A snowball effect was triggered by the boycott of shops in Croatia last Friday, prompted by citizens' dissatisfaction with high prices. Following the example of Croatia, calls for similar civil actions against shops, gas stations and restaurants this Friday have been spreading in recent days in several other Balkan countries, BTA writes.
Croatia
The shelves remained full and the shops without buyers on January 24, after many Croatian citizens refused to shop as part of an initiative launched by the Facebook group "Hello, Inspector" led by the consumer association ECIP. The action was supported by consumer protection associations, trade unions, political parties and even government representatives.
The movement began with messages shared on social networks: "January 24 is the day of boycott in Croatia against high food prices. Citizens are urged to refrain from buying anything". The response of Croatians led to a significant drop in retail turnover and revenues of commercial establishments on that day. According to data on the total turnover of goods and services of the Tax Administration of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Croatia, on the day of the boycott of the retail network, the receipts issued on January 24 were 29 percent less than the previous Friday - January 17, and their total value was 36 percent lower. Specifically, in terms of retail trade, the number of receipts issued on the day of the boycott was 44 percent lower, and their total value was 53 percent lower than on January 17.
Prime Minister Andrej Plenković described the boycott as an important and clear message from citizens, adding that it "will be taken into account when determining measures for administrative price restrictions on certain products". The Prime Minister specified that an updated list of prices with a ceiling is expected to be announced by the end of this week.
Finance Minister Marko Primorac also expressed support for the boycott. He said that as a citizen and consumer he understands the boycott of stores and that he himself will not shop. "It is not the role of the government to organize or call for a boycott, but as a citizen and consumer I completely understand it. "Personally, I will not go to the stores today," Primorac told journalists last Friday, HINA reported.
Primorac went even further, saying that longer-term boycotts targeting specific market participants or individual products could have a "much greater impact," although he stressed that he was saying this "as a consumer and a citizen" and that he did not believe the government should play an active role in directing or organizing such boycotts.
Following the general boycott, the advisor to the "Hello, Inspector" platform, Josip Kelemen, announced that he could expect a boycott of all retail chains or one specific shopping center for several days, a boycott of several products at once, or some other initiative. This will be decided by users, who will be invited to express their opinion and make their own suggestions via the platform's Facebook page, he added.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
A wave of calls for a boycott of shops, gas stations, cafes and restaurants on Friday, January 31, also appeared on social networks in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The boycott is intended as a protest against high prices and low living standards. Organizers of the initiative in Bosnia are calling on citizens not to buy anything on January 31, but to stock up on necessary groceries in advance, cook at home and avoid spending money in restaurants.
"This is a way to express our dissatisfaction with the rising costs of food and energy while wages remain low. "A one-day boycott can send a powerful message," reads one of the widely circulated messages on social media, quoted by the television.
People on online forums point out that food prices in Bosnia and Herzegovina are higher than in some developed countries such as Germany, while housing costs are still unaffordable. The organizers of the boycott emphasize that the aim of the action is to put pressure on the authorities and employers in the country to take concrete measures to limit inflation, raise the minimum wage and improve the general standard of living of citizens. The authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina have repeatedly frozen the prices of the most important food products.
North Macedonia
A call for a boycott of supermarkets on January 31 due to high prices of goods is spreading on social networks in North Macedonia as well. "We call for a mass boycott on Friday. Refrain from shopping in large supermarkets, avoid larger markets. We want to send a signal that citizens will not tolerate these unrealistic price increases", says the call, which was spread on social networks.
The ruling VMRO-DPMNE party supported the initiative. "We are sure that the institutions will actively oppose the situation in which, without any indicators causing inflation, some traders inhumanly raise prices and directly participate in increasing poverty, enriching themselves at the expense of citizens, which is a manifestation of a monopolistic and socially irresponsible attitude", says a statement from VMRO-DPMNE.
According to the opposition SDSM, VMRO-DPMNE and the government of Hristiyan Mickoski are to blame for the situation. They recall that in recent months they have repeatedly proposed specific solutions regarding the increase in prices, but instead the government has decided to "manage the problem with fake baskets".
Until mid-January, at the initiative of the government in Skopje, the so-called New Year's basket was in force, in which traders themselves participated, reducing the prices of basic food products. According to the citizens, however, before the prices of the same goods were reduced, they had already been increased.
"I understand this action of the citizens. From the very beginning, I have been talking about the behavior of people in this business and how they are trying to generate high profits in a speculative way", reacted Mickoski. The minimum expenses of a family of four in North Macedonia in January increased by 391 denars compared to December. In one year, the minimum expenses for food and drinks increased by 10.43 percent, and in the last month the increase was 123 denars despite the government measure for the New Year's basket, writes Radio „Free Europe”.
Montenegro
The non-governmental organization "Alternative Montenegro" also called on Montenegrin citizens to boycott supermarkets and shops in the country on Friday, January 31, the Montenegrin agency MINA reported. "We call for a boycott of supermarkets and shops in Montenegro on Friday, without exception. This has nothing to do with politics – high prices affect all citizens equally", the NGO said in a press release. "Alternative Montenegro" points out that prices in the country are excessively high and that leading retail chains, through mutual price-fixing agreements, are responsible for citizens not feeling the full impact of the increase in salaries and pensions.