White Ribbon Day commemoration ceremony was held in Bosnia and Herzegovina

A commemoration ceremony was held on the White Ribbon Day, organized for 3,176 civilians who were massacred by the Serbs in 1992, when the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina began, in and around the city of Prijedor, after they were identified with the white ribbons they tied on their arms and the white sheets they hung in their homes.

As part of the White Ribbon Day events that have been held in Bosnia and Herzegovina since 2012, commemoration programs were organized throughout the country, especially in Prijedor.

The crowd gathered in Prijedor carried 102 roses in their hands, representing the 102 children killed 32 years ago, and called for the planned monument for children to be built as soon as possible.

Fikret Bacic, a member of the Association of Families of the Murdered Children in Prijedor, said in his statement that they were making progress on the documents for the construction of the monument, but the newly elected mayor did not meet with them, so the work stopped.

Addressing the city administration, Bacic said, “Mayor, imagine that you are in my place. We demand the construction of a monument for 102 children for 10 years. No child should die before their parents. What happened should not be repeated, this monument should be built so that no child is killed again in Prijedor.” It needs to be done.” said.

Vahida Duratovic also stated that she lost her 15-year-old son and wanted there to be a monument that she could visit throughout her life.

Hajrudin Puvacic said that they were pleased that the White Ribbon Day was not forgotten, but the participation in the ceremonies was low due to the small number of Bosnians in Prijedor.

Children killed by Israel in Gaza were also commemorated

Nihad Mehadzic, who lost many members of his family in the war, stated that although years have passed since the incident, they feel the same sadness every year.

Stating that everyone who has children can empathize with them, Mehadzic said, “Even today, we live together, I have friends and acquaintances, we are on good terms with ordinary people, the thing that brings evil to all of us is politics. What is important for us is that we can commemorate the victims, purify ourselves from all national, religious and political elements and “To show that we can make everyone in Prijedor empathize with each other,” he said.

Edin Ramulic from the “Because I Care Too” initiative, which organized the event, noted that the municipality prevented them from building the monument.

Ramulic said that the city administration did not take into account the requests from national and international institutions.

Members of the “Because I Care Too” initiative stated that they condemned the crimes committed in Gaza, reminding that Israel massacred Palestinian children.

As part of the ceremonies, white sheets were hung on some buildings in the capital Sarajevo.

Is Prijedor not old?

In March 1992, when the war had just begun in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbian origin Simo Drljaca, who was appointed head of the State Security Agency (UDBA) in the former Yugoslavia, armed 1775 Serbs serving in 13 police stations in Prijedor.

On the night of April 29, Serbian troops captured the city of Prijedor, whose population was mostly Bosniak at that time. Heavily armed Serbian troops attacked villages around Prijedor on 23 May 1992. 3,176 civilians, including 102 children, lost their lives in the massacre in Prijedor and its surroundings.

In an announcement made on local radio on May 31, 1992, Serbs instructed “non-Serbs to hang white sheets on the windows of their houses and to tie white ribbons on their arms when going out.”

While non-Serbian civilians were identified using this method, those identified were taken to prison camps and subjected to massacres, torture and rape there.

Approximately 30 thousand civilians from Prijedor were held captive in concentration camps in Omarska, Keraterm, Kozarac, Trnopolje and Manjaca at that time. Tens of thousands of people were exiled from their homes.

May 31, when the announcement was made on the radio, is commemorated as “White Ribbon Day” in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and citizens wear white ribbons on their arms to show that they do not forget this day and the victims of the war.