International Holocaust Remembrance Day without Dodik and Čović

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - A commemoration dedicated to January 27th, International Holocaust Remembrance Day, was held in Sarajevo today.

Members of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina Željko Komšić and Šefik Džaferović attended the commemoration, while the Chairman of the Presidency Milorad Dodik did not respond to the invitation of the Jewish Community in BiH.

The then member of the Presidency and president of HDZ BiH Dragan Čović also did not respond to the commemoration of the Holocaust victims in the past.

Komšić reminded that January 27th is observed throughout Europe, and today, 74 years later, "reminds us of the day in 1945 when the Red Army liberated seven and a half thousand prisoners left behind by the Nazis in the concentration camp 'Auschwitz'."

Unfortunately, the member of the Presidency added, what happened during the Nazi regime in World War II was not a lesson for some.

"We are witnessing that genocides and serious crimes that claimed many victims have occurred even in recent history. They are happening today, genocide was committed here in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Also, the fact that 74 years after the Holocaust, there are still political options in our country that do not renounce their Nazi heritage is deplorable. Thus, in Mostar, thanks to these policies, streets are named after Holocaust participants.

Therefore, for all these victims to have meaning, I want to believe that the memory of the suffering of the victims of 'Auschwitz', and all other victims of monstrous minds, will be a lesson to new generations to reject ideologies based on segregation, intolerance, disrespect, and indifference to the other and the different.

As part of modern civilization, we must not forget what happened; on the contrary, we have an even greater obligation to work on improving mutual relations and building a future in which the rule of law, moral values, the freedom of every individual, and empathy will be imperative. A future in which there will be no place for wars, extremism, mutual conflicts, and where every person will have the opportunity for a dignified life," Komšić concluded.