{"id":19783,"date":"2026-02-06T17:00:35","date_gmt":"2026-02-06T16:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/?p=19783"},"modified":"2026-02-06T17:00:35","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T16:00:35","slug":"removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/","title":{"rendered":"Removing Hate Graffiti Must Not Be Sanctioned"},"content":{"rendered":"

The latest such case occurred in Ni\u0161, where activists from the Green\u2013Left Front, including Dejan Petrovi\u0107, a teacher at the \u201cU\u010ditelj Tasa\u201d Elementary School in Ni\u0161, repainted over the graffiti <\/span>\u201cWhen the army returns to Kosovo\u201d<\/span><\/i> that had been written on the wall of this school over the previous weekend. Following a complaint by citizens, municipal police issued Petrovi\u0107 a misdemeanor citation on Wednesday, February 4, stating that he had repainted the graffiti without the consent of the school principal.<\/span><\/p>\n

Our organizations express solidarity with Dejan Petrovi\u0107, as well as with other citizens who care about the cleanliness of their local public spaces. Militaristic, homophobic, and racist slogans that spread hate speech have no place in public spaces, especially not on the walls of schools and other public institutions. Such messages are dangerous and harmful, and it is particularly concerning that this content is being drawn in a coordinated and systematic manner.<\/span><\/p>\n

Extremist and football hooligan groups are involved in this organized destruction of public space, while representatives of the authorities and institutions not only fail to problematize such graffiti, but often even praise it. Citizens and activists who have cleaned walls have frequently been targeted by extremists, received threats, and been subjected to organized harassment on social media; in some cases, hooligans directly warned them not to touch the graffiti they had painted. In all of these cases, the reaction of the competent authorities was absent.<\/span><\/p>\n

In a series of misdemeanor proceedings conducted against activists from the association Krokodil and the Youth Initiative for Human Rights for <\/span>removing<\/span><\/a> graffiti of the same content from a public institution in Belgrade, we <\/span>proved<\/span><\/a> that cleaning public spaces cannot be characterized as a misdemeanor of disturbing public order and peace. Initiating such proceedings is undoubtedly a measure of intimidation and disciplining of citizens who refuse to accept warmongering messages in public spaces.<\/span><\/p>\n

We consider the <\/span>statement<\/span><\/a> by Milo\u0161 Vu\u010devi\u0107, advisor to the President of the Republic and president of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), to be discriminatory. He described the action of removing hate graffiti from the wall of a school in Ni\u0161 as \u201cauto-chauvinism,\u201d adding that the graffiti was repainted by \u201cthose who hate everything Serbian.\u201d The fight against hate speech, intolerance, and discrimination is not, and cannot be, \u201canti-Serbian.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The \u201cFree the Streets\u201d initiative comprises the <\/span>Association KROKODIL, Partners Serbia, Youth Initiative for Human Rights, the Lawyers\u2019 Committee for Human Rights (YUCOM), and the Belgrade Centre for Human Rights.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Civil society organizations gathered within the joint initiative \u201cFree the Streets\u201d condemn the practice of prosecuting citizens who restore public spaces to their original state by removing hate graffiti. ","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":16842,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0},"categories":[57,1479],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nRemoving Hate Graffiti Must Not Be Sanctioned - YIHR.rs<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Removing Hate Graffiti Must Not Be Sanctioned - YIHR.rs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Civil society organizations gathered within the joint initiative \u201cFree the Streets\u201d condemn the practice of prosecuting citizens who restore public spaces to their original state by removing hate graffiti.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"YIHR.rs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-02-06T16:00:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/ZAJEDNICKO-1.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"760\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"300\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"YIHR\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"YIHR\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"YIHR\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#\/schema\/person\/7186157598b114d93f0a98e406fcc811\"},\"headline\":\"Removing Hate Graffiti Must Not Be Sanctioned\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-06T16:00:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-06T16:00:35+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/\"},\"wordCount\":418,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"News\",\"Saop\u0161tenja\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/\",\"name\":\"Removing Hate Graffiti Must Not Be Sanctioned - YIHR.rs\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-06T16:00:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-06T16:00:35+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Removing Hate Graffiti Must Not Be Sanctioned\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/\",\"name\":\"YIHR.rs\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Inicijativa mladih za ljudska prava\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/yihr-logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/yihr-logo.png\",\"width\":157,\"height\":54,\"caption\":\"Inicijativa mladih za ljudska prava\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#\/schema\/person\/7186157598b114d93f0a98e406fcc811\",\"name\":\"YIHR\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/827fb1ad44b0077db507a1ccb518d991?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/827fb1ad44b0077db507a1ccb518d991?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"YIHR\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/author\/yihr\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Removing Hate Graffiti Must Not Be Sanctioned - YIHR.rs","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Removing Hate Graffiti Must Not Be Sanctioned - YIHR.rs","og_description":"Civil society organizations gathered within the joint initiative \u201cFree the Streets\u201d condemn the practice of prosecuting citizens who restore public spaces to their original state by removing hate graffiti.","og_url":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/","og_site_name":"YIHR.rs","article_published_time":"2026-02-06T16:00:35+00:00","og_image":[{"width":760,"height":300,"url":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/ZAJEDNICKO-1.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"YIHR","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"YIHR","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/"},"author":{"name":"YIHR","@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#\/schema\/person\/7186157598b114d93f0a98e406fcc811"},"headline":"Removing Hate Graffiti Must Not Be Sanctioned","datePublished":"2026-02-06T16:00:35+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-06T16:00:35+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/"},"wordCount":418,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#organization"},"articleSection":["News","Saop\u0161tenja"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/","url":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/","name":"Removing Hate Graffiti Must Not Be Sanctioned - YIHR.rs","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#website"},"datePublished":"2026-02-06T16:00:35+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-06T16:00:35+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/removing-hate-graffiti-must-not-be-sanctioned\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Removing Hate Graffiti Must Not Be Sanctioned"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#website","url":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/","name":"YIHR.rs","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#organization","name":"Inicijativa mladih za ljudska prava","url":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/yihr-logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/yihr-logo.png","width":157,"height":54,"caption":"Inicijativa mladih za ljudska prava"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#\/schema\/person\/7186157598b114d93f0a98e406fcc811","name":"YIHR","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/bhs\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/827fb1ad44b0077db507a1ccb518d991?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/827fb1ad44b0077db507a1ccb518d991?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"YIHR"},"url":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/author\/yihr\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19783"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19783"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19783\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19784,"href":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19783\/revisions\/19784"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16842"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19783"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19783"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yihr.rs\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19783"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}