Origins and Symbolism
One popular theory on the origin of the salute is based on the way that Orthodox Serbs perform the Sign of the Cross, with three extended fingers representing the Trinity. A saying often used by Serbs is: Nema krsta bez tri prsta ("There is no cross without three fingers").
The gesture in its modern form is attributed to Vuk Drašković, leader of the opposition Serbian Renewal Movement. In a 2007 interview, he explained that he first used it in 1990 at the founding meeting of the movement. Drašković found inspiration in a painting by Paja Jovanović depicting the Serbian prince Miloš Obrenović greeting Serb insurgents during the Takovo Uprising of 1815. During the March 1991 street demonstrations in Belgrade, the three fingers were massively used by Drašković's supporters, representing the three demands that the Serbian Renewal Movement had put before the government.
However there are other meanings of the salute and it is also used by some political opponents of the Serbian Renewal Movement. Srđan Srećković, a vice president of the Serbian Renewal Movement, said in an interview to Kurir that it can also symbolize "one finger for St. Sava, the other finger for Njegoš, and the third finger for Karađorđe". At the eve of the Yugoslav wars, the salute was popularized by Jovan Rašković, leader of the Republic of Serbian Krajina. His daughter Sanda Rašković-Ivić said that she never gave explanation for using it.
Read more about this topic: Three-finger Salute (Serbian)
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