Spahić: After the attack on Vučić in Srebrenica on July 11, life for returnees in RS is increasingly difficult

After the attack on Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić in Srebrenica on July 11, Bosniaks in the BiH entity of Republika Srpska are finding it increasingly difficult – Jasmin Spahić, president of Merhamet in Bosanska Dubica, tells the BiH news agency Patria.
He recalled the attacks on Bosniak returnees in Prijedor several weeks ago, earlier in Bratunac, as well as the increasingly frequent desecration of Bosniak property and religious buildings.

Every escalation of the political situation in BiH, says Spahić, directly affects the lives of Bosniak and Croat returnees in Republika Srpska. He warns that the hatred shown towards returnees by younger generations of Serbs is particularly concerning, even though it was expected that new generations could bring long-awaited reconciliation to these areas.

In an attempt to improve the position of returnees in RS, Merhamet from Bosanska Dubica, with the help of the OSCE, will hold a conference on September 21 this year in Bosanska Dubica to discuss the position of returnees in this part of BiH. In addition to experts in this field, members of the RS National Assembly, the Minister of Security in the RS Government, and religious leaders will be invited to the conference.
Besides Bosanska Dubica, other local communities – Prijedor, Bosanska Gradiška, and Bosanski Novi – are also included in the project.

- You know, I think the International Community made a wrong assessment when they thought that the authorities in RS could ensure a favorable life for returnees on their own. So far, it has been proven countless times that this was a wrong move. The authorities in RS are still not able to ensure a peaceful life for everyone in this part of BiH - says Spahić, adding that Bosniaks in RS are discriminated against both in employment and in the exercise of other basic civil rights.

And, he notes, all this causes the emigration of Bosniaks to the Federation of BiH or even abroad, writes Patria.