ROMIĆ: ATTACKS INDICATE SERBIAN ORTHODOX PEOPLE ARE NOT SAFE IN FBiH

BANJA LUKA, JULY 27 /SRNA/ – The increasingly frequent attacks on returnees and Serbian Orthodox Church /SOC/ facilities in the Federation of BiH /FBiH/ indicate a high level of insecurity for the Serbian Orthodox population living in that entity with the international community’s indifference being of particular concern, Marko Romić, the Religious Affairs Advisor to the Republika Srpska president, told SRNA.

Romić has warned that this is the harsh reality of Dayton-based BiH, which shows that the treatment of religious communities in the two entities is not equal.

"While religious buildings of the Islamic Community and the Catholic Church are respected in Republika Srpska, in FBiH we see frequent, almost regular, attacks on SOC religious sites," said Romić.

He stated that not a single major religious holiday goes by without some parish church or monastery being desecrated in the areas of Serbian Orthodox dioceses in FBiH.

"This points to great insecurity for the Serbian Orthodox people in FBiH, as well as the fact that returnees who decided to come back to their ancestral homes are not safe. That sends a message to Serbs in BiH that without Republika Srpska, as their protective shield, they cannot freely and without fear practice their faith," said Romić.

He has noted that attacks on SOC religious sites are a constant occurrence in FBiH, and expressed particular concern over the international community’s indifference.

"We are left only to keep pointing out to the international community that there are no such problems in Republika Srpska, while in FBiH those problems are being ignored. In Republika Srpska, Muslim and Catholic religious buildings are being restored, and attacks on those sites are very rare. When such incidents do happen, there is a serious, systemic response from the highest state authorities in Republika Srpska," Romić emphasized.

He has noted that such incidents do not go unnoticed in Republika Srpska, unlike what regularly happens in FBiH.

"There is no condemnation of the attacks either in the media or from the top officials of that entity," said Romić.