21.12.2021.
Minister Stefanović attends 80th anniversary celebration of First Proletarian Brigade
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Nebojša Stefanović, PhD, attended today the 80th anniversary celebration of the First Proletarian Brigade, at the Central Military Club. The President of the Union of War Veterans of the National Liberation Wars of Serbia (SUBNOR), Major General Vidosav Kovačević (retd) presented Minister Stefanović with SUBNOR’s highest award in recognition of the support provided to this organization by the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces.
At the beginning of his address, Minister Stefanović referred to his grandfather, a participant in the National Liberation War.- As a descendant of a participant in the national liberation war and someone whose grandfather was a member of the 8th Montenegrin Brigade, which took part in the liberation of this city, I always emphasize that this is something we must not forget. When you look at this map and see the distance this great First Proletarian Brigade covered, 15,000 fighters covered 22,000 kilometres! When you look at all the places they went to and liberated, you must remember that it is our task to make sure that our children never forget that - said Minister Stefanović.
He emphasized that we must not forget those great freedom fighters.
- We must not forget that we are here today thanks to these wonderful, magnificent people, giants ... True heroes. The Ministry of Defence, along with all other ministries, is making sure that a museum is not just a place where our children go as a matter of routine, but a place where they will learn that our freedom and everything we have in this country, which is developing, progressing, which can build roads and schools and kindergartens today, were the dreams of our fathers, grandfathers, great-grandfathers, all our ancestors, and that it did not come for free, it was paid for dearly - said Stefanović.
Stefanović thanked SUBNOR for carefully and faithfully preserving history and trying to foster the spirit that makes our country what it is.
- Fortunately, today we have the opportunity to build our Serbia in peace. We have the opportunity to fight, to build the country and to fight for the future - the Minister of Defence emphasized.
The celebration hosted by SUBNOR was attended by presidential envoy, Minister of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs Darija Kisić Tepavčević, President of the National Assembly Ivica Dačić and Minister of the Interior Aleksandar Vulin.The Minister of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs, Darija Kisić Tepavčević, said that it was her honour to proudly greet the guests, aware of the heroism, consistency and the spirit of freedom that is at the core of our people.
- By fighting for peace and equality in the Second World War, Serbia showed that the struggle is at the core of its people. In that period, our country had one of the strongest anti-fascist movements in the world. Our ancestors left us an honourable name, that we proudly bear today and pass on to future generations - said Kisić Tepavčević.
The President of the National Assembly Ivica Dačić said that the famous First Proletarian Brigade is still a symbol of the greatest heroism of our people.
- Those 1,200 men and women who made up the First Proletarian Brigade on the day of its formation were fully aware of where they were going and what they were fighting for. They became part of a heroic brigade that won freedom for its people wherever it went and fought, including Belgrade and Zagreb at the very end of the war. That is why it is our obligation to pay tribute to all of them, to remind ourselves of the path of glory they took eight decades ago and the legacy they left us - said Dačić.
The Minister of the Interior Aleksandar Vulin said that it was his honour to stand before the heirs of one of the proudest and most beautiful generations in the history of our nation.
- Eighty years have gone by, one generation has gone down in history. The secrets of that time are no longer secrets, the sufferings of that time have been forgotten. Time passes inexorably and it already brings new secrets, values and anguish, but we still remember. Not because we have gathered to commemorate one time and generation, but to reiterate that the values cherished by that generation still exist today among the Serbian people and are needed as much as they were needed eighty years ago - said Vulin.
The President of SUBNOR, Major General Vidosav Kovačević (retd) recalled the historical circumstances surrounding the beginning of the people’s liberation struggle.
- At the end of 1941, the uprising took place in 40 percent of the former territory, especially in western Serbia and Montenegro, where there were large free territories. In Serbia, 12 partisan detachments with about 15,000 soldiers fought, and four strong partisan detachments in Montenegro – Kovačević noted.
According to him, on December 7, 1941, the Central Committee of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia made a decision to form the First Proletarian People's Liberation Strike Brigade out of Serbian and Montenegrin detachments, whose task was to fuel the flame of uprising and spread the fight against the occupier through fighting and political activity.
SUBNOR’s highest awards were also presented to the President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, Ivica Dačić, and the Minister of the Interior, Aleksandar Vulin.
The event was attended by the only living national hero Petar Matić, the last surviving liberators of Belgrade and the Syrmian Front, and Sava Kovačević’s messenger - Mišo.
After the event, Minister Stefanović and Minister Kisić Tepavčević met with a delegation representing the war veterans of the National Liberation War and SUBNOR and representatives of the First Proletarian People’s Liberation Strike Brigade Section from Serbia and the region.
