For the Serb people, a border has never been merely an administrative line on a map, but a line of defense for their existence and survival, as well as the final barrier against enemies whose goal was to remove the Serb population from these areas, Milorad Dodik said.
Ahead of the central commemoration marking 31 years since the defense of Republika Srpska’s northwestern borders against the Croatian military offensive, which will be held in Novi Grad on Friday, Dodik told Srna that attention is once again focused on northwestern Republika Srpska with particular reverence and pride, but also sorrow for the Serb soldiers and civilians who lost their lives.
“It was a time when this part of our Republic’s border was threatened, and with it the very survival of Republika Srpska. Numerous Croatian and Muslim forces sought to break through our defensive lines, penetrate deep into our territory, seize the Serb municipalities of Novi Grad, Kozarska Dubica, Kostajnica and Gradiška, and permanently erase the traces of centuries of Serb presence in this area,” Dodik said.
He argued that although the attacking forces were better equipped and numerically superior, they underestimated the determination of Serb soldiers defending their homes and families.
“They did not count on the strength, pride and courage of Serb soldiers, especially when defending their homes, families, patron saint’s day, the graves of their ancestors and their right to their name and faith. When life, ancestors and descendants are defended at the same time, a Serb soldier becomes as strong as a fortress, and every position becomes an unconquerable mountain,” Dodik said.
He added that this spirit was demonstrated by Serbs throughout Krajina, Herzegovina, Romanija, Semberija, Posavina and Podrinje.
“That is what a Serb was and remains – someone who knew and knows how to defend Republika Srpska,” Dodik said.
According to Dodik, every location in northwestern Republika Srpska, from Novi Grad and Kozarska Dubica to Gradiška and Kostajnica, became a monument to human courage because the survival of Republika Srpska was defended there.
“Resistance to enemy units was not motivated by a desire to conquer what belonged to others, but by the fundamental need to preserve what was ours, to defend Republika Srpska and our people. Our war was defensive and liberating, not a war of conquest,” Dodik said.
He added that the territory, population and Republika Srpska were being defended at a time when, in his words, former neighbors sought to deprive Serbs of their rights and reduce them to the status of a national minority.
Dodik said that today, when people live in freedom and Republika Srpska has its own institutions, there is a moral obligation to remember those who made that possible.
“The greatest heroes are those whose dreams are woven into the foundations of Republika Srpska. Their sacrifice is a beacon showing us which direction to follow and a reminder that Republika Srpska must be loved, preserved and defended every day, responsibly and proudly, because freedom is not a gift received once and lasting forever. It is a continuous process,” Dodik said.
He stressed that defending Republika Srpska today means protecting its institutions, strengthening the economy, healthcare and education, and preserving culture, language and tradition.
“Defending the border means building a country in which the family is the foundation of society, in which mothers are respected, children and young people have access to education and parents have jobs. It means building a country we are proud of and in which our children see a safe harbor,” Dodik said.
He said Republika Srpska institutions are therefore making maximum efforts to create better living conditions for all citizens and every part of Republika Srpska, with the aim of making it stronger and more prosperous.
“That is the goal we work toward every day, because we owe it to the founders of Republika Srpska who made important decisions about its future in extremely challenging times, to our soldiers and victims, and to the people who were forced to leave their homes and who, after becoming refugees, remained in Republika Srpska and rebuilt their lives here,” Dodik said.
“We have gone through extremely turbulent times together and we continue forward united around one goal – preserving Republika Srpska. We know what we are doing for the Republic and our people, and we know how to provide an answer for the future by building a powerful and strong Republika Srpska,” he added.
The central commemoration of the Day of Defense against the Croatian Army’s offensive on the western borders of Republika Srpska will be held in Novi Grad on Friday, organized by the Republika Srpska Government Committee for Fostering the Traditions of the Defensive-Patriotic War.
According to the organizers’ account, the Croatian Army’s attack on the municipality of Novi Grad began at 9:25 a.m. on September 18, 1995.
During two days of fighting, 57 people were killed, including 37 civilians, 18 soldiers and two members of the Republika Srpska Ministry of Internal Affairs. Seventeen civilians, three soldiers and one police officer were wounded.
On September 19, 1995, the Army of Republika Srpska pushed Croatian forces back across the Una River.
A memorial was erected in the Tunjica settlement, where the largest number of civilians and soldiers were killed and where Croatian forces crossed into the Novi Grad municipality. The memorial was consecrated in 2010.
According to Republika Srpska figures cited in the report, a total of 104 people were killed in the western Krajina municipalities of Kozarska Dubica, Novi Grad and Kostajnica on September 18 and 19, 1995. The victims included 54 civilians, 44 members of the Republika Srpska armed forces and six members of the Republika Srpska Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Settlements and towns also suffered extensive destruction and material damage. According to estimates by municipal commissions, damage amounted to 83.3 million KM in Novi Grad, 50.4 million KM in Kozarska Dubica and 40 million KM in Kostajnica.
The defense of the western Krajina municipalities is commemorated by Republika Srpska institutions as a significant event in the defense of Republika Srpska and has been designated by the Republika Srpska Government as one of the major dates in recent Serb history.
Source: RTRS
