BRANKO TUPANJAC: SOUL HAS NEVER LEFT HERZEGOVINA

In his SRNA interview, Tupanjac described how and why, after schooling in Bileća, Trebinje, Novi Sad, and later employment at the Trebinje-based “Tool Factory,” he decided to go to America and why he chose Chicago... He also announced that he intends to prepare more surprises in his homeland. “I hope I will accomplish that,” Tupanjac emphasized. Interview by: Nataša ČEREMIDŽIĆ

TREBINJE, NOVEMBER 22 /SRNA/ – Branko Tupanjac, a native of Bileća with a second home address in Chicago, a man who could claim multiple collective identities - Serb, Herzegovinian, Orthodox Christian, American - says of himself that he is a Serb. In an interview with SRNA, Tupanjac has emphasized that Serbs are a people who hate no one, and he agreed with the statement that defending Republika Srpska has never been easy, from its very creation until today. With a trembling, tearful voice, he pleaded with the peoples living in the former Yugoslavia to open their eyes and stop applauding the West, because, he said, the West destroyed Yugoslavia, and he fears they will cause more problems, stressing that Serb strength and unity bother many, as do people who fight for Serbdom, such as Milorad Dodik. “There are more Serbs in America who defend Serbdom, but as soon as you start standing out as a strong Serb, you immediately become a problem,” said Tupanjac, who has been a member of the Republika Srpska Senate since 2009, for whom, as he says, Republika Srpska is extremely important, just as Serbia is. “Montenegro is important to me too, and I would be an idiot if I didn’t say that BiH is also important to me. I consider it one and the same people, separated from the outside,” Tupanjac emphasized, adding that everything coming from the West is upside down. BiH PROTECTORATE RISKY FOR INVESTMENT, WHICH HAS GREATLY HARMED REPUBLIKA SRPSKA Tupanjac says BiH today is a protectorate, and in such a situation, one cannot speak of statehood or expect investment. “No one wants to invest where the ground or political situation is unstable. BiH is in a very difficult situation. No one wants to put their money and effort into unstable countries,” Tupanjac said, noting that this causes great damage to Republika Srpska. MILORAD DODIK WAS NOT PROBLEM FOR AMERICA, BUT FOR CERTAIN POLICIES IN BiH OR EUROPE Speaking about the fact that the USA, the world’s largest power with undeniable global influence, lifted sanctions on Dodik, while some smaller countries with no global impact did not, Tupanjac said that the sanctions were not initiated in America. “Within America, in politics, there are people who can be bought, and I assume that was the case during Joe Biden’s time. America didn’t have a problem with Milorad Dodik, he was a problem for some political circles here in BiH or in Europe,” Tupanjac said. He emphasized that current U.S. President Donald Trump is a positive figure and views global politics differently from others. According to him, there are many successful and influential Serbs in the U.S. who can impact American policy toward Serb states and people, but more unity is needed for their influence to grow. “America is the country that calls the shots in the world, and us not having greater influence there is a shame,” says Tupanjac. THE WEST – THE CAUSE OF THE FALL OF YUGOSLAVIA Tupanjac says the West has no good intentions for the peoples of this region and sees this territory only as suitable ground for destruction. “It saddens me that people still applaud the West. I’ll probably die feeling regret,” Tupanjac said. Recalling the Yugoslavia he left 60 years ago, whem he left for the USA, Tupanjac said it was a progressive and in many ways leading country. “It had an education system we could all be proud of, a culture, an industry It had an army, and most importantly, it had a united people,” he said. What he blames the communist state for, he added, was its interference with the church, farmers, and small private businesses. “If not for that, it would never have collapsed. Yugoslavia did not collapse from inside. I know that because I observed it from the outside. It collapsed due to the West. The West crushed us, destroyed us, and dragged us into war,” Tupanjac said. He explained that he left for America while Yugoslavia still existed. “At that time, we often identified as Yugoslavs. Even now, when I meet someone older from another former Yugoslav republic, I sometimes say I’m Yugoslav, and many respond ‘Tito’,” Tupanjac said. He emphasized that the peoples of the former Yugoslavia pay a high price for Western policies and fears that they may again be led into trouble. JOVAN DUČIĆ – RETURN TO TREBINJE Tupanjac also spoke about fulfilling his greatest vow- the construction of the Herzegovinian Gračanica church in Trebinje, thus fulfilling the wish of Jovan Dučić to rest in his homeland. “You know, Serbs like to defy. When I was a child and first heard of Jovan Dučić, I asked why he was banned. Nobody could give me an answer, and I wanted to know everything. When I came to America, the first thing I asked was where Jovan Dučić was buried, and I found his grave. I read a lot about him and knew he wanted to be buried on a small hill near Trebinje,” Tupanjac recalled. Tuapanjac said he never believed that the day would come when Dučić’s remains would be transferred. At the Congress of Serbian Unity in Cleveland, held in September 1999, he announced his willingness to fund the construction of the church in Trebinje. He said he had only one condition – that no one interfere with the work. “I said I would complete it. We made an agreement, preparations took two or three months, and we started at the end of February 2000, everything was finished by October,” Tupanjac recalled, adding that he paid attention even to the smallest details, including building restrooms for visitors. When he learned that Dučić had never visited Russia or Montenegro but had wished to, Tupanjac arranged for the coffin, on its way from America, to be taken through Moscow, Belgrade, and Podgorica, and then via Nikšić to Trebinje. “Many people from America came to escort him. People in Belgrade welcomed us, and I thought, ‘What are we going to do in Herzegovina?’ After such a welcome, I worried we couldn’t match it at home. The welcome in Podgorica was also incredible, the same in Danilovgrad. We stopped in Nikšić, 20 to 30 thousand people. I was convinced we would embarrass ourselves in Trebinje,” Tupanjac said, voice trembling, adding proudly that the most magnificent welcome was indeed in Trebinje People descended with parachutes, an unforgettable sight, says Tupanjac, and when he saw our people, he said to himself, “Thank God, we did not embarrass ourselves”. SOUL HAS NEVER LEFT HERZEGOVINA EVEN AFTER MORE THAN HALF A CENTURY In SRNA interview, Tupanjac described how and why, after schooling in Bileća, Trebinje, Novi Sad, and later working in the “Tool Factory” in Trebinje, he decided to go to America and why he chose Chicago. “I had three patents here. I went to the U.S. Embassy in Belgrade and said I wanted to go to America. They asked me why. I told them I was young and wanted to prove myself. I told them about the patents, and after some time they called me back. They let me choose between five cities, and I chose Chicago because my father was there,” Tupanjac said. He planned to stay in America for three years and return, but that didn’t happen because he had excellent jobs, excellent opportunities, and enormous income. “Three or four times things got rough, but I never felt any recession. People were going bankrupt, but not me. In 2008 I had some problems, but I pulled through well. Now, however, there is a crisis,” Tupanjac said. He has announced his intent to prepare more surprises for his homeland. “I hope I will do that,” he emphasized. In the interview, available on SRNA’s video service and our YouTube channel, Branko Tupanjac said that even after 60 years, though physically in Chicago, his soul has never left Herzegovina.