The Serb member and chairman of the Presidency of BiH, Milorad Dodik, noted in a conversation with Nobel laureate Peter Handke that his visit to the Republic of Srpska was of great importance and that Serbian people highly appreciated the name and work of this great Nobel laureate. Dodik emphasized that Handke’s literary opus was of exceptional value and his word was not poisoned by hatred, but by justice, truth and freedom.

The President of the Republic of Srpska, Želјka Cvijanović, emphasized that Handke, in addition to being a great writer, was also a great humanist and a fighter for truth and justice.

As a great master storyteller, Handke has spent his life describing the lives of ordinary people, believing elation to be the greatest human power. Always against the war, since the beginning of his career in the seventies, never classic and always sufficiently in the human theme, the great Nobel laureate spoke today with officials of the Republic of Srpska, Serbian director Emir Kusturica and representatives of the academic community about the past, the present times in which we live affected by the coronavirus pandemic, but also stories about the future.

The President of the Republic of Srpska presented Handke with the Order of the Republic of Srpska sash ribbon for exceptional work and merits in the field of cultural and spiritual development, as well as for a special contribution to the development and strengthening of overall relations with the Republic of Srpska.

After his stay in Banja Luka, Handke will visit Andrićgrad together with Dodik and Kusturica, where the Andrić Institute will present him with the Ivo Andrić Grand Prize. The award ceremony will be followed by a roundtable where director Emir Kusturica, eminent academicians and writers will talk about the literary work and significance of Peter Handke’s work.

Handke won the Ivo Andrić Grand Prize of the Andrić Institute in Andrićgrad for the best book published in Serbia or Republic of Srpska during 2020, The Second Sword - a May Story. This award is presented on Saint Sava Day in Andrićgrad, but this year it was postponed due to the epidemiological situation.

Earlier today, the Nobel laureate was welcomed at the Banja Luka airport in Mahovljani by the celebrated Serbian and world director Emir Kusturica and advisor to the Serb member and chairman of BiH Presidency, Pero Simić.

Source: RTRS-SRNA

Photo: SINIŠA PAŠALIĆ/RAS SRBIJA