MEMORIAL SERVICE HELD FOR VICTIMS OF USTASHA CRIME IN KRIVODOLI

PALE, 20 MAY /SRNA/ – A memorial service was held today at the monument in Krivodoli near Pale for more than 40 Serb civilians who were killed by the Ustasha regime during the Second World War.

The memorial service was held as part of the event "Remembrance of June 1992," organized by the Veterans’ Organization of Pale and the municipal branch of the Association of Fighters of the National Liberation War (SUBNOR).

Nenad Tomović, a history teacher at the Pale Primary School, told SRNA that an artistic program was also prepared together with students to revive the events that took place in November 1943.

"That year, 43 men from the village of Rakovac were killed in Krivodoli, and the bloody rampage continued during the night in the village itself, where fifty-nine residents were either massacred or burned alive—forty of whom were children under the age of 14," said Tomović, who is also a member of the committee for nurturing the culture of remembrance within the Veterans' Organization of Pale.

Tomović added that the residents were killed solely because they belonged to their ethnic group, and that a historical review would show the Serbian people rightly bear the epithet of a suffering nation, and not a genocidal one, as some are attempting to portray.

"We are a nation who have survived various forms of genocide throughout different historical epochs and intervals. That is why we are obliged to remember our ancestors," Tomović emphasized.

According to him, the Pale Veterans' Organization launched the "Remembrance of June 1992" event three years ago to turn it into a path for preserving the culture of memory.

Lazar Jokić, a student of the Pale Primary School, sang his own poem accompanied by the traditional Serbian gusle instrument, dedicated to his grandfather who died in Žepa. Although he never met him, he heard from his parents that he was a hero, and wrote a poem about him.

"It is very important to nurture the culture of remembrance because that way we preserve our history and tradition. We should be proud of what many fathers and grandfathers did, spilling their blood for us, and always remember them," Jokić told SRNA.

Svetko Savić, a descendant of the Savić family who perished in Krivodoli, told SRNA that the Ustashas in 1943 deceitfully killed more than 40 men, and that only one survived—Živan Klačar, who managed to free himself because he was strong enough to untie the wires binding him.

Savić recalled that his uncle bled to death near Krivodoli on the road to Rakovac and that all the victims were murdered solely for being Serbs.

"It is important to foster the culture of remembrance, especially through the school system, so younger generations understand why we suffered—innocent and undeserving," said Savić.

As part of the "Remembrance of June 1992" event, a memorial service will be held for fallen soldiers in Podgrab on Thursday, 29 May, beginning at 11:00 AM.