The founding assembly of the Serbian Institute in Switzerland was held last weekend in the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Zurich, Switzerland. ‘The newly founded Serbian Institute in Switzerland is the outcome of a previously conceived idea to establish a scientific institution to deal with the matters of science, culture, history and art in the context of improving Serbian-Swiss relations. The Serbian Institute is legally independent, but it will develop in cooperation with the Eparchy of Austria and Switzerland, the Embassy of the Republic of Serbia in Switzerland and Matica Srpska from Novi Sad’, the Austria-Switzerland Eparchy pointed out. On this occasion, the president of Matica Srpska, prof. Dragan Stanić, sent a video-message, and academician from SANU, prof. Svetislav Božić, sent a message to all the attendees.

The Austrian-Swiss Bishop Andrej was elected as the honorary president of the board, Dr Joka Gordić as the president, in addition to five other members of the management board. The institute will have five departments, as follows: social and natural sciences, literature (language and lexicography), art (music, painting, sculpture, theater and folklore) and media.

‘Saša Bjelić, PhD, from Schaffhausen was elected by the management to act as the director of the institute, and create the concept of work in the next 6 months. Representatives of cultural associations: Prosvjeta – Dr Čedomir Papović, Serbian Cultural Association – Zvonko Jovanović, Miloš Damjanac, Boško Lopušina, as well as the president of the Folklore Association, Nenad Milenković, president of the Association of Serbian Students at the University of Zurich, Nikola Tomić, representatives of the Pensioners’ Association, Živorad Popov and Sreten Živković, and several of our lawyers and young scientists at institutes in Switzerland (who did not want their names published) supported this project with their presence’, the Eparchy statement added.

Srđa Trifković, professor, publicist, political advisor, analyst and historian, held a lecture on The need to establish scientific institutions in the diaspora in order to improve the position of the Serbian people in today’s world. In a statement for Novosti, he said that the activities of the Institute would focus on interacting with Swiss institutions – universities, media, scientific research institutions, state bodies, non-governmental sector, etc. – regarding life of the Serbian community in Switzerland, but also of the Serbian people in all its motherlands, including the historical context of geopolitical events as well as the current socio-political situation in the Western Balkans. The institute will develop a program to achieve these goals through publishing projects, conferences, lectures, appearances in the media and on social networks.

Source: RASEJANJE.INFO

Photo: FB Vladika Andrej