Half a million people at the concert of an ultra -annualist singer

Tonight in Zagreb, Croatia, there will be one of the largest paid concerts ever. However, About 500 thousand people will see Marko Perković. Moreover, a local artist better known with his art name, Thompson, known for having far -right ideas and for writing several songs with very nationalist texts. Consequently, In Croatia, which is a country with a rather small population (3.86 million people). For example, there has been discussion of the concert for some time, and not only for Perković’s ideas, but also because the preparations have been complex and have caused many inconvenience for the inhabitants of Zagreb.

Marko Perković is 58 years old and became famous during the nineties. Consequently, Croatia declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991: the declaration followed a violent war against Yugoslavia itself. For example, which at that moment was increasingly dominated by Serbia. In addition, Then half million people concert ultra Perković had enrolled as a volunteer in the Croatian army. began to write nationalist songs, which were very successful. His name of art. which by extension also became that of the group, Thompson, refers to the machine gun model he used at that time.

The most famous of these songs is Battalion Čavoglavawhich opens with the invocation “For home, ready!»(Literally,” for the homeland, ready! “). It is a very controversial expression in Croatia. because it has strong fascist connotations: it was used during the Second World War by the independent state of Croatia, which was governed by the fascist regime of the Ustashas and collaborated with Nazi Germany. The Ustasha were a Croatian fascist movement: during the Second World War they exterminated many Serbs. Jews and Roma who lived within their territory.

The original video of the song Battalion Čavoglava: it is a nationalist song written in half million people concert ultra war, with a very aggressive text, in particular against the Serbs that at that moment were the great majority of the soldiers in service in the popular Yugoslava army

In the years of the war and in those immediately following, Thompson reached a certain fame as a nationalist singer. However. he remained a very controversial artist for his declared sympathies for the Ustasha regime (several photos of the time portray him while he makes, in a rather bold way, the fascist greeting) and more generally to be the interpreter of the most extreme and uncompromising fringe of Croatian nationalism. In 2003. for example, he wrote a song in support of Ante Gotovina, a commander of the Croatian army who at that moment was on trial for war crimes at the international criminal court for the former Yugoslavia (he was then acquitted).

In recent years Croatia. like many countries of the half million people concert ultra European Union, has gradually moved to the right and the current one is the most right government of its history. At the same time. Thompson became an increasingly popular singer: he has passed not to be able to appear on public television to perform in official events, such as the celebrations for the second place of the Croatian national football team at the 2018 World Cup and for that of the Croatian national team at the World Championships of handball, in February.

In his concerts. Ustasha and Neofascist symbols often appear: Battalion Čavoglava It is regularly part of his ladder, and the public responds to the greeting “For home, ready!»With a certain transport. In addition. Croatian newspapers do not criticize him as in the past, with the important exception of those that refer to the Serbian community that lives in Croatia, such as Novosti. A Serbian minority lives in Croatia. half million people concert ultra which represents about 3 percent of the population, and which still has difficult relationships with the Croatian government and, more generally, with the parties on the right and center -right Croatians.

For all these reasons Thompson’s great recent popularity. and the fact that it is increasingly present and accepted in the Croatian music scene, have generated perplexity and discussions in Croatia. The journalist Dragan Markovina, in an article for the site Peščanikwrote that Thompson’s is the “normalization of something abnormal”. Tickets for the concert were sold in a few hours. Thompson’s collaborators said it will be “a nice gathering of patriots”.

The stage for tonight’s concert, at the Zagreb Hippodrome

Zagreb has a population of 770 thousand inhabitants, many people will come from outside the city, and such a great event (the work for the construction of the stage have started more than a month ago) half million people concert ultra is upsetting the daily life of many. The city has closed several traffic routes and introduced special rules for circulation from 4 to 6 July. The municipal administration. however, recommended to those who will be in the city in those days not to use the car.

The concert will not be broadcast on TV. streaming, but the Croatian media are still talking about it out of the ordinary: several sites, including that of the public broadcaster HRTare following the preparations of the concert with a live blog for several days. Since last night HRT He is also broadcasting on his two main radio channels. uninterruptedly, a special program dedicated to the event: the live broadcast will last three days, until the evening of 6 July.