RS Ministry of Interior bans peaceful gathering of Ozren residents in Banja Luka: 'A shameful attempt to tarnish our legitimate fight for a healthy environment'

(Patria) - The Ministry of Interior (MUP) of Republika Srpska has banned a peaceful gathering of citizens announced for tomorrow in Banja Luka by the Ecological Association "Ozrenski studenac" from Petrovo.

The gathering was supposed to be held in front of the National Assembly of Republika Srpska with the aim of reminding the competent institutions of the need to support the already initiated, but currently halted, procedures for declaring Mount Ozren a national park.

Facsimile of the MUP of RS decision (1)

- I am deeply disturbed by the fact that the reasoning for the ban vaguely states that among the association's members there are individuals who could be 'of interest from the aspect of security threats', without a single concrete name, evidence, or explanation.

This is practically a police verdict without a court, and we consider such reasoning unacceptable in a democratic society.

This is truly a shameful attempt to tarnish all Ozren residents and our legitimate fight for a healthy environment - stated the president of the Local Community Sočkovac, Slobodan Sarić.

Slobodan Sarić

Otherwise, the residents of the Local Community Sočkovac in the Petrovo municipality, in a referendum held yesterday, voted 98% against the planned geological surveys aimed at opening a heavy metal mine in this area.

The local population has been clearly stating for many years that they do not want geological surveys or heavy metal mines under any circumstances, but rather the declaration of Mount Ozren as a national park, in accordance with the Spatial Plan of Republika Srpska.

Despite the clear stance of the residents, the company "Lykos Balkan Metals" from Bijeljina announced the start of exploration work in Sočkovac as early as Friday, which further increased the unrest among the population on Ozren.

Facsimile of the MUP of RS decision (2)

Representatives of ecological associations from Petrovo and Doboj state that they will not give up the fight for a healthy environment, nor the fight for basic human rights, which, in their opinion, are further threatened by this ban on peaceful assembly.

- Given that after a series of pressures, they are now also challenging our basic human rights, we have nothing left but to form a kind of informal crisis headquarters on Ozren that will coordinate activities between concerned citizens, local communities, associations, and the Municipality of Petrovo, which has clearly sided with its citizens, in the coming period.

We will respond to the increasingly evident repression against the population of Ozren in a civic, peaceful, and lawful manner - stated the president of the Ecological Association "Gostilj - Ozren", Zoran Poljašević.