Serbia A Small Step Closer To Europe

The first results indicated President Boris Tadic’s pro-European Democratic Party won the May 11 parliamentary elections, possibly bringing some stability to a turbulent region that has troubled some local promoters.

Many had feared that victory for the nationalists, whose policies include suspending talks with the EU and shielding suspected war criminals from international prosecutors, would see the country return to the international isolation that it suffered under former dictator Slobodan Milosevic.

Exit Festival general manager Bojan Boscovic was concerned that the political situation, and potentially inflammatory comments from Icelandic star Bjork, would spark the sort of civil unrest seen in Serbia when Kosovo unilaterally declared independence in February.

His fears have so far proved to be unfounded, as the period since March 8, when the Serbian government chucked in the towel because – in the words of its leader – it can’t "function" anymore, has been relatively calm.

However, U.S. rock band KISS canceled its May 15 show, saying it was concerned about playing Belgrade only four days after the election.