\n

\u201eCroats don\u2019t need an enemy from the outside. We are enough on our own. Here we go again. When a Croat commits even the slightest offense, we immediately jump on him. Crucify him, lynch him! And what about those who have been running wild for years, threatening, and shooting as if the war ended just yesterday? We leave them alone. Will I live to see the day when someone in the media dares to publicly ask \u2013 why do Serbs in those villages have automatic weapons? Where do they get them from? How many are there? The answer is obvious. <\/em>They once had five times more weapons than Croats, and today that ratio is surely even worse. Rifles have been replaced by machine guns, and hardly any house is without an arsenal. And then what? Nothing. Silence.\u201c<\/p>\n

The claim that Serbian households in Croatia are hiding arsenals of automatic weapons, which Serbs allegedly take out of their closets and fire in bursts while intelligence services, the police, journalists, politicians, and the entire public turn a blind eye, was not supported by any examples or data by the MP. He did not report it to the police, nor did he provide any evidence to back up this claim. Instead, he continued the post with anti-Serbian rhetoric:<\/p>\n

“For years, bursts of automatic gunfire have echoed through Serbian villages \u2013 for weddings, Christmas, Easter. In front of churches, on the streets, publicly, in front of cameras! And nothing happens. It seems the laws do not apply to them. But when a Croat fires a single shot from a pistol outside a populated area, it\u2019s immediately considered a threat to national security.”<\/p>\n

The controversial post, filled with insinuations, ends with Mlinari\u0107 calling on his coalition partners and urging the government to “make a shift in that area.”<\/p>\n

“It\u2019s time for questions, answers, and justice \u2013 for everyone,” Mlinari\u0107 stated.<\/p>\n

The post received over 1,500 reactions, more than 1,000 comments, and was shared 87 times.<\/p>\n

A Problematic Photograph<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The absence of any evidence to support these accusations, along with the targeting of Serbs in Croatia, was illustrated by Mlinari\u0107 using a highly problematic photo.<\/p>\n