Concerts and other mass public gatherings have been canceled in the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH)'s Republika Srpska in light of ongoing protest rallies in the city, Banja Luka Mayor Igor Radojicic said on Monday.
BELGRADE (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 31st December, 2018) Concerts and other mass public gatherings have been canceled in the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH)'s Republika Srpska in light of ongoing protest rallies in the city, Banja Luka Mayor Igor Radojicic said on Monday.The statement comes after participants of the Justice for David protest movement had disrupted a concert by a regional folk singer on Sunday night. Several protesters have been detained as a result.
"I don't want any children to be endangered. We cannot say for sure whether they [demonstrators] will go to cafes and restaurants. At night, they disrupted the concert, we don't know whether they will do this again," Radojicic said at a press conference.
He noted that public order offenses had taken place during protests on Sunday night and expressed regret over this fact.
The protesters demand truth behind the death of 21-year-old David Dragicevic, who was killed in the region's capital under unknown circumstances in March. Something that started as a one-person protest by the student's father soon evolved in the Justice for David movement, garnered wider support across the region, and started demanding resignation of the leadership of Republika Srpska's Interior Ministry.
The movement was also joined by political opponents of Milorad Dodik, a former president of Republika Srpska and the incumbent chairman of the BiH presidency. The protests have also turned more radical.
After several participants of the unsanctioned rallies were detained in Banja Luka on December 25, the EU Delegation to BiH voiced criticism of Republika Srpska's authorities.
The Russian Foreign Ministry, in turn, condemned the EU reaction as an interference in the region's internal affairs.
