The memorial plaque for journalists abducted not far from Zočište has been unveiled for the tenth time.

On the memorial plaque for Slavuj and Perenić, which was first installed in 2012 in Serbian and Albanian, it reads: “Our colleagues, journalists Đuro Slavuj and Ranko Perenić, were abducted here on August 21, 1998. We are searching for them.” It has been reinstalled today.

“Families, colleagues, and friends perceive this plaque as the only memorial between the former life and disappearance,” said the president of the Journalists' Association of Serbia (UNS), Živojin Rakočević.

He added that the memorial plaque for the missing colleagues will be renewed as many times as necessary and that unknown perpetrators “are in vain trying to erase the truth,” for it will speak “from this stone, from these plaques, from innocence.”

“What is happening this tenth time is no longer hatred, no longer revenge, no longer a conspiracy of silence, no longer a problem for institutions. This is evil that has been destroying the monument to innocent people for nearly three decades. What will happen to us, what will happen to this space if we have not a shred of compassion for the innocent?” Rakočević asked.

The gathering and installation of the memorial plaque for abducted journalists Đuro Slavuj and Ranko Perenić, not far from the Zočište-Orahovac road, was attended by Ranko's wife, Snežana Perenić, as well as their grandson, Matija.

“The unresolved fates of the abducted journalists remain a painful wound for families, colleagues, and the journalistic community, but also a reminder of the price journalists may pay in the pursuit of truth,” said Maid Konjhodžić, head of the Political Affairs and Communications Office of the OSCE Mission in Pristina.

“This commemoration is not just an act of remembrance. It is also a clear message: violence, threats, and intimidation must not silence the truth. The memory of Ranko Perenić and Đuro Slavuj obliges us not to give up on the questions that remain unanswered. Their families deserve justice, and journalists must be able to work without fear,” he stated.

The tenth installation of the memorial plaque for Slavuj and Perenić was also attended by long-time UNS member and the editor-in-chief of Alpress from Aleksinac, Ninoslav Miljković. He first expressed his condolences to the families who lost their loved ones.

“These people who gave their lives for the profession remind us of some fundamental tenets of journalism. Today, we take statements from Facebook and pass them along, and that’s how it goes. These individuals wanted to be on the ground, to be authentic representatives of their listeners and readers, and to convey what they saw. That is rare in modern journalism today,” he said.

Source: Radio KiM