REPUBLIKA SRPSKA WAS HISTORICAL NECESSITY, NOT POLITICAL EXPERIMENT

PALE, JANUARY 8 /SRNA/ – Former Speaker of the National Assembly Dragan Kalinić stated for SRNA that Republika Srpska was not a political experiment but a historical decision that has justified its purpose to this day, which is why January 9 is more than just a holiday.

Kalinić stressed that Republika Srpska Day-January 9 is proof of permanence in these turbulent areas for full 34 years and expressed confidence that this will continue for many years to come. "For us who took part in the creation and defense of Republika Srpska more than 30 years ago, January 9 is far more than an ordinary date," Kalinić said. According to him, January 9 is, above all, a symbol of the then urgently needed and demonstrated in action, unity and cohesion of Serb political leaders and an awakened, nationally conscious people. "This day represented our historical response to attempts by political elites of the Muslim and Croat peoples to see a repetition of the tragic history of suffering from the last century and to deny us the right to freedom, the right to equality, the right to an equal and democratic life with the other two peoples in BiH, and ultimately the right to govern our own destiny and the future of our children," Kalinić pointed out. The former deputy of the Assembly of the Serb People in BiH pointed out that January 9 and the establishment of Republika Srpska in its full institutional capacity was an anti-war response to the increasingly imminent tragic conflict that followed the breakup of the former joint state of Yugoslavia. "We did not want war and were convinced that the creation of Republika Srpska was a sufficient political response by the Serbs in that former BiH to be left in peace and for everyone to go their own way, that is, to separate peacefully if the former joint life in that `Yugoslavia in miniature` had already become impossible," Kalinić stressed. However, he reminded that innocent Serb blood was shed on Sarajevo's Baščaršija on March 1, 1992, when the fuse of war was lit. Kalinić said it should not be forgotten that the Republika Srpska Army was formed only two and a half months later, when the organized defense of the Serb population and their homes began, followed by difficult months and years of struggle for sheer survival. He noted that throughout that entire period, both in government and in opposition in Republika Srpska, there was only one guiding idea - that during wartime and in times of hardship, Serbs must remain united around a shared national interest. "Even today, when many things are being reshaped in our region and on the geopolitical stage, our country and everything created from Dayton to this day can become prey to globalist power brokers and bargaining chips for domestic vassals if that supreme principle of our survival, contained in a single word - unity as the true guarantee of our freedom collapses," Kalinić warned. He stressed that Serbs are deeply mired in internal conflicts, that many have sold their souls to the "foreign devil," and that for a handful of euros they would throw everything down the river. "For all these reasons, January 9 serves as a kind of memento of what could have happened to the Serbs in BiH had all patriots not united in the Assembly of the Serb People in BiH and laid the foundations of our future — free, democratic Republika Srpska, welcoming to all people of good will regardless of faith or nationality," Kalinić assessed. He expressed confidence that, despite mostly ill-intentioned challenges from self-styled guardians from the opposition, the current leadership of Republika Srpska is succeeding in preserving the entity's self-sustainability on the social and economic fronts. "The narrative about the country's alleged isolation collapses in the face of the fact that we have managed to internationalize the issue of Republika Srpska, preserve good relations with Serbia, and that within the region we are, in a specific way, also a factor of peace and stability," Kalinić emphasized. He said he is certain that patriotically oriented voters will keep this in mind amid the continuing confusion surrounding the repeated early presidential elections. January 9 is celebrated as Republika Srpska Day because on that date in 1992 Republika Srpska was established under its original name, the Republic of the Serb People in BiH. Republika Srpska was founded by Serb deputies in the then Assembly of BiH after they were outvoted on key issues concerning the survival of Yugoslavia, while representatives of the other two peoples moved toward secession against the will of the Serbs, who had the status of a constituent people. The name Republic of the Serb People in BiH was used until February 28, 1992, when the first Constitution was proclaimed and the name was changed to the Serb Republic of BiH. That name remained in use until August 12, 1992, when it was replaced by Serb Republic. In September 1992, the entity adopted its current name - Republika Srpska. "The Hearth will Live on" is the slogan under which Republika Srpska Day, January 9, is being marked this year.