GAGIĆ: ONLY RELIGIOUS CEREMONY ACCEPTABLE IN MODRAN; LAW ON CEMETERIES MUST BE ADOPTED URGENTLY

DERVENTA, MARCH 17 /SRNA/ - A religious ceremony in Modran near Derventa is acceptable to the Veterans’ Organization of Republika Srpska /BORS/, but the lineup of paramilitary units of the Croatian Defense Council /HVO/ is not, and they demand that it be banned.

They also call for the adoption of a law on cemeteries so that a monument in the shape of the Ustasha letter “U” could be removed from that location. The chairman of the presidency of BORS, Milovan Gagić, told reporters after the emergency session that lighting candles and laying wreaths are acceptable, but that the lineup of units and the display of insignia and flags under which Serbs were killed in the last war must be prevented. “We demand that a law on cemeteries be adopted under an urgent procedure, and that local communities carry out the procedure to remove those memorials. We have been waiting 18 years for the monument in Modran to be demolished; that is too long, and we will not wait much longer. If this is not done, we will be forced to take radical steps,” Gagić said. The Minister of Labor, War Veterans’ and Disabled Persons' Protection, Radan Ostojić, stated that the emergency session of BORS had been convened precisely because of the announced event in Modran, adding that the activities of his Ministry and the Ministry of Interior of Republika Srpska will continue. Ostojić reiterated that everything that is allowed to Serbs in the Federation of BiH when it comes to commemorating important dates should also be allowed to others. “That means a dignified visit without any symbols or insignia, lighting candles, laying wreaths, and addressing the media, and that’s it. All of that is allowed to us, so it should be allowed to them as well. Nothing else is acceptable,” Ostojić emphasized. According to him, any glorification of Ustashism and symbolism from the NDH, and any insult to the victims of genocide from the Second World War and the last war, must be banned, not only formally, but also effectively prevented. Ostojić emphasized that what happened in previous years will not happen again. He noted that BORS had already initiated the adoption of a new law on cemeteries last year and believes that, through the resolution adopted today by the National Assembly of Republika Srpska, the initiative will be strengthened and that the law will be adopted in the near future, and that the disputed monument in Derventa will be removed. He concluded that it is a disgrace that such monuments in the shape of the letter “U” exist in the heart of Republika Srpska, and that it is possible they do not even exist in Croatia.