Statue of war criminal "walks" through the country: Monument to Pavle Đurišić moved to the monastery's dormitory Đurđevi stupovi

Monument to a World War II Chetnik commander and war criminal Pavlo Đurišić He was transferred to the dormitory of the Đurđevi Stupovi monastery a few days ago, and the Berane prosecutor's office did not respond to questions from "Vijesti" yesterday about whether they had this information.

They remained silent when asked whether they knew the monument would be moved, and if so, why they did not issue an order to the police to remove the memorial on the way to the monastery.

On Wednesday, the "Oko" magazine on Radio Television of Serbia (RTS) reported that the monument to Đurišić had been moved to the Đurđevi Stupovi monastery.

The monument to Đurišić was erected on August 7th in Gornji Zaostr near Berane, and a day later it was unveiled by the Metropolitan of Budimlje and Nikšić. Methods, and the statue was removed the same day in the afternoon. The illegal monument was then removed by locals, according to what they claimed was “a prior agreement with the police.” Đurišić’s statue was then transferred to the Church of St. Mother Paraskeva, and the competent inspection, with the assistance of the police, subsequently demolished the monument’s pedestal.

The opposition Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) said yesterday that the monument to Đurišić is traveling freely from the church to the monastery, "with which the Church of Serbia is once again demonstrating its power and mocking the state," and the state is unequivocally showing that it has capitulated.

"Instead of taking away the monument to a convicted fascist, which was previously illegally erected, where, right under the noses of the police, an enraged Chetnik horde beat and harassed journalists, the acting director of the Police Directorate Lazar Scepanovic and the Supreme State Prosecutor Milorad Marković "They confirm that they do not have the courage to take action within their jurisdiction and continue to obediently serve church dignitaries," the DPS statement reads.

The European Union said yesterday that the prosecution and police, by failing to act according to the law in the case of the Đurišić monument, are becoming accomplices in the promotion of Nazism and fascism.

They called on Marković and Šćepanović to demonstrate, through the actions of the bodies they head, that the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) is not above the Constitution and laws of the state, saying that the monument to the criminal "walks freely around Montenegro", while the police and the prosecution are still in disagreement.

The Berane Prosecutor's Office and the Police Directorate argued over the weekend over why the monument to Đurišić was not taken away. The police claim that, after learning that the monument had been moved from a private property to a church in a Berane village, they requested an order from the prosecutor's office to take the statue away, but that the institution refused, citing the Basic Agreement between the Government and the Serbian Orthodox Church. They also claim that the order to take away was late and that the police were not given enough time to do the job.

On the other hand, the prosecutor's office responded that they issued the order to remove and seize the monument after they learned that Dobrašinović had erected it. They claim that it is not true that they mentioned the Fundamental Agreement as a reason why the statue cannot be seized, "because the prosecutor's office acts exclusively according to procedural laws."

According to the Fundamental Agreement (Article 7), in buildings and spaces owned by the church, state authorities cannot take security measures without prior approval from the competent church authorities, except in cases where this is required for reasons of urgency to protect people's lives and health.

The unveiling of the monument caused a stormy reaction in the public, especially after the attacks on the teams of “Vijesti” and “Pobjeda”, which tried to record the removal of the statue of Đurišić by the residents of Gornji Zaostar. The Berane police detained four people after the incident, and arrested Danko Femic i Vlada Stijovića. Femić was ordered to be detained for 30 days on suspicion of committing the crime of endangering security, while Stijović was released. The police processed five other people for attacks on the crews of two daily newspapers.

The Bijelo Polje Higher Prosecutor's Office said last Tuesday that it had opened a case against Metodije and the head of the Citizens' Service of the Capital City and the leader of Free Montenegro due to the events in Gornji Zaostr. Vladislav Dajković.

Beran Vujadin Dobrasinovic, the owner of the property where the monument to Đurišić was erected and then removed, was released from custody the day before yesterday.

"Vijesti" wrote a few days ago that the monument to Đurišić could be permanently confiscated by the Berane Basic Court only if Dobrašinović is convicted by a final verdict for illegally erecting the monument.