PREVENT ATTEMPTS TO UNDERMINE LEGITIMACY OF REPUBLIKA SRPSKA INSTITUTIONS

BANJA LUKA, AUGUST 9 /SRNA/ - Representatives of the audiovisual sector of Republika Srpska condemned all attempts to discredit and undermine the legitimacy of the institutions of Srpska, especially the institution of the President of Republika Srpska, and pointed out the danger of destabilizing the constitutional order and attempts to render the will of the people meaningless.

“We do not accept either a lynching of democracy or a constitutional relativization of the will of the people. We remind that without institutional stability, there can be no cultural freedom,” the joint statement by the representatives of the audiovisual sector of Srpska reads. They emphasized that their concerns are expressed in light of recent events that seriously challenge the democratic principles, Constitution, and political integrity of Republika Srpska. “Our work, woven into film and television forms, bears witness to decades-long efforts to preserve the identity, culture, language, and heritage of the Serb people in Republika Srpska, while demonstrating openness to artistic collaboration, truth, and freedom of expression,” the statement reads. Recalling that through their work, they have been witnesses to the times and a voice of conscience of society, the representatives of the audiovisual sector state that they consider it their duty, not only as artists but also as citizens, to point out the danger of destabilizing the constitutional order and attempts to render the will of the people meaningless. They emphasize that this is not a political, but a moral obligation for everyone. “We cannot and will not remain silent, because every such act of silence becomes participation in a profound injustice and a potential cultural capitulation. If we allow the institutions of Srpska to become targets of constitutional system restructuring and legitimacy undermining, then no sector, not even the cultural and audiovisual, will be spared from the consequences. Our response must be unified and dignified,” the audiovisual sector of Srpska stated. The joint statement was signed by actress and director of the Audiovisual Center of Republika Srpska, Anja Ilić, set designer Dragana Purković-Macan, producer and manager of the city of Gradiška, Bojan Vujnović, as well as actors Dragana Marić, Zlatan Vidović, Željko Erkić, and Duško Mazalica. The statement was also signed by dramaturgs Mario Ćulum and Milan Gajić, and directors Saša Hajduković, Marko Šipka, Siniša Grabež, Denis Bojić, and Milan Pilipović. Among the signatories are director of photography Draško Gajić and Zoran Pilipović, producers Andrej Đukić and Đorđe Ćirić, as well as members of the Animation Society in Republika Srpska and the civic association "Trebinje Film Festival."