PARTISAN CEMETERY IN MOSTAR ON THE LIST OF EUROPA NOSTRA

We announce the positive news that with the organization of Bosnian colleagues and with the support of the DESSA gallery and the international platform ARCHITECTUUL and other supporters, the partisan cemetery in Mostar, on 13th Aprile 2023, has been placed on the EUROPA NOSTRA list of 7 the most endangered cultural and natural heritage. From the official explanation 11 European heritage sites shortlisted for the 7 Most Endangered Programme 2023: The Partisan Memorial Cemetery has been, and still is, one of the region’s contested heritage sites. This has resulted in repeated acts of vandalism up until June of 2022, which received widespread condemnation. The Advisory Panel of the 7 Most Endangered Programme commented: “At the time when Europe seeks to assert and put a much stronger emphasis on the vital importance of the shared values which form the very basis of the entire European project, this significant place of memory located in the Western Balkans should be restored with the support of local, national and European funds and protected for present and future generations.” Nominated by IDEAA Mostar with the endorsement of Mayor of Mostar, Galerija DESSA and Europa Nostra Serbia.
https://www.europanostra.org/11-european-heritage-sites-shortlisted-for-the-7-most-endangered-programme-2023/
DESSA gallery supported the final nomination with its supported letter.

On Wednesday, June 15, 2022, vandals carefully and cold-bloodedly destroyed all the commemorative plaques of the Partisan Cemetery in Mostar, which was erected in 1965 according to the plans of the outstanding architect Bogdan Bogdanović. The DESSA Gallery, together with the international ARCHITECTUUL, organized the signing of a petition on July 1, 2022, which was signed by many well-known figures from the cultural and architectural scene in the area of the former Yugoslavia and beyond.
 
On Wednesday, January 25, 2023, our Bosnian colleagues informed us that the monument is on the list of the 11 most endangered European monuments, competing for placement among the final 7.
 
On January 25, 2023, on the 10th anniversary of the 7 Most Endangered Program, Europa Nostra - the European voice of civil society for the protection of cultural and natural heritage - and the Institute of the European Investment Bank announced the 11 most endangered buildings or cultural heritage locations in Europe that were shortlisted in 2023:
o   Partizansko spomen groblje, Mostar, BOSNA I HERCEGOVINA
o   Željeznička stanica Kortrijk, Kortrijk, BELGIJA
o   Posjed i Kraljevski muzej Mariemont, Morlanwelz, BELGIJA
o   Tvrđava Tchakvinji, Zugdidi, GRUZIJA
o   Kompleks kuća časnih sestara, bivše moravsko naselje u Kleinwelki, NJEMAČKA
o   Vila (“Konaki”) Gidasa, Aleksandrija, GRČKA
o   Muzej Herman Ottó, Miskolc, MAĐARSKA
o   Memento Park, Budimpešta, MAĐARSKA
o   Kulturni pejzaž Paštrovske gore, CRNA GORA
o   Kulturni pejzaž Svetog Stefana, Paštrovići, CRNA GORA
o   Bistričke vodenice, Petrovac na Mlavi, SRBIJA
 
Letter of thanks to dr. Senade Demirović Habibi to the supporters of the project
Dear friends,
first of all, a big thank you for all the effort and support you have given us. I cannot thank you with words or explain what this moment means for us, for Mostar, but above all for the future of the Partisan Memorial Cemetery. This is a big step, but we have a huge road ahead of us because we hope that we will have the strength to enter among the 7. We also need your wholehearted support, so I am asking you on behalf of the Urban House of IDEAA, the citizens of the City of Mostar, and me personally to stay with us.
 
In the coming period, we will certainly organize an event in Mostar with our partners, which are the DESSA gallery from Ljubljana, international platform ARCHITECTUUL and Europa Nostra Serbia. I believe that we will be able to maintain it in a hybrid form so that it is available to a wider range of people. You will be updated and we will let you know everything in time. Until then, I am attaching a text (bilingual) that you can certainly share, and you can also share a link from our website. 
 
Warm regards from Mostar,
Senada
 
dr. Senada Demirović Habibija, architect
Senior adviser for urban planning, City of Mostar
Assistant professor at University "Džemal Bijedić"
President of Urban house IDEAA

V medijih
_ https://architectuul.com/digest/europa-nostra-7-most-endangered-in-2023
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