PRIEST RECOUNTS FATHER SLOBODAN'S DEATH AT CARDAK; REMAINS FOUND IN MASS GRAVE

BANJA LUKA, NOVEMBER 14 /SRNA/ - Priest Dalibor Đekić gave testimony to the Republika Srpska Memorial Center about the killing of his father, Slobodan, who was murdered in 1992 in Čardak, near Derventa, where his remains were found several months later in a mass grave.

"They were simply thrown into the grave. My father's head was wrapped; he had been shot in the head. It was as if someone had deliberately wrapped his head. I tried to ask around and find out who might have done it, but, of course, I never found out. Perhaps it was someone who knew him," Father Dalibor testified.

Priest Dalibor Đekić was only 12 years old when his father, Slobodan, went missing on Orthodox Easter, April 26, 1992, during an attack by Croatian-Muslim forces on the settlement of Čardak, near Derventa.

Dalibor recalled that his mother came to the village on Easter, unaware of her husband's fate. Slobodan was listed as missing, and the family greeted every report of a possible prisoner exchange with renewed hope, while trying to find out where he was.

Their hope lasted until a mass grave was discovered in Čardak. The sight that met him and what he learned about his father's fate left him with questions that would never be answered.

He also lost his uncle Mladen in the war, who was killed at just 20 years of age. Unable to bear the loss of both his sons, his grandfather took his own life several years later.

The loss of his father and uncle, along with the family tragedy that followed, marked Dalibor's childhood. Nevertheless, through his education and growing understanding of his faith, he gradually developed an approach to suffering that was not rooted in hatred.

"Through my growing understanding of faith, I have learned not to seek hatred in my pain, but rather to seek meaning," Father Đekić said.

The testimonies are being recorded in the Derventa area in cooperation with the City of Derventa and organizations formed out of the Defensive-Patriotic War.

The Republika Srpska Memorial Center is calling on family members of those killed or missing, war veterans with disabilities, war participants and direct witnesses to wartime events to share their testimonies and contribute to the lasting preservation of the memory of the suffering of the Serb people.

Anyone wishing to give their testimony can contact the Center by email at kontakt@mcrs.vladars.rs or by phone at 051/222-999, the Memorial Center reminded the public.