"Serbian consulate exhibition in Vukovar inappropriate at this time"

After the incidents in Split and Zagreb, triggered by the celebration of the Days of Serbian Culture, Vukovar Mayor Marijan Pavliček requested that the "Serbian Women" photography exhibition in Vukovar be postponed. The Minister of Culture, Nina Obuljen Koržinek, also finds the exhibition in Vukovar unacceptable at this time. It is not about the content, she points out, but about the impression.

The "Serbian Women" photography exhibition, by the Serbian Cultural Center Vukovar, the Joint Council of Municipalities and the Consulate General of the Republic of Serbia, is due to open on Tuesday, November 11.

Obuljen Koržinek: Unacceptable exhibition during the week of commemoration

The Minister said that funds for financing the work of cultural associations of national minorities are approved through the Office for National Minorities, and she then decides on her own which events to organize. All national minorities, including the Serbian one, she says, are allowed to cultivate their culture, but with respect.

“At this moment of heightened tensions, I really don't see the point of the Consulate of the Republic of Serbia in Vukovar, in a week when we as Croats remember the greatest trauma from the Homeland War and we all want to silently remember those terrible crimes and victims and somehow be dedicated to that commemoration as a community, for someone to organize such events in Vukovar during that very week, that is really unacceptable to me,” said Minister of Culture and Media Nina Obuljen Koržinek.

Pavliček: With dignity towards the victims of Vukovar

The Mayor of Vukovar Marijan Pavliček said that the last thing we need is an escalation of the conflict. “Representatives of the Serbian community in Vukovar have the right to cultivate culture and customs, but,” he emphasizes, “the organizers should take into account that November is a special month for the people of Vukovar.”

A large part of the Croats of Vukovar view such and similar events, especially during the month of November in Vukovar, as a form of provocation. In order to avoid unnecessary escalation, given the events across Croatia, and to ensure that the commemoration of the victims of Vukovar remains a priority, I ask everyone to treat this sacrifice with dignity,” Pavliček stated in a Facebook post.

Jeckov: There is no need to discuss it through the media

Independent Democratic Serb Party (SDSS) Vice President Dragana Jeckov responded to Mayor Pavliček. She said that there was no need to discuss his request regarding the organization of the exhibition of the Serbian Cultural Center Vukovar through the media.

She also said that the Serbian community wants Vukovar to be a city of peace and will certainly contribute to this with their activities.

ZVO invited Pavliček to communicate

The Joint Council of Municipalities (ZVO) announced that it had not yet received an official request from Vukovar Mayor Marijan Pavliček to postpone the exhibition and invited him to contact them through

 official channels.

In the statement, they emphasized that the ZVO is an institution dedicated to peace, tolerance and respect for human rights and that the exhibition itself is focused on anti-war messages. They stated that, after talking with the mayor, they would make a decision on holding the exhibition, taking into account the preservation of peace and the dignity of all citizens.

Vukovar SDP: Pavliček's request a form of intimidation

The president of the Social Democratic Party Vukovar City Committee, Kruno Raguž, claimed that Pavliček's request is reminiscent of the totalitarian era and represents a form of intimidation of the minority community and the use of the Vukovar tragedy for political purposes.

“In a democratic society, respect for victims must not be a reason for restricting the rights of minorities,” said Raguž, adding that Croatia, founded on anti-fascism and the Homeland War, must defend itself from "hooligans and the ghosts of the past.”

The Social Democratic Party, they say, is resolutely opposed to "withdrawing before fascist ideology,” while Pavliček emphasized that minorities have the right to their cultural expression, but that the organizers must respect the sensitivity of the month of November in Vukovar.

Source: HRT