Minister Grlić Radman attends unveiling of monument to Bishop Ivan Antunović

Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlić Radman on Thursday attended the unveiling of a monument to Bishop Ivan Antunović in Subotica

Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlić Radman on Thursday attended the unveiling of a monument to Bishop Ivan Antunović in Subotica.

Addressing the event, Grlić Radman welcomed the joint initiative of the “Ivan Antunović” Catholic Society, Croatian National Council and Vojvodina Croats’ Cultural Institute to erect the monument, launched in 2015 to commemorate the 200^th anniversary of Bishop Antunović’s birth.

“The message of this monument we are unveiling today is in line with the idea of the revival, whose champion among the Bačka Croats was Bishop Antunović,” said the minister, adding that the design of the monument reflects Antunović’s main mission, primarily as a priest, and then as a revivalist among Bunjevci.  

Grlić Radman also underscored Antunović’s vision of a brotherly coexistence, which would respect peoples’ uniqueness and preserve national, ethnic and cultural identity.

In addition to attending the ceremony, the minister also met with representatives of the Croatian national minority from the Croatian National Council and attended the signing of an agreement on the financing of the construction of Croatia House in Subotica – signed by State-Secretary at the Central State Office for Croats Abroad Zvonko Milas and Croatian National Council President Jasna Vojnić.

Grlić Radman also visited the “Bunjevačko Kolo” Croatian Cultural Centre, where recognition letters were presented to everyone involved in erecting the monument.

The statue of Bishop Ivan Antunović, cast in bronze and about two meters tall, is the work of Croatian academic sculptor Bernard Pešorda.

 

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