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KALINOVIK: Some 3,000 people, mostly Bosnian Serb former soldiers, angrily protested on Sunday against the arrest of their ex-commander Ratko Mladic in the town where he was born.
The entrance to Kalinovik in southeastern Bosnia was festooned for the protest with a banner bearing three pictures of Mladic and reading “Welcome to Mladicevo,” renaming the village after the war crimes suspect.
“The arrest of Ratko Mladic is a trauma for me, it is the biggest tragedy that has happend to the Serbian people. Nothing worse could happen to us,” a 37-year-old ex-soldier, Ljubisa Mandic, told AFP at the rally.
Mladic was born on March 12, 1942, in a hamlet called Bozinovic, part of Kalinovik.
“As a child from Kalinovik, Mladic could not be a war criminal. He was raised in a traditional family where courage and valour were respected,” said Sladoje Vajdo, 52, who proudly described himself as another “soldier of Mladic.”
Most shop windows in the town were decorated with Mladic's portraits bearing the word “Hero!””We are with you general. You are our hero,” one placard read.
Posters of Mladic were also on the windshields of many cars coming into the town. Mladic was arrested Thursday in northeastern Serbia after nearly 16 years on run.
He has been indicted by The Hague-based UN war crimes tribunal for genocide and crimes against humanity over his role during the Bosnian war and is expected to be transferred to the court in the coming days.
The protesters were hostile towards journalists and some of the reporters were ordered to leave the rally.
Youngsters chanted slogans for Mladic, many waving flags of the Bosnian Serb entity Republika Srpska, as well as of neighbouring Serbia.
Several men were dressed in wartime Serb paramilitary and army uniforms. Songs glorifying the wartime army and Mladic blasted from huge loudspeakers.
“The irony is, all glorious Serbian heroes end up in the same way,” Vajdo said. “This is tragic, a huge shame. Mladic is not a criminal, he simply defended his people. This is his only mistake,” he added.
Those speaking at the rally echoed his words.
“General Ratko Mladic is not a criminal! He is a defender of the Serbian land. He did not take the land from others, just defended his,” a young woman shouted amid growing applause from the protesters.
A woman whose husband was killed on the frontline clutched Mladic's portrait in her hands. She could hardly hide her fury towards Belgrade authorities for arresting “the one with the most honourable Serb name.”
"I hate them now more than I hate the Croats or the Muslims. This is treason. They trampled on the Serb honor," she shouted.
Janko Peric, a 45-year-old former soldier, insisted that Mladic “will always remain in Serbs' heart. Nothing will change our opinion of him. We would give our life for him instantly,” he promised.
“I would follow him again without hesitation if necessary,” pledged Peric, who had fought with the Bosnian Serb army around Sarajevo.
