No Reactions from Republika Srpska to Chetniks in Višegrad

(Patria) - Only a few journalists and civil activists reacted to the gathering of Chetniks in Višegrad from Republika Srpska, an entity in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The president of SNSD and the Chairman of the Presidency of BiH, Milorad Dodik, has not commented on the parading of Chetniks in Višegrad, while opposition politicians from that entity have also failed to react.

Columnist Dragan Bursać, in his article “There will be hell and the bloody Drina again”, criticizes the Chetnik parading in eastern Bosnia, while blogger Srđan Puhalo cynically writes that the Chetnik parading in Višegrad is a performance “to scare Bosniaks, mess with Croats, and attract foreign investment.”

Members of the Ravna Gora Chetnik Movement in Višegrad marked the anniversary of the arrest of Chetnik General and World War II war criminal Dragoljub Draža Mihailović on Sunday. The Chetniks paraded in the center of Višegrad on Sunday morning, from where the song “There will be hell and the bloody Drina again, here come the Chetniks from the Serbian mountains” could be heard. 

SNSD spokesperson Radovan Kovačević condemned the Chetnik parading in Višegrad on Twitter, but referred to the entity of Republika Srpska as a state. 

“Regardless of all nuances, I cannot help but write that I am ashamed of the fact that any Chetniks are parading in my country, Republika Srpska,” Kovačević wrote.

Historian Milivoj Bešlin from Novi Sad told the Patria agency that there is no opposition in Republika Srpska in terms of an ideological concept, and that political parties outside of Dodik's SNSD cherish the same values that Dodik himself cherishes.

The US and British Embassies in BiH reacted, calling on institutions to “take the necessary steps, address these threats, and call those responsible to account.” Condemnations for spreading inter-ethnic hatred also came from the OHR and OSCE, as well as numerous political parties from the Federation of BiH.

The OHR announced on its official Twitter account that the OHR condemns the shameful events in Višegrad. They called on the competent institutions to investigate and take appropriate action against those responsible for hate speech. “The events in Višegrad have no place in BiH society; reconciliation is the only path to the future,” the OHR stated.