BiH MISSING PERSONS INSTITUTE HAS NOT JUSTIFIED ITS EXISTENCE

NOVI GRAD, MAY 27 /SRNA/ – Head of the Republika Srpska Organisation of Families of Captured and Killed Soldiers and Missing Civilians, Isidora Graorac, has stated today that their goal is for the Republika Srpska Government to establish an office for cooperation with families of missing persons, in order to return the process to the entity level, because the BiH Missing Persons Institute has not justified its existence.

Graorac said in Novi Grad that 1,614 people are still listed as missing, and that clarifying their fate is a deep wound of society, but also an obligation of this republic-level organisation and each family individually.

"Our focus is initiating the establishment of an office by the Government of Republika Srpska for cooperation with families of missing persons, so that the process can be returned to the entity level and brought to completion. We cannot expect a solution from the BiH Missing Persons Institute, as we will not get it - that is evident," she said.

She noted that they have the support of the Government of Republika Srpska and the line ministry, and expects that initial steps toward establishing such an office will be taken in the coming period.

Graorac, who attended today's Assembly of the Municipal Organisation of Families of Captured and Killed Soldiers and Missing Civilians in Novi Grad, expressed hope that 500 children of fallen soldiers will be employed by the end of the year.

"We will insist not only on resolving the issue of the 500 children already registered, but also on addressing those who do not have permanent employment in the future. More than ever, we have readiness from all decision-makers to make the employment of children of fallen soldiers a priority in all public institutions," she said.

Graorac pointed out that many of the organisation’s demands were largely accepted in recent legal amendments.

"We are putting an end to the issue of benefits and family disability allowances. This now no longer depends on individual government decisions but on the average salary. We introduced a special category in the law for children who lost both parents in the recent war, this is recognition by society for the tragedy they endured," she said.

She also noted that, in cooperation with the Ministry of Labour, War Veterans and Disabled Persons Protection and the University Clinical Centre of Republika Srpska, waiting lists for specialist examinations have been resolved.

Graorac said that, thanks to cooperation with the Memorial Centre, recording of testimonies about wartime suffering is underway, with the aim of reaching all families affected by tragedy in the recent war and preserving these accounts for future generations.

"This is a major task, considering that 23,659 soldiers and 10,000 civilians were killed. In a short time, we have completed more than 1,500 testimonies," she added.