Feraget: Dragičević and Memić cases in the European Commission's September report

BANJA LUKA, (Patria) - The citizens' association "Put Pravde" from Banja Luka organized the second international conference titled: "Discrimination, the role of non-governmental organizations and the importance of media in civic activism", which discussed the violation of human rights and freedoms during the 900-day fight for truth regarding the death of David Dragičević.

For more than 900 days, people have been seeking clarification of the murder of David Dragičević. In these two and a half years, citizens supporting the family of the murdered student have faced various forms of discrimination, human rights violations, and threats to their freedom.

Several of them have so far received dozens of criminal charges, have been identified by the police during gatherings in front of the Temple of Christ the Saviour, and have often been detained under the pretext of disturbing public order and peace. Such is the case with activist Sofija Grmuša from the informal group "Justice for David".

"It is difficult to endure being arrested while you are seeking truth and justice, that is, seeking for David Dragičević's murderers to be brought to justice and for us to move freely and normally in this city, as we could before. I know we are on the right path, that we are not doing anything wrong, and that they have no reason to arrest us and persecute us," says Grmuša.

The discrimination against citizens who want the truth about David's death to be revealed has also been partly fueled by the reporting of certain media outlets, says journalist and conference organizer Miljan Kovač.

Activists from the informal group "Justice for David" have been portrayed as "bad guys", which has also affected the behavior of the police and other institutions. Consequently, society as a whole suffers the consequences, emphasizes Kovač.

"I think this society, this entire society is under great pressure. Both this minority that has stood up to fight against that pressure, and those who are silent. And those who are silent are silent out of fear. Because they are conditioned by their jobs, they fear for the safety of their children. We live in a society where children are killed. Here in Sarajevo and in Banja Luka, and these murders are not being resolved," adds the president of the citizens' association "Put Pravde" from Banja Luka, Miljan Kovač.

The investigation into David's death is still ongoing. At least, that is what the prosecution says for now. However, the lawyer for the Dragičević family, Ifet Feraget, believes that the cases of the murders of David Dragičević and Dženan Memić in Sarajevo have initiated and changed society in BiH. The international community is also aware of this, Feraget points out.

"There is no investigation into the murder of David Dragičević. Just as there is no investigation into the murder of Dženan Memić. But in the European Commission's agenda, these two cases will be included in this September report. They directly affect the most important of the 14 priorities that are crucial for BiH's membership in the EU, and it is quite certain that without resolving these cases, BiH will not receive candidate status," says Feraget.

He believes that the international community would lose its credibility in BiH with any eventual concessions.

Institutions, led by judges, police officers, and all those paid to deal with human rights issues, did not take them into account in the Dragičević case, which directly led to the discrimination we are witnessing, and in which it is even forbidden to raise a hand in protest, it was concluded at the conference.

(BNTV)