Defence of BiH - Igman 2019: 20,000 people expected to attend

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - Members of the Organizational Committee of the "Defence of BiH - Igman 2019" event announced the program at today's press conference, and thus all events and activities planned within this event, which will be held for the 19th time.

The central part of the "Defence of BiH - Igman 2019" event is planned for Friday, August 2nd. This year's traditional event will be held under the motto "Come and Witness", and according to the announcements of the deputy chairman of the committee and the Minister for Veterans' Affairs of Sarajevo Canton, Ismir Jusko, more than 20,000 people are expected to gather.

The Secretary General of the committee, Hamdija Hasanović, stated that this event will pay tribute to all the heroes who gave their lives for BiH, but at the same time enable our surviving defenders to meet and confirm to each other that they are still on the same path, the path of defending our only homeland.

"This event sends two messages, the first is that we never forget what we have been through, and the second is to send a message to the young generations to do their best and work in the future to ensure that such evil never happens again to anyone," said Minister Jusko.

He added that it is very important for all of us that young people attend these commemorations and thus learn about their history, "because it is the best teacher, especially when you follow it in the right way.".

"For me, it is devastating and tragic that you go to the Tunnel of Hope, which was the 'artery' for the city of Sarajevo, and for the whole of BiH, and there you meet a fourteen-year-old boy or girl from Germany, Italy, France,... who came to visit the tunnel, and our children living in the Sarajevo Canton at that age, with their schools, could not come to visit it," emphasized Minister Jusko.

He announced that the "Defence of BiH - Igman 2019" event will gather participants from all over the country, and thanked the Government of Sarajevo Canton for allocating additional funds to fully cover the financial construction.

Otherwise, on August 1st, at the Kovači Memorial Center, the Chairman of the Presidency of BiH, Željko Komšić, and the member of the Presidency of BiH, Šefik Džaferović, will attend the opening ceremony of the "Defence of BiH - Igman 2019" event. 

Members of the Presidency of BiH will lay flowers and pay tribute to the martyrs and fallen soldiers of the Army and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.