The New Flame

On Novi Plamen – version in English

Novi Plamen (English: The New Flame) is a left-wing democratic socialist magazine aimed at audiences on the territory of former Yugoslavia. It is published by the Demokratska misao (English: Democratic Thought) publishing company, and its editors-in-chief are Filip Erceg, Mladen Jakopović (pseudonym Daniel Jakopovich), Ivica Mladenovic and Professor Goran Marković.

The magazine has an Advisory Board consisting of well-known international left-wing figures such as Noam Chomsky, Ken Coates, David Graeber, Michael Albert, John McDonnell MP, Catherine Samary and Jean Ziegler, as well as leading intellectuals and public figures from South East Europe, including the Deputy Prime Minister of the Croatian government Slobodan Uzelac, Croatian MP Milorad Pupovac, president of the Croatian Writers’ Association Velimir Visković, writers Slobodan Šnajder and Predrag Matvejević, Bosnian ex-ministers Marko Oršolić and Dragoljub Stojanov, professor and politician Bogdan Denitch, actor Josip Pejaković, philosopher Miodrag Živanović and others. Contributors to the magazine have also included Igor Mandić, Todor Kuljić, don Ivan Grubišić, Drago Pilsel, illustrator Branko Ilić, Srećko Pulig, Rastko Močnik, Sonja Lokar, Inoslav Bešker and Slavoj Žižek.

Novi Plamen and the Demokratska misao publishing company co-organized an international scientific conference titled Participation, Self-management, Democracy held in Zagreb in November 2007, along with the International Left Forum of the Swedish Left Party.

The name Novi Plamen (The New Flame) is an allusion to the distinguished magazine Plamen that was published in 1919 and edited by Miroslav Krleža and August Cesarec.

www.noviplamen.org
Daniel Jakopovich
EX-YUGOSLAVIA: A NEW PROGRESSIVE VOICE
“We who have a Voice must be a Voice for the Voiceless!”, Oscar Romero

This epoch needs popular tribunes. An unseen plundering of social ownership has been committed on the territory of ex-Yugoslavia, in the midst of a bloodbath between brothers. How else could they have done it? We should have gone towards a humanistic, democratic, libertarian socialism of the 21st century, a society of human solidarity, peace and progress – not back to capitalism, the system of theft and exploitation, where we have become servants of foreign and domestic capital, where the politicians are a part of the same interest bloc – united against their people – and the concept of politics as an activity for the common good has been crippled.

We have to regenerate our society on the basis of the world of Labor and the world of culture and knowledge, on the basis of inter-ethnic tolerance and the achievement of the broadest democratic rights. We have to resist the marginalization of all progressive and noble ideas in the contemporary society, renew the cultural circle destroyed in the bestial war…

We will serve as a reference point for progressive forces in our area, a decisive answer to the fragmentation of progressive ideas and movements. We want to serve as a democratic laboratory of new ideas, promote freethinking, openness and peaceful cooperation, be the voice of the voiceless in our society. We won’t let corrupt politicians, avaricious employers and blunt bureaucrats to exploit and degrade us.

We want justice and progress, peace and social security for all, as well as full, direct – political, social and economic democracy. We want a society of true nonviolence, true freedom, a participatory democratic society – free and humane, democratic atmosphere and practice in public and private life. All those who share these goals and principles with us will be our natural readers and allies.