Statehood Day marked in Serbia

Statehood Day marked in Serbia

“I do not want to hold back the words of praise for those who give their best. I am looking forward to an increasing number of them every year, because the number of decorations indicates that as a society in the community of nations we are becoming more and more successful,” Nikolic underlined.

Based on a decree signed by the Serbian president on February 5, Smilja Avramov, PhD, professor at the Belgrade University Faculty of Law, and Nada Milic, from Kosovo and Metohija, who lost her entire family during the 1999 NATO bombing campaign against Serbia, were presented with the Order of Sretenje, First Class, for their significant contributions to the Republic of Serbia and its people.

Chief of the General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces, Gen. Ljubisa Dikovic, was awarded the Order of the White Eagle with Swords, First Class, for his outstanding contributions to the country's defense system and command and control of military units.

Noam Chomsky, PhD, a well-known linguist, philosopher and political commentator from the United States, was awarded the Order of Sretenje, Second Class, and Ivan Klajn, PhD, a linguist and regular member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, and Miomir Korac, PhD, director of the Archaeological Institute of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, received the Order of Sretenje, Third Class.

Decorations were also received by the Water Polo Federation of Serbia and singer Djordje Marjanovic.

Dejan Lazarevic was posthumously awarded the Medal for Bravery "Miloc Obilic", Gold Grade, while Louise Miller from Great Britain, Konstantin Kosachev and Valery Ryazansky from the Russian Federation, were all presented with the Medal for Merits, Gold Grade.

Cesare Vismara from Italy was posthumously awarded the Medal for Achievements in Sport, Gold Grade.

Decorations were also received by Serbia's great actors Lubisa Samardzic, Velimir Bata Zivojinovic, Dragan Nikolic, Milena Dravic, and Borivoje Todorovic, who was honored posthumously.

Decorations were also presented to famous composers Vojkan Borisavljevic, Milutin Popovic Zahar and Zoran Simjanovic.

President Nikolic awarded decorations to Serbia's honorary consulate generals in New Orleans and the Republic of Armenia, and to people who achieved outstanding results in the fields of architecture, journalism and health protection.

The Medal for Merits, Gold Grade, was awarded to special units of the Serbian Interior Ministry - the Gendarmerie, the Counter-Terrorist Unit (PTJ) and the Special Anti-Terrorist Unit (SAJ).

Members of the Ministry of Defense and the Serbian Army were presented with the Medal for Zealous Service, for their exceptional work and results in defense and security. They received a total of 16 gold grade and 35 silver grade of these medals, the president's press office said.

Wreaths

Earlier in the day on Sunday, Tomislav Nikolic laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier on Mt. Avala on the occasion of February 15, Serbian Statehood Day.

Nikolic laid the wreath while the Serbian anthem was playing and singed the memorial book.

The ceremony was also attended by Minister of Defence Bratislav Gasic and Chief of the General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces Ljubisa Dikovic.

Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic laid a wreath at the memorial plaque of Dimitrije Davidovic, the author of the Sretenje Constitution.

The ceremony, which was held with full state and military honors in the presence of the Guard of Honor and the orchestra, was also attended by Minister of Defense Bratislav Gasic, Minister of Justice Nikola Selakovic and Minister of Labor, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs Aleksandar Vulin.

Vucic said addressing reporters after the ceremony that "we can learn a lot from the historic events that took place on this date."

"Commemorating the days when Serbs laid a foundation for their statehood and modernity, I can say that no value is more important and no joy grater than fighting for a modern and successful Serbia," the prime minister said.

Vucic said that "we can do at least a little for our country so as to make it better, thereby showing that we have learned something from our predecessors as Davidovic and Karadjordje and many others who were born later on."

"I am certain that Serbia is on the right track, and that our descendants will not be ashamed of our deeds," Vucic said.

After the ceremony, the prime minister departed for Zagreb, where he attended the inauguration of the Croatian president and a service at the Serbian Orthodox Cathedral in Zagreb on the occasion of the Orthodox Christian holiday of Candlemas (Sretenje).

Serbia marks Statehood Day with a number of ceremonies commemorating the start of the First Serbian Uprising against Ottoman Turks in Orasac in 1804, and the adoption of the Sretenje Constitution in Kragujevac in 1835.