The Committee for the Protection of Serb Rights in the Federation of BiH has reported that one or more unidentified individuals used spray paint or a similar substance to deface an image of Jesus Christ on a sign directing worshippers toward the Vozuća Monastery in the municipality of Zavidovići.
The Cyrillic inscription “Christ Is Risen” was also painted over.
“The Cyrillic inscription ‘Christ Is Risen’ was also covered with paint. The sign is relatively large, but only the section depicting Jesus Christ and the section containing the Cyrillic inscription were defaced, clearly indicating a religious motive behind the act,” the Committee stated.
The Committee explained that the sign also features a photograph of the Vozuća Monastery, an endowment of King Dragutin.
“The monastery was built in the 14th century. It is widely known that the monastery is located in this area and that Orthodox Serb Christians from the region hold the church and Vozuća Monastery in particularly high regard. This suggests that the perpetrators intended to send a message to worshippers visiting the monastery,” the Committee said.
It also noted that the Vozuća local community had published a statement on its official page condemning the incident.
The Committee called on the competent authorities of the Zenica-Doboj Canton Ministry of Internal Affairs to urgently identify the perpetrators of what it described as a criminal offense.
Source: Glas Srpske
