OŠAP-GAĆANOVIĆ DENIES HELEZ'S CLAIMS ABOUT RESTORATION SUPERVISION OF THE ARMED FORCES HOUSE

EAST SARAJEVO, July 24 /SRNA/ – Member of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments Anđelina Ošap-Gaćanović stated for SRNA that this commission has no authority to supervise any works on monuments, and therefore is not overseeing the restoration of the Armed Forces House in Sarajevo.

Ošap-Gaćanović refuted claims by the Minister of Defense in the Council of Ministers, Zukan Helez, who, after visiting the Armed Forces House, said that the works were being carried out "under the strict supervision of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments to ensure the preservation of the original appearance". "I must deny this information given by the minister, as it is not true. The Commission does not carry out professional supervision of these works, nor is it familiar with the restoration project of this property, if such even exists, nor has it issued any opinion on the technical documentation or works," Ošap-Gaćanović stated. She explained that the commission has no authority to supervise any works on monuments, nor to engage in the implementation of works, or to "ensure the preservation of the original appearance". "The Commission's only authority is to grant national monument status, while the entity governments where the assets are, through their respective ministries, conduct concrete administrative, legal, and technical protection of the properties," Ošap-Gaćanović noted. She emphasized that the minister should know the constitutional structure of BiH and understand that culture is not a joint competence, and that the Commission is neither a cultural nor executive institution, nor a body for controlling construction processes on monuments. "Such gaffes and public statements create an image of the Commission as some sort of umbrella institution that controls all work related to monument restoration, and it is not," Ošap-Gaćanović pointed out.