On the occasion of May 9, Victory Day over Fascism, the Mayor of Nikšić, Marko Kovačević, together with the Vice Mayor Mitar Goranović, laid a wreath at the monument to Dragan Kovačević in the courtyard of the Public Preschool Institution (PPU) "Dragan Kovačević".
The Mayor reminded that Dragan Kovačević was one of the youngest fighters against the Nazis in World War II and that he is one of the symbols of the fight for freedom. As he said, we owe gratitude to such people and such children for why we live in freedom today, but also to all the children of the fighters and the former Yugoslavia, as well as to those who died as civilian victims and in concentration camps in World War II.
"This is a great day for the history of Europe and humanity, and we must mark it in an appropriate way and remember what was defeated on this day. On May 9, 1945, victory finally arrived in Europe," said Kovačević.
He recalled a statement by American intellectual Hugh Long, who, as he said, predicted that we would have fascism in the future, but under the guise of anti-fascism.
"Unfortunately, we can say that nowhere has this claim been realized as much as in Montenegro, and nowhere have declared anti-fascists recorded more fascist behavior than in Montenegro. This is what we must be aware of in this society today and what we must fight against," Kovačević pointed out.
According to him, double standards still prevail in Montenegro and not all communities are treated equally.
"Anti-fascism is persistently used to delegitimize someone and to claim for themselves the right to say who is anti-fascist and who is not. We belong to that part of our people that comes from anti-fascist families, who gave everything to defeat fascism and Nazism, and all the invaders in this region. Everything we do stems from that tradition from which we come. That is why we do not want to allow anyone to teach us what anti-fascism is, because our families have experienced firsthand what the fight against fascism is and what that regime has brought to this part of Europe and the entire world," said Kovačević.
Therefore, as he emphasized, in front of the bust of his cousin, he wants to send a message that the achievements of anti-fascism must be preserved, but that we must not allow ourselves to be unwary and not see "what fascism is, even when it hides under the guise of anti-fascism, as Long said."
Dragan Kovačević was born in 1928 in the village of Nudo, near Grahovo, near Nikšić. He comes from the revolutionary family of Nikola and Ljubica Kovačević. At the age of 13, he joined the Partisans and was with his uncle, Commander Sava, throughout the war. He was a member of the League of Communist Youth of Yugoslavia (SKOJ).
He was killed at Sutjeska on June 13, 1943, along with his uncles Sava and Janko, and grandfather Blagoje. Seven members of the Kovačević family participated in Sutjeska, and the four mentioned above were killed.
The President of the Nikšić Municipal Assembly, Nemanja Vuković, with representatives of the Army of Montenegro and SOBNOR, laid a wreath at the Monument to the Fallen Soldiers at Trebjesa.
"Today, celebrating the victory over the greatest evil in the history of mankind, we pay tribute to all who tamed the Nazi-fascist monster and enabled future generations to build a free, prosperous society, in which the rights of others and those who are different are respected. Free Nikšić will continue to carefully nurture the achievements of May 9th. In this way, we will prove that we are worthy of our brave ancestors, and determined enough to build a certain European future," said Vuković.
The President of the Municipal Assembly concluded that we must continue to strengthen Nikšić and Montenegro together so that, as soon as possible, we can find ourselves where we belong – in the family of united European nations.
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