Open Letter to the Mayor of Prijedor Slobodan Javor: We Demand That July 20 Be Declared a Day of Mourning in Prijedor!

(Patria) - The Institute for Research on Genocide Canada (IGC) has sent an open letter to the Mayor of Prijedor, Slobodan Javor, demanding that he finally show a minimum of humanity and declare July 20 a Day of Mourning in the area of Prijedor for the civilian victims who are now only points in time and space where the criminal hand carried out its intentions.

On July 20, 2025, a collective funeral prayer will be held for seven identified victims from Prijedor.

"You have another opportunity on this important day for the culture of remembrance, for the victims, and thus for a better Prijedor, to send messages of peace, tolerance, and warning from Prijedor, a message that will show respect for the victims of genocide. Break the anti-civilizational tradition of the Prijedor municipal authorities, who have never publicly acknowledged the deeds of the then authorities and expressed repentance for the suffering endured by thousands of Bosniaks and Croats, and offered a hand of reconciliation and repentance.

We call on you to contribute to the common future of Prijedor based on truth and justice, based on recognition and repentance for the crime, and thus to the common future of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

We continue the international campaign to enable dignified remembrance and commemoration for the victims of genocide in Prijedor, as well as the erection of an adequate memorial, as a warning of the horrors of genocide. In cooperation with American and Canadian human rights and freedoms bodies and organizations, we continue to work so that the victims of genocide in Prijedor gain the right for the infamous concentration camps to be marked as memorial sites of Bosniaks and Croats in Prijedor, and that May 31 becomes a permanent date marking the white ribbons of Prijedor, and that July 20 is permanently declared a Day of Mourning in the city of Prijedor.

The culture of remembrance implies not only remembering the genocide but also actively fighting against genocide deniers, against the glorification of convicted war criminals, and the rewriting of historical, judicial, and scientific research facts, which, instead of denial, should be a path to catharsis and seeking forgiveness from the victim.

Mr. Mayor, you can give your personal contribution, as well as the contribution of the City Assembly, to the institutionalization of the culture of remembrance. It is a civilizational obligation and a human need to contribute to the development of a culture of remembrance for the victims of genocide. Now you have another opportunity for that," the letter states.