Monument to pope highlights multi-ethnicity of BiH

Monument to pope highlights multi-ethnicity of BiH

A monument to Pope John Paul II in Sarajevo sends the message that the city is one of peace, tolerance and multi-ethnicity.

BiH Cardinal Vinko Puljic (centre) prepares to bless the new statue of Pope John Paul II, who was canonised last month. [Ana Lovakovic/SETimes]

A monument to Pope John Paul II that was recently unveiled in Sarajevo illustrates the multi-ethnic nature of the city, as citizens recall his urging for reconciliation and tolerance.

The statue was formally unveiled on April 30th, three days after Pope John Paul II was canonised. Sarajevo joins many cities in the world in expressing gratitude and appreciation for this humanitarian worker, one of the world's most influential people of the 20th century.

The pope started the delivery of humanitarian assistance during the 1992-1995 conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) by drawing the attention of the international community to crimes that were occurring in the small Balkan country. He repeatedly called for an end to the conflict, advocating peace and tolerance.

After the conflict ended, John Paul visited BiH twice, once in 1997 and once in 2003, bringing messages of hope through his avocation to promote the post-war recovery, tolerance and peaceful co-existence.

"The pope will remain an unforgettable character for all the people of Sarajevo and citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, not just for Catholics. His appearance, his words, and the echo that they had in the world, were a ray of light in the darkness of war and post-war," Fuad Osmanagić, a Sarajevo resident, told SETimes.

Franjo Topic, the president of the Croatian Cultural Society Napredak, said the monument is dedicated not...