Waqf Directorate Responds to Uk: Kalin Hadži Alija Mosque Archaeological Park is Not Your Idea, We Will Seek Mosque Construction

(Patria) - The Waqf Directorate of the Islamic Community in BiH today issued a rebuttal to the statement by the Prime Minister of the Sarajevo Canton (KS) Government, Nihad Uk, who announced the start of construction of the Archaeological Park located in the center of Sarajevo in his Facebook post yesterday, claiming it to be his initiative.

"Prime Minister Uk has misled the public in his statement, which was reported by numerous media outlets, by presenting completely false information related to the Kalin Hadži Alija Mosque Archaeological Park," stated the Waqf Directorate, adding that they wish to inform the public about the actual developments concerning the realization of this project, which is of great importance to the Islamic Community.

The Waqf Directorate reminds that for many years, together with other bodies and institutions of the Islamic Community, it has worked on protecting this site, even when they planned to build Prešeren Park and various other green areas at that location to completely conceal the remains of the mosque and graves.

Therefore, the Kalin Hadži Alija Mosque Archaeological Park is not at all Prime Minister Uk's idea, which can be verified in previously published articles where the Waqf Directorate informed the public in detail about the project and its significance.

Due to its specificity and importance, this project consisted of several phases. Its realization began in 2017 with archaeological research, in cooperation with the Waqf Directorate and the "Archaeologists' Society 1894".

"At that time, 40 graves were discovered, although the authorities assured us that there was no need for new archaeological research, as they claimed only four graves were discovered in the first research and that was all that was at that site, and that the other graves had been exhumed. We were persistent and finally received approval for new research. It was then that for the first time, all the devastation that had been done at this site in the previous political system could be seen," the Waqf Directorate's statement recalls.

After that, with the help of the Centar Sarajevo Municipality, the Waqf Directorate signed an agreement with the Institute for the Protection of Cultural, Historical, and Natural Heritage of KS for the development, first of a conceptual, and then of a main project for the conservation of the mosque remains, cemetery, and mekteb.

Funds for the conservation of the archaeological remains found at this site in 2018 were provided by the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), through the Waqf Directorate. TIKA visited the site that year and confirmed its readiness to finance the conservation.

Unfortunately, the building permit was not issued until 2023 due to delays in issuing permits for the relocation of cables that were laid across the mosque courtyard, so TIKA could not keep the funds secured all this time.

The Centar Municipality and the Waqf Directorate held numerous meetings with representatives of BH Telecom and Elektroprivreda BiH to relocate the lines that run over the mosque courtyard.

"The project that Prime Minister Uk is pompously announcing is, as can be concluded, a joint project of the Waqf Directorate and the Centar Municipality, and this is the second phase of the project for us. The third and final phase of the project will be the construction of the mosque that was on this site, in a form and dimensions that will be possible, considering that part of the mosque's foundation is now under a residential building," the Waqf Directorate states.

They remind once again that the struggle for this site has been ongoing for over 20 years and that such statements from the Prime Minister of the KS Government are somewhat surprising.

The Waqf Directorate thanks everyone who has contributed and is contributing to solving this problem, and emphasizes that this project is largely the result of the persistence of the Waqf Directorate and the Centar Municipality, as evidenced by the signed agreement. The Kalin Hadži Alija Mosque, or Čejirdžik Mosque, is an old Sarajevo mosque that stood at the corner of Branilaca Sarajeva and Kulovića streets from 1535 to 1947. Its founder and first mutawalli was Kalin hadži Alija himself.

The mosque's courtyard had two entrances, and a mekteb was built next to the mosque. In the courtyard, there was a stone fountain with a basin, and members of prominent Sarajevo families, as well as the daughter of the mosque's founder and the Kulović brothers, were buried there.

The mosque was demolished in 1947 when the socialist authorities built a park and a residential building (the current lamella) on that site, which housed civil servants and military officers. Later, the park was named after the Slovenian poet France Prešeren.

The intention of the Islamic Community was and remains to restore the mosque whose foundations were discovered, along with all accompanying facilities.

"The Waqf Directorate will follow further activities at this site with special attention and insist on the project to which all parties have given their consent, including the Commission for the Preservation of National Monuments," they stated in the announcement.