Veljko Raznatovic to pull children from Titel kindergarten
The boxer claims his youngest son wore a ladybug costume with a skirt at a state kindergarten. The kindergarten says it was child's play, and Veljko launched a petition.
Boxer Veljko Raznatovic posted a video on Instagram on November 12 in which he claims his wife Bogdana walked into the state kindergarten in Titel and found their youngest son in a ladybug costume with a red tulle skirt. Veljko announced the same day that he would withdraw the children from the kindergarten, then started a petition. The kindergarten responds that it was child’s play.
What does Veljko say happened at the kindergarten?
According to the sources, the boy received the ladybug costume during a dress-up activity. In the video, Veljko says his wife happened to stop by the kindergarten and found their son in a costume that, as he describes it, is really a woman’s skirt.
By his account, parents were told that all costumes are open to all children. Veljko described it like this:
When we asked why that is, they told us that all costumes are free for the children and that a child can take whichever costume he wants. I asked whether there is a teacher there who can explain to the child: “Son, this is for girls, this is for boys,” that is, whether such a distinction is made. They said that under the new rulebook everything is fine and that they have no right to make such a distinction.
He added that he was told that if he disagrees, he has to change kindergartens. In a statement to the media he also claims that the kindergarten’s director, Jovanka Andric, told him this is the institution’s policy. He said he left the city because of things like this: “That is one of the reasons I am in the countryside, to save myself from these things. So be careful and look after your children.”
Is Veljko pulling his children out of the kindergarten?
He announced that he will. In a statement to the media he said:
Of course I will withdraw the children from the kindergarten until that director is replaced and until some rulebook is introduced so that we as parents know what may and may not be preached to our children, and so that we as parents know that the people our children are with value the same values we do at home.
Veljko explained what he means by that: “When I say the same values, I mean that a brother is a brother and a sister is a sister.” He stressed that he has the right to know what happens in the institution his child attends, and said of the institution itself: “This is a state kindergarten, let’s be clear.” By his estimate, 99 percent of Titel residents cannot move their children to a private kindergarten or relocate.
He then shared a link on his Instagram story to a petition titled “We demand accountability and clear rules in educational institutions.” Alongside the link he wrote: “Please, help us fight this evil.” The number of signatures has not been published. According to Informer, Veljko has been receiving messages from parents, including one from Titel, who explained to him that many families have no way to move their children to another kindergarten.
What does the Plavi Cuperak kindergarten say?
Both the director and the staff have responded. Director Andric sent a message to her colleagues, which reads:
Dear colleagues, let us look at the situation with the ladybug costume from the child’s perspective. A two-year-old boy who chose to put on a skirt did nothing unusual or worrying. For him it was just part of a costume, an interesting piece of clothing and part of play, without the meanings and divisions that we adults often attach to clothes.
In the same message, Andric wrote that the kindergarten’s task is to “enable free play and exploration, without judgment and without creating a feeling that they have done something wrong.”
The kindergarten staff published a statement for parents on the institution’s Facebook page. It opens with a question: “Do we see play through the eyes of a child or the eyes of adults?” It goes on to say that a two-year-old’s choice of a skirt as part of a ladybug costume is a “spontaneous choice in play and an opportunity for exploration,” and that a child of that age does not attach gender and social meanings to clothing the way adults do.
The sources disagree on one short remark. According to one Informer article, the director told Kurir that everything was made up and ridiculous. According to another, it was an unnamed person from the kindergarten who told Kurir: “Made up and ridiculous,” and on a second call was told that the director had already given her statement.
Who has backed Veljko?
His mother Svetlana Ceca Raznatovic, his sister Anastasija, TV host Ana Sevic and singer Darko Lazic have all given public support. His wife Bogdana posted a video of her husband and wrote: “A story that needs to be heard far and wide. Do not corrupt our children!”
Ceca also reacted to a comment from an Instagram user who ironically wrote that the child may simply have wanted to look that way. The singer replied briefly: “Oh, poor thing…”
Veljko, then, has stuck to his decision, and the kindergarten to its explanation. What will become of the petition, and whether the children will actually be withdrawn, has not been announced so far.
