BISHOP SERGIJE: STRENGTH IS IN OUR REMEMBRANCE

BOSANSKI PETROVAC, AUGUST 7 /SRNA/ – His Eminence Bishop of Bihać and Petrovac Sergije has said today in Janjila, where Croatian aviation bombed a convoy of Serb refugees on the Petrovačka Road, that the bombs which sowed death at that time serve as a reminder that evil should not be forgotten, because strength lies in remembrance.

The bishop emphasized that the Petrovačka Road is a reminder, and pointed out that it is impossible to comprehend the re-Ustashization of Croatia and the praise of Ustasha, as well as the fact that this crime, which occurred during the Operation Storm, is deliberately celebrated in that country.

"At this terrible place, children, the elderly, and adults perished. They thought they were walking toward freedom, but a criminal hand struck them in an instant. They never saw the faces of their killers, but they saw the convoy of the unfortunate. Only prayer can heal the wound that has been bleeding for three decades," said the bishop after the memorial service for the victims.

He emphasized that a great crime was committed here 30 years ago against the people of Dalmatia and Lika.

"Our weapon is prayer, a cry to God. Through prayer, we remind ourselves and others that we are obligated to remember. This is the road of martyrs so that we remember them and call them through prayer," said the bishop.

He has added that Croatia is fully aware of sliding into a dark past, and that all those who celebrate Operation Storm are consciously celebrating the crime committed on the Petrovačka Road.

"It is important that we never forget God within ourselves, neither when it is good nor when we suffer. Our memory will be our revenge, and eternal remembrance will be an unquenchable candle before the Lord. Our victory is in our faith. Remembrance is our strength," concluded Bishop Sergije.

A memorial service was held in Janjila near Bosanski Petrovac for the Serbs who perished in the refugee convoy, which was bombed by the Croatian army in 1995 during the criminal Operation Storm, which killed around 2,000 people and expelled more than 220,000 Serbs from their ancestral homes.