99th anniversary of Alija Izetbegović's birth marked: Forces attacking Bosnia will tire, but we will not

(Patria) - By laying flowers and reciting Fatiha at the Kovači Martyrs' Cemetery in Sarajevo today, the 99th anniversary of the birth of the first president of the Presidency of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Alija Izetbegović, was marked.

Flowers were laid at Kovači by the president of the Party of Democratic Action (SDA), Bakir Izetbegović, as well as other delegations and officials.

After laying flowers, an Academy was organized by the SDA Youth Association and the SDA Political Academy, where Izetbegović spoke, among others.

He reiterated that the late Alija would probably not be pleased to see how his birthdays are being celebrated.

"We too would be gathering unnecessarily if it were just for the sake of it. I think these gatherings have a purpose, something we need. He passed away two decades ago, but he is still politically alive. Without exaggeration, he was a successful leader and politician. He was an outsider, a man who came without experience," Izetbegović began.

He added that the late Alija was an outsider in the state and military system.

"We cannot say that we defeated the armies that came from three sides; we simply did not lose. The late Alija was the head and the pinnacle of the renewal movement concerning Bosniaks and the patriotic BH front. All his enemies are also our enemies. Alija just kept moving forward and took blows before the rest of us," Izetbegović said.

He reminded that the late Alija was attacked in various ways.

"They tried to physically eliminate him. Even after he died, they attacked his grave. In essence, every attack on Alija was driven by baseless hatred and absolute lies. Communists thought that truth is created and what you convince people of. They were the first great enemies of the late Alija; the next were Greater Serbian nationalists who, in accordance with their leader's doctrine, believed that salvation lies in lies," he stated.