Emotional Letter from Quarantine in Bjelave: Mlinarević Showed the True Face of Honorable People from Herzegovina

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - A letter was sent to the news agency Patria from the quarantine in Bjelave, which we publish without editorial intervention, proving that in bad and difficult times people most often show their true face.

„I kindly ask you to publish this letter of mine on your esteemed portal in its entirety or at least in the part that shows that there is something positive in these bad times.
Namely, I have been tasked by 15 citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina (from the RS and the FBiH) to sincerely thank and commend the actions of, first and foremost, the employees of the BiH Embassy in the Czech Republic, and then especially our Ambassador, Mrs. Martina Mlinarević.

On April 17, 2020, we, as citizens of BiH, were transported from the Czech Republic to BiH. This transport in itself might not have been so significant if the situation were not what it is. Namely, a certain number of passengers had been without adequate accommodation for some time, even on the street, and some passengers did not even have money for tickets. The cost of transport for 15 people was over 3,000 euros, of which we passengers paid 50 euros each. The bus had to be large due to the 2-meter distance between passengers.

What the esteemed Ambassador Mlinarević proved is that if in bad times you give power to a bad person, they become even worse, but if you give power to a good person, they become even better. The Ambassador proved the latter.

She secured transport through Austria, Slovenia, and Croatia without any delays. She secured the money to pay for the transport, and I saw with my own eyes that she took money (120 euros) from her wallet and gave it to the driver for the tickets of two passengers. She personally came, and in her own private vehicle with BiH license plates, to see us off and spoke with each of us. To our surprise, she took out from her car packages of food that she had prepared with the embassy employees, who had bought the food with their own money.

During the trip, she and Ivan from the embassy called us a dozen times. We traveled during the night, so the calls came even at two o'clock after midnight. They did this even when they learned that we had entered BiH, and only then did they inform the bus drivers that they could return to the Czech Republic. The calls continued until the moment we informed them that we had arrived at our places of residence and in quarantine. They also called the Civil Protection headquarters and expedited our transport due to the wait at the Gradiška border crossing. Neither I nor the others have experienced such responsibility and care in the last dozen years. We are endlessly grateful to the embassy staff and Martina Mlinarević.

We agreed that we do not want to interfere in politics and the moves of our politicians, but on our own behalf and on behalf of all passengers from the Czech Republic, we want to say that this woman is the true face of honest and honorable people from our Herzegovina, the true face of a true Croat woman, and that instead of burning dolls with her likeness, they should appreciate the deeds and moves she makes, which prove that she is, above all, a good person with a big heart. Once again, on behalf of the passengers, THANK YOU AMBASSADOR MARTINA“, it is stated in the letter signed by Anes Čengić from the quarantine in Bjelave.