Anti-Serb sentiment

Serbophobia (Serbian, Croatian: србофобиjа, srbofobija), also called anti-Serbism, is a sentiment of hostility or hatred towards Serbs or Serbia.

Using the term

The term is used in a non-clinical sense. In particular, the term refers to the position that the whole Serbian nation is guilty, as was interpreted by the Serbian press regarding a New York Times article published on April 1, 2001, headed: Milošević Is Accused, but All of Serbia Is on Trial.

The term was used, e.g., by Danon Cadik, Chief Rabbi of Yugoslavia et. al. in the open letter to the American Jewish Committee in 1995 during the bombing of the Army of Republika Srpska by Nato in a Operation Deliberate Force whose objective was to undermine the military capability of Bosnian Serbs during the Bosnian War.

Serbian Writers Association also organized a meeting on February 28 1989 with the theme of "Serbophobia" that discussed Croatian genocide of Serbs, including the reference to Jasenovac. This and other events was part of the movement towards the "unified Serbia", which was one of minor elements leading to the Yugoslav wars of 1990s.

Examples of hatred

Other examples of Serbophobia can be found in language used by other groups in the Balkans. For example, the word shkija in the Albanian language is a derogatory word for Serbs, used by Albanians to proclaim their racial superiority over Serbs, similar to how nigger is used by white supremacists in the USA.

Although the term was used rather sporadically in the past it is almost always considered to be misused in order to gain points on certain political agenda by appealing to emotions.

As a behaviour, Serbophobia is spread today among some (but not only) Croats, Bosniaks and Kosovo's Albanians as a reaction of the alienation of Serbs during the wars with these people. This feeling made the environment in which many Serbs were expelled or they simply left their homes in Krajina in 1995 and in Kosovo in 1999.

Some people, mostly Croats, Bosniaks, and Kosovar Albanians, claim that Serbophobia doesn't exist, and that the term is used as a political tool by Serbs to pin the blame on others for their own wrongdoings. Some others admit that Serbophobia does exist, but claim it is justified due to the behavior of the Serbs.

See also

• Other national "phobias"
• Xenophobia
• Nationalism
• Chauvinism
• Serbs
• Serbia

External links

• Open letter to the American Jewish Committee
• Northern California Jewish Bulletin

Use in various languages

• Neue Serbophilie und alte Serbophobie, "New Serbophilia and Old Serbophobia", a Junge Welt article, in German
• Marc Fumaroli, an article from Lire, a French literary magazine, in French
• Europa e nuovi nazionalismi, an article by Luca Rastello, in Italian
• Yugoslavia: dudas y certezas, an article from El Pais, in Spanish
• Бомбы или гражданская война, a Segodnya article, in Russian
• Сатанизација Срба, коме она треба?, a book by Boris Olijnik, in Serbian
• Ku është antimillosheviqi?, an AIM article, in Albanian
• 'СПЦ може да предизвика србофобија кај Македонците, a Nova Makedonija article, in Macedonian