BOSNIĆ: CROATS HAVE TURNED GLORIFICATION OF USTASHISM INTO STATE POLICY

BELGRADE, FEBRUARY 17 /SRNA/ – The Head of the Movement of Krajina Serbs Mile Bosnić told SRNA that the glorification of Ustashism in Croatia has become state policy and that believing in a change of course is difficult.

"The glorification of the NDH and its leader Ante Pavelić, carried out by Homeland Movement MP Josip Dabro, singer Marko Perković Thompson and similar obscure figures in Croatia, will not stop," Bosnić believes.

Bosnić says it is hard to believe in a change of course, regardless of the pause following the fuss caused by the disgraceful song that Dabro sang in Komletinci near Vukovar, while two Croatian police officers from the orchestra played gaving him "thirds" in promoting Pavelić as the "leader of all Croats".

"In this whole story there is at least something, conditionally speaking, good, because it has proven that what Serbs in Krajina and Republika Srpska feel is indeed happening, namely that the state stands behind the glorification of Ustashism and Pavelić," Bosnić said.

He pointed out that this had previously been obscured by various narratives, but that Thompson's concerts, among which the key one was at the ceremony welcoming Croatian handball players in Zagreb, made it very clear to everyone that the Croatian Government and its Prime Minister Andrej Plenković directly stood behind it.

"However, with this scandal involving Dabro, it came back to them like a boomerang, because people in the world and Europe saw it somewhat differently and expressed reservations. After that, the Croats decided to ease off a bit," Bosnić stated.

According to him, "good cops" such as Croatian President Zoran Milanović entered the scene, sending the message that what they were doing was not good.

"In fact, it is just a performance to create a pause, because it has gone so far that it will no longer be possible to stop it," Bosnić assessed.

He believes that images such as children in kindergartens preparing for a Marko Perković Thompson concert show that this is the end of all hope that change could occur and that there is nothing beyond that.

"The church is also involved through religious education in schools and in other ways. They clearly show that this is state policy. The circle is closed – home, school, church, street!" Bosnić explained.

He emphasized that Dabro's explanation that he can sing whatever he wants in his own village street is unbelievable, because Serbs in Croatia are fined and imprisoned for a song about Jovan who had to leave Krajina, or for the song "Oj Krajino, tako si daleko".

"It turns out that this is not `our street` according to their standards. I believe that, despite everything that is happening, there will be no split within the Croatian government," Bosnić said.

He noted that everyone knows the positions of the Homeland Movement, a member of the ruling coalition, ranging from the message that Serbs cannot be in the Government to the claim that for them the NDH represents the fulfillment of a certain dream.

"When they connect that with the last war and Vukovar, it is a very clear policy and it is obvious where it is heading," Bosnić stated.

In his opinion, Serbs should no longer view this as a daily occurrence and react in that manner.

"Our response should be the adoption of a resolution on the genocide committed by the NDH against Serbs," Bosnić said.

Media in Croatia unofficially reported that the State Attorney's Office will launch an investigation over a recording showing Dabro, who is also a former Minister of Agriculture, singing Ustasha songs at an event in Komletinci, a village in Vukovar-Srijem County.