Bosnian Village Bans Politicians

Podgora, a small section of Bosnia, is really fed up with lying and cheating politicians. 

The poor 700-person village is claiming to be "fed up with the government's broken promises" in time for the Bosnian elections. 

"You've been lying to us for years. No party is welcome in Podgora," a white banner strung across the main square reads. 

Adi Silajdzic, 47, told AFP, "We're fed up that every time they come they tell us stories and make promises to ensure votes. And every time, on the day after the elections, it is as if nothing had happened, as if they did not even come to see us."

Most people living in the small community are unemployed and living off of small vegetable farms and livestock. 

Silajdzic said Podgora has been neglected by authorities ever since the war that damaged Bosnia's economy. 

"We are the ones who replace bulbs for the street lights," Silajdzic explained. "We do not have a single garbage container, there is no bus, and the drinking water supply system was constructed before the war with asbestos cement pipes that were not replaced."

According to a study in May from the Bosnian Association of Journalists, less than 20 percent of the people in Bosnia trust their political parties.

Many in Podgora see politics as a dead end. 

Photo: Getty Images


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