Husić: We ask the state not to give 'Dimitrije Grudić' a weapon to shoot at miners

(Patria) - The Union of Independent Mine Workers' Unions of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina will officially respond early next week to the content of the press release sent last night by the Public Enterprise Elektroprivreda BiH, but its content "points to the revival of Dimitrije Grudić" - said the president of the SSSRRFBiH, Sinan Husić.

He emphasizes that he does not even want to mention the name of "that new Dimitrije Grudić", but calls on the state to stop him and "not give him a weapon to shoot at miners", as the then district chief of Tuzla did in December 1920, by sending armed gendarmes to arrest the miners of Kreka and suppress the rebellion in the village of Husino, thus triggering the famous "Husino Rebellion".

- Since the time of Dimitrije Grudić, no one has expressed such an attitude towards miners and the mining profession as was stated in this press release. It is evident that chaos and disaster are being sought, but not by the miners and unions, but by those we prevented from subjugating and devastating what remains of the mines in the EPBiH Concern - Husić emphasizes.

The unions and miners, he notes, only demanded the implementation of the provisions of the Agreement, signed on July 3, between the Dependent Company Brown Coal Mines Zenica and the Union, so that the Zenica miners would also receive their salary for June and a hot meal for May.

This was also the condition for ending the workers' disobedience and the departure of a group of about 30 Zenica miners, who spent from the second shift on Tuesday until Thursday in the "Raspotočje" pit, and left the pit only after the FBiH Government, following a meeting with union leaders on Thursday, sent a request to JP EPBiH to act according to the provisions of the agreement and pay the salaries to the Zenica miners as well.

- The agreement was created by the first associate for mining of "Dimitrije Grudić", and the Union agreed and signed it, although the people who were in workers' disobedience had their salaries reduced for the days they did not work. We wonder how the mentioned agreement applied to the payment of the May salary, but did not apply to the June salary, which was also covered by that agreement - Husić reminds.

He emphasizes that it is high time for the state to react and not allow the situation to escalate further, but not because of the miners.

- The state must choose between the miners, these unions, and "Dimitrije Grudić". If they choose "Dimitrije Grudić", we will forgive them, but we ask them not to give him a weapon to shoot at us. The views expressed in the press release border on a manic state, and it is high time for state institutions to stop him. No one can prevent us from fighting for our rights, and we will hold a peaceful and dignified protest in front of the JP EPBiH building on Tuesday, August 1, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. - Husić announced.

He recalled that the leadership of the governing company JP EPBiH has tried in recent years to stop the union's activities by filing criminal charges against him, President Sinan Husić, as well as the president of the Independent Union of the Kreka Mine from Tuzla, Zuhdija Tokić, who were the most vocal in advocating for an increase in the price of coal that mines from that concern sell to EPBiH.

The unions, he adds, will not give up on that demand, because the current price of coal that JP EPBiH pays to the mines represents a pure loss for the mines.