CVIJANOVIĆ: SPEAKING EVEN LOUDER ABOUT THE SUFFERING OF PODRINJE SERBS

BRATUNAC, JULY 5 /SRNA/ – The Serb member and Chairwoman of the BiH Presidency, Željka Cvijanović, states it is Republika Srpska, Serbia, and all Serbs’ additional duty to even more loudly remind, point out, and testify about the suffering of Serb civilians in the central Podrinje and Birač regions, in order to rescue the innocent victims from oblivion and prevent such crimes from ever happening again to anyone.

Cvijanović emphasized that Podrinje has been a place of repeated suffering of the Serb people throughout the 20th century, from World War I, through the genocide in the Independent State of Croatia /NDH/, and finally during the last Defensive-Patriotic War. "The goal has always been the same – to physically separate the Serbs west of the Drina River from their brothers in Serbia. To make the Drina an impassable border instead of the backbone of our people. All these attempts have failed, but they have left wounds that still hurt, even decades later," Cvijanović posted on Instagram. She stated that today, representatives of Republika Srpska, Serbia, and the families of fallen Serbs gathered in Bratunac to prayerfully remember all Podrinje Serbs who perished in the last war. "Aside from ourselves in Republika Srpska and Serbia, with some honorable exceptions, no one else remembers or mourns the Serb victims. This obliges us even more to speak louder, to remind, and to testify about the suffering of Podrinje Serbs. To preserve the memory of them and ensure that such suffering never happens again to anyone. Eternal glory to them!" Cvijanović said, as she attended the memorial service in Bratunac today. Officials from Republika Srpska and Serbia, as well as delegations and representatives of organisations stemming from the Defensive-Patriotic War, laid wreaths and flowers today at the Memorial Cross at the cemetery in Bratunac, honoring the 3,267 killed Serbs from the central Podrinje and Birač regions. On behalf of Republika Srpska institutions, wreaths were laid by Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik, accompanied by the Serb member and Chairwoman of the BiH Presidency Željka Cvijanović, Republika Srpska Prime Minister Radovan Višković, and National Assembly Speaker Nenad Stevandić, who each laid a rose. On behalf of Serbia, the wreath was laid by the Speaker of the National Assembly of Serbia, Ana Brnabić, while other members of the Serbia’s delegation laid flowers. The Russian Ambassador, Igor Kalabukhov, also paid his respects to the murdered Serbs. Earlier, Patriarch Porfirije served the memorial service for the fallen Serbs, along with several bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church. The memorial service honors all Serb victims from the central Podrinje and Birač regions killed during the Defensive-Patriotic War, and is organised to mark the 33rd anniversary of the large-scale suffering of Serbs on St. Peter’s Day /Petrovdan/ in 1992, when 69 soldiers and civilians were killed and 22 captured in villages around Srebrenica and Bratunac - none of whom survived. During the memorial at the Bratunac cemetery, many resdents carried photos of the fallen Serbs.