Members of the Justice for David group gathered at the site of the discovery of David Dragicevic's body in Banja Luka, on Thursday, 900 days after the first gathering was held on the Krajina Square in Banja Luka.
They demanded the right to gather at the Krajina Square for the fourth time – but the police did not allow it.
Ozren Perduv, one of the representatives of the group, said that they had no further information about David Dragicevic's death, and he told N1 that if one asked the same question to the Prosecutor's Office – they would get the answer that “the investigation is ongoing.”
“The request for the rally was submitted by Merlina Ivic on September 4. We received the decision banning the rally. We submitted an appeal yesterday, September 9, at 3:28 pm. The decision on the appeal must be submitted within 24 hours. If the Minister does not respond to our appeal – the rally can be held,” said Perduv, referring to laws and bylaws.
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In March 2018, police found the lifeless body of David Dragicevic, 21, in a river near Banja Luka, the administrative centre of Bosnia's Serb-majority region of Republika Srpska (RS).
A few days later, pathologist Zeljko Karan told the media that the cause of death was likely drowning and that Dragicevic had taken drugs.
The press conference sparked a series of protests, especially since another autopsy performed on David’s body showed a different time of death.
The case was later reclassified into murder.
Led by David’s father, who believes police and prosecutors in the semi-autonomous entity of Republika Srpska are protecting whoever killed his son, numerous citizens have organised into the ‘Justice for David’ group and have been protesting at the central Krajina Square in Banja Luka for more than a year.
The protests culminated around the end of December 2018. Since then, the RS authorities have banned them from gathering at the square and allow only small, symbolic gatherings to take place to honour David's death.
Pedruv noted that this group of citizens does not want to create additional problems for themselves, but he pointed out that they received the Decision which annulled the Decision from the Mayor to remove David's heart – a monument the group made at the centre of the square.
According to him, the City Council must pay some €500 in court costs, lawyers and to the Justice for David group within 30 days.
The group was banned from organising a peaceful, protest walk – which is why they organized a press conference at the mouth of the Crkvena River in Banja Luka.
