HIGH DECORATION FOR DECADES OF HELP AND SUPPORT TO SERB COMMUNITY AWARDED TO DODIK

BUDAPEST, JANUARY 31 /SRNA/ – SNSD Leader Milorad Dodik was awarded at the Saint Sava official ceremony held this evening in Budapest, a high decoration - the Order of the "Self-Government of Serbs in Hungary for Merits to the Serbian People" for his decades-long, selfless assistance and support to the Serb community in Hungary.

The Order was presented to Dodik by the President of the Self-Government of Serbs in Hungary, Jovanka Lastić. Thanking them for this high recognition, Dodik has emphasized that it is an honour both for him personally and for Republika Srpska. "This is an honour I accept with pride, but also with a promise that Republika Srpska will always, whenever possible, help its brothers in faith and blood, wherever they may live," Dodik said. Dodik also expressed his gratitude to the Self-Government of Serbs in Hungary and the Diocese of Buda for the privilege of being the first recipient of this newly established Order for Merits to the Serb People. The Saint Sava official cereminy is being held at one of the most representative venues in Budapest, the Vigadó Palace, and is attended by around 150 guests, including high-ranking officials of the Hungarian government. Saint Sava’s Day was observed by the Serb community in Hungary even during the communist period, while the central importance of Saint Sava was restored after the change in the social system and the establishment of an independent Serb school system in Hungary. The Self-Government of Serbs in Hungary considers the celebration of Saint Sava’s Day its most important ceremonial event. On January 14, 1840, the Principality of Serbia proclaimed Saint Sava’s Day a school patron saint’s day, a holiday in memory of the great Serb educator and protector of education, Saint Sava, the father of Serb statehood, the first Serb archbishop, and the founder of Serb diplomacy, literature, legislation, and healthcare.