Petkovic: We have a duty to remember our victims, destroyed houses and holy places

On the occasion of the 19th anniversary of the March Pogrom of the Serbs in Kosovo, the Director of the Office for Kosovo, Petar Petkovic, pointed out that it had been one of the most serious mass crimes in recent European history, adding that not only had we been deprived of punishing those responsible, but we were witnessing that the political and social atmosphere from which this terrible event had arisen was still present and that, moreover, chauvinism and hatred were still an ideological constant in Pristina.

Petkovic says that current and future generations have a duty to cherish the memory of the victims and not forget the fact that it was planned for our nation and everything that testifies to its centuries-long existence in the territory of Kosovo and Metohija to be literally wiped out in a few days in a massive wave of violence.

"It is our duty to remember our victims, destroyed houses and holy places, because our compatriots were killed and persecuted not because they deserved it but because of who they were, and a similar fate could have befallen any member of our people. That is why the feeling of unity and national solidarity are values that we must affirm even today, 19 years later, and in the future," Petkovic pointed out.

Unfortunately, Petkovic adds, the threat to the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija has not gone away because the disease of chauvinism and hatred towards Serbs and everything Serbian is still present among the representatives of the Albanian political elite in Pristina.

"What's more, politicians in Pristina are still competing to see who will hate Serbia and Serbs louder and more fervently, and this can be seen almost daily in numerous attacks on Serbs and their property, but it is also recognized in Pristina's panicked fear of the Community of Serb-majority Municipalities, which is the only framework for the protection of the Serbian people and their rights in Kosovo and Metohija. Serbia does not forget because it is stuck in the past, but because it is responsible for its people and its future, and tries to ensure that such an accident never happens again. We are talking about a pogrom that will remain a stain on the face of the international community, in whose presence hordes of Albanian extremists ethnically cleansed many Serbian places, killed innocent people, and burned churches and monasteries," Petkovic said.

Petkovic says that the Serbian people, in accordance with their difficult historical experience, use their memory to protect themselves from the repetition of suffering and national golgothas, but they are also looking to the future and looking for solid foundations for harmonious coexistence and cooperation with all the peoples with whom they share the Balkan areas, while preserving our vital state and national interests.

"In all strategic considerations of the future, Kosovo and Metohija will remain our central state and national issue, and the security of our people and the spiritual and cultural heritage in the province will be the highest priority of our national politics led by President Aleksandar Vucic, who, with his determined politics, is a pledge that the pogrom never happens again," Petkovic concluded.