The opening ceremony of the Days of Srpska in Serbia event was held in Belgrade last night in the presence of the President of the Republic of Srpska, Milorad Dodik, the Serb member of the BiH Presidency, Željka Cvijanović, and the Prime Minister of Serbia, Ana Brnabić.

The event was opened by the President of the Republic of Srpska, Milorad Dodik, and the attendees included also the President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Srpska, Nenad Stevandić, and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Srpska, Radovan Višković.

The ceremony was attended by the highest representatives of the Republic of Srpska and Serbia, ministers in the governments of Serbia and Republic of Srpska, representatives of the Provincial Government of Vojvodina, army and police generals of the two countries, academics, prominent artists, businessmen and other dignitaries.

The Head of the Republic of Srpska Representative Office in Serbia, Mlađen Cicović, spoke at the gathering as the host of the event, and Titular Bishop of Jegra, Nektarije blessed the gathering on behalf of His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Porfirije, Prime Minister Ana Brnabić spoke on behalf of Serbia, followed by the Serb member of the BiH Presidency, Željka Cvijanović.

The ceremony at the National Theater began with the anthem of Serbia, Bože pravde, and that of the Republic of Srpska, Moja Republika.

The President of the Republic of Srpska, Milorad Dodik, opened Srpska Days in Serbia and said that this event went to show the proven thesis that Serbs were one people, one identity, one religion and one nation.

In his address, Dodik pointed out that Serbs were forced to be territorially separated only by a set of imposed circumstances throughout history.

‘And we are basically one, ‘the only’ as they say in our parts, the one for which we live, which we protect and the one which we will never relinquish. We are part of a unique Serbian people, which the greats in this area did not allow historically to integrate and properly take off, but rather tortured us’, said Dodik.

‘That is why this event is to talk about the fact that we are one nation. We do not persecute anyone, we do not want anything that is not ours, everyone is welcome to live with us’, said Dodik.

Dodik pointed out that today it was important for Serbs to turn to themselves, to be Serbs, to be Serbia, to be the Republic of Srpska, to live together, to be one, regardless of borders, and they could not and would not be deprived of that by anyone.

He thanked the leadership of Serbia and Serbian President, Aleksandar Vučić, for everything they had done in the last 10 years, as it had been very difficult to work in the circumstances of Serbia’s burden related to Kosovo, and some wanting it to be weak and everyone in Srpska wanting a strong Serbia.

Speaking about Serbia’s serious investments in Srpska, Dodik said that there was no municipality in Srpska and no facility that did not bear the seal of Serbia.

‘There is no better way to connect, of course we will cheer for Serbia in everything, but we have to connect in life’, said Dodik.

At the opening of this event, Cicović reminded that this, the 11th year of Srpska Days in Serbia, was also the first step in the second decade of the Representation’s annual efforts to present the politics, economy, culture and art of the Republic of Srpska to Serbia in just seven days.

‘With the programs we have prepared, we want to send a clear message in the seven days of this year’s event that only through unity and sobornost can we preserve our identity, language and alphabet, culture, religion and tradition’, said Cicović.

Cicović stated that Serbian national creativity was a moral basis supporting the Serbian people to accept what is good and open from everything new in the modern world, that Serbian people cooperated with everyone who had good intentions, and rejected what went against its moral principles and interests of the people and the state.

‘Everything that is happening to us had essentially already happened and has been recounted in an artistic way in Serbian epic poetry. By understanding our tradition and national creativity, we understand and will understand our present and future’, noted Cicović.

The Prime Minister of Serbia, Ana Brnabić, said that since 2014, Serbia had invested more than 107 million euros in projects in the Republic of Srpska, announcing even larger investments in the future.

– Since 2014, when Aleksandar Vučić became the Prime Minister, and 2017, when he became the President of Serbia, 107 million euros have been invested in projects in Srpska – said Brnabić at Srpska Days in Serbia, where she spoke as an envoy of the Serbian President, Aleksandar Vučić.

She pointed out that events like this one aimed to further bring closer and strengthen the unbreakable ties of the Serbian people on both sides of the Drina.

– In those ties we invested a lot of energy, knowledge, money and we will try to invest even more in the future – said Brnabić, noting that Vučić had invested more than anyone else in the Serbian people and said that Serbia was always there for all Serbs.

The artistic part showed the importance and beauty of the Serbian national identity through history, poetry and, above all, folk music and dance. Performers included Venac ensemble from Gračanica, Kolo national ensemble, Una Saga Serbica dance company and choir of the Children’s Cultural Center Belgrade.

The programs within the event will continue today in Belgrade and Novi Sad, and in the following days in Kragujevac, Kraljevo, Zrenjanin, Kruševac, Subotica, Sombor, Čačak and Bajina Bašta.

The event organized by the Republic of Srpska Representation in Serbia will be closed on Tuesday, 26 September, at the National Theater in Niš.

Source: RTRS – SRNA – Glas Srpske

Photo: Srna