Mosque in Donje Selo not built on Croatian, but on Waqf land

(Patria) - One of the eight heirs of the Catholic Trlin family, originally from Konjic, residing in Croatia, is not giving up on spreading lies and inciting national and religious hatred, discord, and intolerance among the constituent peoples with his inaccurate and untrue claims regarding the mosque built in the settlement of Donje Selo in Konjic, announced the Majlis of the Islamic Community (MIZ) Konjic.

The Majlis states in its announcement that the campaign around this case is not subsiding, and that media outlets and portals are once again rushing to report vile lies, without any sense of verifying the information.

"The Klix portal published a new article titled 'Croatian family Trlin does not give up on demolishing the mosque in Konjic, seeking international assistance', although the mentioned media outlet sought a statement from representatives of MIZ Konjic and is aware of the facts concerning the mentioned case," emphasized the Majlis.

They warned that the media, especially "Večernji list", which initiated the campaign and published the article "Trlin family seeks demolition of mosque on their land", sensationally and tendentiously want to cover up the real motive of the campaign with lies: Everything is fine, but the problem is that a mosque was built on that land.

"The Majlis of the Islamic Community Konjic built the mosque on its land in 2017, respecting all legally prescribed procedures. Based on a notarized sales contract, Žaklina Tadić, as the seller, sold the property to the buyer Hamo Masleša, and Hamo Masleša gifted it to the Islamic Community in BiH, the Majlis of the Islamic Community Konjic, on which the mosque was later built," the Majlis Konjic reminds.

They also state that the subject of the sales contract, i.e., the gift of the disputed properties, are properties that, at the time of concluding the sales contract, were registered as the land-registry ownership of the seller Žaklina Tadić, which was not disputed until the conclusion of the relevant contracts.

The ownership status was not disputed even at the time when the buyer, based on the concluded contracts, obtained the registration of ownership in his name, and thus legally, i.e., based on a valid legal transaction, acquired ownership of the disputed properties. The plaintiffs only initiated legal proceedings after the sale and registration in the name of the buyer, i.e., the donee, and the commencement of construction, seeking to establish their co-ownership shares.

"Zvonimir Trlin and others filed a lawsuit in August 2017 against Žaklina Tadić, the Majlis of the Islamic Community Konjic, and Hamo Masleša, seeking to annul the contract, citing co-ownership rights over the disputed parcel, although the papers during the conclusion of the sales contract were 'clean as a whistle', as determined by all relevant institutions.

The plaintiff Zvonimir Trlin did not renounce his co-ownership rights to the part of the property that Žaklina Tadić sold by sales contract for the amount of 20,000.00 KM, so he is entitled to a portion of the value of the disputed property proportional to his co-ownership share of 1/8, which amounts to 2,500.00 KM, which Žaklina Tadić owes him," the statement explains.

The Majlis of the Islamic Community Konjic reiterates that the mosque in Donje Selo was not built on land owned by Croats, but rather through the custom of donating land (by benefactors) for such a purpose.

Therefore, the Majlis of the Islamic Community Konjic built a religious facility on its land, on land that the previous owner legally purchased for the amount of 20,000.00 KM, and then, after a year and a half, gifted to the Majlis of the Islamic Community Konjic. All necessary permits were obtained from the competent authorities for the construction of the mosque in the settlement of Donje Selo.

"Due to defamation and damage to reputation caused by presenting untrue facts, the Majlis of the Islamic Community Konjic has filed a lawsuit with the Court against Večernji list and Zvonimir Trlin. The Majlis of the Islamic Community Konjic remains open and available to all journalists interested in the truth and who adhere to the ethical codes of journalism for objective reporting," the statement concludes.