BELGRADE, JANUARY 9 /SRNA/ – Director of the Documentation and Information Center “Veritas” Savo Štrbac said that the families of fallen soldiers of the Republic of Serbian Krajina /RSK/ owe gratitude to Republika Srpska, as well as to all those who took part in the construction of the monumental memorial in Banja Luka and enabled former RSK fighters to be commemorated there.
“When this could not be achieved during their lifetimes, in this way, even posthumously, they became a united Serbian army,” Štrbac told SRNA, expressing regret that weather conditions prevented him from attending the unveiling ceremony of the memorial.
He emphasized that all former residents of the RSK and their descendants, when visiting the memorial, will feel that the sacrifices were not in vain.
Unlike members of the Army of Republika Srpska, who defended their hearths and Srpska, Štrbac said that the Serbian Army of Krajina, unfortunately, failed to defend Krajina.
He recalled that the RSK was defeated in Croatian military operations codenamed “Flash”/Bljesak/ and “Storm” /Oluja/, with full and comprehensive assistance from NATO and the United States, stressing that this was not a conventional military defeat but one that resulted in the exodus of almost the entire Serbian population.
“The trigger for leaving all RSK areas during ‘Flash,’ ‘Storm,’ and the peaceful reintegration was the fear of close encounters with the Croatian army, about which they had heard the worst,” Štrbac said.
He believes that Serbs from Croatia and the former RSK are among the greatest losers of the wars of the 1990s, having lost both their state and homeland, while more than 7,500 people were killed and over 450,000 remain refugees or displaced.
According to him, the number of Serbs who left Croatia, more by force than by choice, far exceeds half a million, while the position of those who remained is difficult due to their exposure to various ethnically motivated attacks.
Regarding the victims, Štrbac said that among the 8,628 so far verified Serbian victims in Croatia and the former RSK during the 1990s war, there are 5,479 uniformed personnel, including members of the JNA, Territorial Defense, the RSK, local guards, and militia.
Citing data from “Veritas,” Štrbac said that families have so far buried 5,054 uniformed persons, while 425 are still missing.
Most of those killed prior to the Croatian operations “Flash” and “Storm” were buried in family graves across the former RSK, Štrbac recalled, noting that the Croatian Parliament adopted a Law on Cemeteries last year, under which all monuments bearing insignia of the JNA, the Serbian Army of Krajina, the RSK, and volunteer units will be removed.
“As a result, some Serbian families, even if they could and wished to, will no longer have graves to visit. But from now on, they will have this sacred place in Banja Luka, where they can find the name of a relative, neighbor, friend, or brother-in-arms, light a candle, and pray for the repose of their souls,” Štrbac said.
Yesterday in Banja Luka, on the occasion of January 9, Republika Srpska’s Republic Day, the Central Memorial Monument to a total of 25,830 fallen soldiers of the Republika Srpska’s Defensive-Patriotic War was unveiled and consecrated.
At the center of the monument stands a cross bearing the inscription: “The memory of you is our sacred temple. Within it, your bright and covenant sacrifice will never die.”
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