Serbian NGO Autonomous Women’s Center has requested RTS to immediately withdraw Bora Dugić and Balkubano from Beovizija 2020 due to the message of their song.
About the song, the NGO says: “the song’s lyrics threaten a woman and her family with murder if she rejects her partner’s marriage proposal — as well as saying she’d be responsible for his own suicide”.
‘Autonomous Women’s Center’ finds “inadmissible to give space to such messages on a public broadcaster promoting this kind of values while noting that, every year, between 30 and 40 women die to their partners in Serbia and that the situation is unlikely to change as long as values advocating for it are promoted”.
RTS just released a statement about this Beovizija’s withdrawal request: “The tone and the message of the lyrics are not adequate and, following internal discussion, we urge Bora Dugić and Balkubano to change the lyrics in the next eight days, facing disqualification if they fail to do so”.
The authors of the lyrics have expressed that their intention wasn’t to send a serious message and apologize for having come across in the wrong way. They have confirmed that after discussion with RTS, they will change the lyrics in the next days.