Rapper Zlatan Čordić – Zlatko has lost his status as an independent cultural worker, and with it, some of the privileges that the status brings. In its formal letter, the Ministry of Culture explained its decision by writing that in the last year, Zlatko has devoted a significant part of his time to activities that are not related to demonstrating his ability to perform cultural activities. As the main reason, they cite the rapper’s involvement in illegal actions that are prosecuted under criminal law.
Rapper Zlatan Čordić – Zlatko, one of the most prominent faces of the protest movement against the government, has lost the status of an independent cultural worker, and thus some of the privileges that he has been enjoying since the 15th of July 2014, when he was entered in the register of the independent cultural workers.
However, Čordić did not lose his status of an independent cultural worker because he is an opponent of the government – the decision is not a result of the government potentially deciding to take revenge for his anti-government activities. Čordić repeatedly crossed the line of what is permissible or even allowed by law with his public outbursts.
Zlatko is not a good example of a Slovenian cultural figure
It should be pointed out that from the very beginning of the anti-government protests, Čordić has stood out because of his audacity. He regularly attended the protests, despite the ban on gatherings, and shouted with a megaphone, thus influencing the crowds. He did not follow the preventive health measures, although the experts warned that the second wave of the COVID-19 epidemic would likely come in autumn – with more deadly consequences than the first. At the same time, he publicly called on the protesters to take their masks off, to demonstrate their civil disobedience.
The first time when it became clear that Čordić has real problems with self-control, was at the national celebration on Statehood Day when he wanted to break into the scene of the ceremony uninvited and use a megaphone to interrupt President Borut Pahor‘s address. Back then, he already insulted the police officers, called them “robocops” and compared the fact that the ceremony had security to the occupation of Ljubljana under fascism. Then things only got worse, his outbursts became more brutal, and the police still tolerated them with incredible patience.
The one thing that all of us at Nova24TV will remember most about him is his attack on our cameraman, where he verbally attacked him and then even stole his camera. The event is certainly one of the most daring attacks on journalism in the history of Slovenia, which has been confirmed and condemned by many journalistic associations. But if anyone expected Čordić to sober up after all this, they would be wrong.
The incident that happened on Wednesday, the 23rd of November, when Zlatko and his acquaintance followed the director of the National Institute of Public Health, dr. Milan Krek, and started harassing him under the pretext that Zlatko simply wanted answers to some questions, was the straw that broke the camel’s back. They harassed him all the way from Kotnikova to Trubarjeva street, and Krek was shocked by the incident and also reported it to the criminal investigators.
After everything we have seen so far, rapper Zlatko will have a hard time convincing the public that he is merely a victim of revenge by the evil authorities. Čordić is, above all, a victim of himself and his own recklessness, and in a free country, one must take responsibility for one’s actions. Fortunately, the times of hereditary privileges based on ideological or blood ties are over, and the status of an independent cultural worker should be subject to the strictest standards, among which, in addition to an important contribution to Slovenian culture, is the high integrity of the individual.
Sara Kovač