“Where is Serbian Vojvodina” was the topic of the panel held in the ceremonial hall of the Clerical High School in Sremski Karlovci on 16 May 2024. At the panel organized by the Foundation “For the Serbian People and State” it was spoken about creating the foundations of our national identity in this territory.
At the place where May Assembly was held, i.e., the clerical-national assembly in May 1848, where the Serbs defined their national program in line with the Privileges and the spirit of the time, the panellists Nikola Banjac, PhD, Petar Đurđev, Director of the Historical Archives of the City of Novi Sad, Mile Bjelajac, PhD, Director of the Institute for Recent History of Serbia, and Archpriest-Stavrophorus Branko Ćurčin reminded the public of the importance of these events as the foundation for further striving of the Serbs to empower national consciousness and further improve our society on the whole. године, на ком су Срби дефинисали свој национални програм у складу са словом Привилегија и духом времена, панелисти др Никола Бањац, Петар Ђурђев, директор Историјског архива Града Новог Сада, др Миле Бјелајац, директор Института за новију историју Србије и Бранко Ћурчин, протoјереј-ставрофор, подсетили су јавност на важност тих догађаја као основи за даља политичка настојања Срба да оснаже националну свест и даље развијају и унапређују наше друштво у целини.
“Serbia is a heavenly mosaic and every piece and every man in that mosaic is worthy of gold and precious. Both in the past and in the present. Every part of Serbia has built itself into our state and community. That is why we must always remember that little pebble. One of those foundation stones is also May Assembly, when the Serbs on this side of the Sava and the Danube made Serbian Vojvodina from their hearts and souls, dreaming the dream which came true in November 1918 – to be united with their mother country Serbia and to create joint and indestructible, unique Serbia for eternity. We dedicate this panel to the heroes of those glorious days in 1848-1849, their persistent struggle and sacrifices”, said Nikola Banjac, PhD.
The event in Sremski Karlovci began by the national anthem of the Republic of Serbia, and in the first row, among the eminent guests, there were Prime Minister Miloš Vučević, Jovan Milanović, Rector of the High Clerical School, ministers in the Government of the Republic of Serbia. The audience included students of this school and other faculties from Novi Sad, as well as other guests.
“The panel organized by the Foundation recalls those difficult moments from the revolution. For me, the greatest message is that of the unity and harmony of the Serbian people, no matter where they lived at that time, when, owing to the huge sacrifice of the Serbs from all regions they succeeded in their struggle for the Voivodeship of Serbia,”, said Petar Đurđev.
In the centre of attention was the discussion about the topic of the causes and initiators of the revolutionary activities in Europe in 1848-1849, with an overview of the position of the Serbian people in the Balkans at that moment. The discussion included the foundations of the Serbian idea in Vojvodina from different perspectives, as well as the course of the war by the end of 1849 and the Russian intervention, the creation of Serbian Vojvodina, i.e., the Voivodeship of Serbia and Banat of Temes, as well as the consequences of those events on today’s situation. Archpriest- Stavrophorus Branko Ćurčin made an emotional speech about the suffering of the Serbs in the war and about the devastation of Novi Sad.
