Man’s death stirs protest in Bosnia
Distrust in politicians comes to a head
BANJA LUKA: When the body of a 21yearold student was found in a stream in March, police said it was an accident. But his family cried foul, unleashing a wave of protests unseen in Bosnia since 2014.
Until his disappearance, David Dragicevic had been just an ordinary youngster studying technology in Banja Luka in northern Bosnia.
But his death has transformed him into the symbol of a civil protest movement against injustice and corruption in high places, which has rapidly gathered pace ahead of Bosnia’s general election in October.
Dragicevic’s death has dominated political discourse in Republika Srpska, the Serbrun entity of Bosnia, whose capital is Banja Luka.
The protests have also drawn support from Croats and Muslims, all of whom attended a major rally yesterday.
Such unity is rare in the nation of 3.5 million people where politics have long been divided along ethnic lines since the 19921995 war that claimed 100,000 lives.
When Dragicevic’s body was found six days after he went missing, police wrote it off as an accident, initially suggesting he had been involved in a burglary, then later referred to him as someone who smoked cannabis and used LSD.
But such claims have outraged his family, who remain convinced he was killed. His father Davor, a 49yearold waiter, has repeatedly demanded that justice be done.
The case has become a catalyst for a wave of public protests in a country where resentment has long simmered over perceived corruption in the ruling classes, from the police to the judiciary to Bosnia’s politicians.
Since the end of March, hundreds of protesters have gathered at a site now dubbed “David’s Square” every day to demand “truth” and “justice”, many wearing Tshirts emblazoned with an image of the young man. — AFP