Pistols, rifles, machine guns, grenade launchers - weapons as far as the eye can see. A warehouse in Belgrade is lined with weapons and ammunition owned by private individuals who have voluntarily surrendered after being called in by the authorities. This is an attempt to resolve the legacy of the Balkan wars that accompanied the breakup of Yugoslavia, when many weapons fell into the hands of private individuals and years later became family heirlooms for the next generations or ended up on the black market, writes the German public broadcaster ARD.
Only the USA and Yemen have more weapons
Serbia has so far held several firearms amnesties, during which over 100,000 illegally owned weapons have been handed over. However, with so many weapons, such initiatives have limited effect. The fact is that in two of the countries in the region - Serbia and Montenegro - people own the most weapons in Europe - there are 39 firearms per 100 inhabitants. This means that there is at least one weapon in every home. Only the USA and Yemen have more weapons per capita. Yemen, however, is a country in which a civil war is being waged, the German publication recalls in this regard.
For many citizens of Serbia and Montenegro, weapons are part of tradition, of everyday life, for them they are a symbol of freedom and recognition in society. A striking example in this regard is Kristian Golubovic - the 50-year-old man with numerous tattoos on his body was part of the notorious gangster scene in Belgrade in the 1990s. He tells ARD how a kebab could be exchanged for a gun back then:
“Everyone used drugs, everyone carried weapons, no one was afraid of anyone and no one had respect for anyone. Back then, there were murders and heads fell every day. Probably 80 percent of the “underworld“ in the former Yugoslavia and other countries in the Balkans was liquidated in this way,” he says. Golubovic boasts that even today he can get a gun in no more than an hour.
A role model - especially among young people
Golubovic's criminal past seems to be admired by many Serbs. In the meantime, he is a reality star on a Serbian private television station that broadcasts a show in the style of “Big Brother“. There, in prime time, he tells how to best commit a murder: “You just wrap the victim in a blanket before you hang them - that way you don't leave any traces”. Golubović is constantly stopped by fans on the street - people know the former gangster, who is clearly a role model, especially for many young people, ARD also points out in its publication.
When in May 2023 a young man shot nine people from a moving car with an illegal black market weapon, it turned out that the shooter also idolized Kristian Golubović. Then all of Serbia was shocked. The day before, there was a mass murder at a school in Belgrade, in which a 13-year-old boy shot nine classmates and the school's host with his father's weapon.
Organized crime in Montenegro
In neighboring Montenegro, the situation is similar - almost every home has a gun. The number of murders in this Balkan country is also one of the highest in Europe. One of the reasons for this is probably organized crime - Warring criminal clans in Montenegro have been fighting each other fiercely for years. Experts classify the Montenegrin mafia as “high-risk”, but so far no one has been able to break up these criminal networks.
The historic city of Cetinje, the old capital of Montenegro, is particularly prone to gunfights. Snipers are increasingly being used, cars are being blown up, and mass murders are being committed. In the past four years alone, the country, which is also a popular tourist destination, has seen dozens of gangland murders.
Tightening gun laws
Teacher Maja has lived in Cetinje since she was born. In one of the mass shootings in 2022, when a total of ten people died, Maja lost her cousin. Although the shooter was known to the police as a violent person, he was in possession of a legal firearm.
After this incident, Maja launched an initiative to tighten gun ownership laws. This is necessary because in Montenegro, not even a psychological examination is required to own a pistol or rifle. In the meantime, a new bill has already been drafted, which the Montenegrin parliament should consider this fall, the ARD publication also says.
Author: Ana Tilak ARD